Contents
- What to Expect from a Museum in Vietnam
- The Top 10 Museum Experiences in Vietnam
- 1. Rehahn Precious Heritage Museum, Hoi An – Best Museum to Visit in Vietnam
- 2. Vietnamese Women’s Museum, Hanoi – Best Contemporary Museum in Vietnam
- 3. Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, Hanoi – Best Museum for Children
- 4. Museum of Vietnamese History, HCMC – Best for Historic Content
- 5. ‘Hanoi Hilton’ Hoa Lo Prison – Best Historic Museum Site in Vietnam
- 6. Museum of Folklore, Hoi An – Best Small Museum
- 7. Danang Museum of Cham Sculpture – Best Cham Museum
- 8. War Remnants Museum, HCMC – Best War Museum
- 9. Institute of Oceanography, Nha Trang – Best Marine Museum in Vietnam
- 10. Museum of Royal Antiquities, Hue – Best for Exquisite Artifacts
Museums. Quiet places of contemplation, perfectly attuned air conditioning, softly carpeted floors, and comfy places to sit down or snooze. Some people love museums. For others, museums are, well, places to kill time or to escape the heat of the sun or a rainy day. The average museum experience in Vietnam, however, is a lot more rustic so to speak.
What to Expect from a Museum in Vietnam
Perhaps Vietnam is a place where history likes to take care of itself. And sometimes it does so in its own quiet way. As of present, you won’t find a stupendous national showpiece like the National Palace Museum in Taipei.
Nonetheless, places such as the Ho Chi Minh Museum in Hanoi has its own quixotic charm compared to a museum with contents displayed in sterilized formality. The War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh affords few comforts, but then nor does the content.
Perhaps some of the nicest museum spaces in Vietnam are small places like the Museum of Folklore in Hoi An or the commercial XQ Museum of Hand Embroidery in Hue.
Taking a step forward in terms of overall experience is the Vietnamese Women’s Museum in Hanoi. It strives for more diversity and contemporary relevance than simply relying on the overhype of war and revolution.
The Top 10 Museum Experiences in Vietnam
Our list of the top ten museum experiences in Vietnam is by no means definitive or complete. Those that top the list do more to bring their topic to life and relevance through dedication and care to their subject and the visitors’ experience. Others have unique or important topics that warrant the time and attention.
View all museums mentioned
1. Rehahn Precious Heritage Museum, Hoi An – Best Museum to Visit in Vietnam
- Opening times : 8 am to 8 pm
- Entry: Free
- Official Website
Experience: Fine art photographic museum capturing the lives and stories of Vietnam’s diverse ethnic tapestry and contemporary lifestyles. Beautifully curated exhibits covering 500 sqm also featuring historic artifacts, tapestries, and fabrics.
Rehahn is a globally renowned photographer who settled in Hoi An and dedicated his life’s work to the museum’s curation. His most famous work is Madam Xong and Hidden Smile in Vietnam now a permanent exhibit in the Hanoi Vietnamese Women’s Museum.
Many subjects featured in original photographs and prints benefit financially in the Giving Back Project. The museum sells prints, books, and there’s an online store.
Other Museums and Galleries in Hoi An
2. Vietnamese Women’s Museum, Hanoi – Best Contemporary Museum in Vietnam
- Opening times: 8 am to 5 pm
- Entry: Adults 40 000 VND; Children 10 000 VND
- Fun for children
Experience: A well curated historical and chronological perspective on the lives of Vietnamese from all ethnic groups, ages, and social status. Contemporary and temporary exhibits on current gender based themes and fun activities for children.
The Vietnamese’s Women’s Museum is a fairly modern museum. It opened up in 1995 and then went through a series of upgrades from 2006 to 2010. Exhibits detail childbirth ceremonies, child rearing, etiquettes, crafts, and an extensive collection of women’s fashion through the ages.
The museum is a short walk from Hoan Kiem Lake and the charming Old Quarter.
Discover more about the Vietnamese Women’s Museum
3. Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, Hanoi – Best Museum for Children
- Opening times : 8.30 am to 5:30 pm
- Entry: 40 000 VND ; Children free
- Guide: 100 000 VND
- Tourist Camera: 50 000 VND
- Suitable for children
- Official Website
Experience: Inside exhibits featuring 15 000 artefacts and photos of Vietnam’s 54 ethnic groups. Full-scale outdoor exhibits of ethnic communal, ritual, and common houses and a water puppet theater. Well presented with detailed English explanations.
This museum is a top favorite with visitors to Hanoi and one of the best museums for young children. The exhibits of practical everyday life, interesting objects, and colorful clothing are interesting to young and old alike. The outside houses and structures are equally fun and interesting to explore.
Sometimes there are activities for children, children can play outside, and the water puppet show every couple of hours is a nice addition too. There is also a cafe with food, and a nice gift shop run by the community outreach program Craft Link. Best to avoid Sundays when large local school tours often take place.
4. Museum of Vietnamese History, HCMC – Best for Historic Content
- Opening Times: 8:30 to 11:30 / 1 pm to 5 pm
- Entry: 30 000 VND / Under 16yrs half price
Experience: A professional and well-curated museum with an excellent overview of Vietnamese history from the primitive era to around 1945. Particularly interesting content on the Mekong Delta region and southern provinces.
This museum is a bit of a hidden gem situated in the botanical gardens next to Saigon Zoo. The decorative building itself was purposefully designed as a museum and is over 100 years old. Their website is very professional and informative. The museum also has a number of publications to its merit.
Exhibits include not only prehistoric artefacts, but nice collections on the Sa Huynh and Cham periods. There are beautiful displays on the Delta ethnic minorities and Oc Eo culture of the Mekong.
Northern exhibits cover the Red Delta from 179 BC – 938 AD, as well as the Ngo, Dinh, Le, Ly, Tran, Ho, Tay Son, and Nguen Dynasties. There is also a room dedicated to Buddhism and Asian ceramics.
Also in HCMC, see the Ho Chi Minh City Museum
5. ‘Hanoi Hilton’ Hoa Lo Prison – Best Historic Museum Site in Vietnam
- Opening times: 8 am to 5 pm
- Entry: 30 000 VND
- Audio Guide: 50 000 VND
- Not for very young children
Experience: The most infamous prison ever built in SE Asia in Hanoi’s historic old quarter. Experience first hand prisoner cells, artefacts, and dungeons. Learn about incarceration, torture and execution methods through dioramas. Exhibits with detailed English explanations.
Hoa Lo Prison was built by French colonialists starting from around 1886. Now, only about 2 000 km2 survive as one of the sturdiest and most solid structures in Hanoi Old Quarter. Exhibits stretch from the time of French Cochinchina to the American War.
Discover more about Hoa Lo Prison
6. Museum of Folklore, Hoi An – Best Small Museum
- Opening times: 7 am to 9:30 pm
- Entry: Free
Experience: An intimate and relaxing atmosphere where you can learn about everyday life and culture that has surrounded Hoi An Old Town. Exhibits include agriculture, crafts, music, and apparel.
Entry to this really nice museum space is technically free, but included in the ticket for entry to the Old Town. There’s adequate information in English and an interesting focus on silk weaving. Sometimes they have tea tasting from teas the shop sells and you can buy other quality and well priced souvenirs.
Other Museums and Galleries in Hoi An
7. Danang Museum of Cham Sculpture – Best Cham Museum
- Opening Times: 7 am to 5 pm
- Entry: 40 000 VND
Experience: A small but interesting museum with the largest collection of Cham artefacts in Vietnam and the world. Sacred statues as well as sandstone and terracotta pieces and building fragments dating from the 7th to the 15th centuries.
The Cham Museum is conveniently located in downtown Danang just a stone’s throw away from the Dragon Bridge. The Cham are a fascinating, yet forgotten people who ruled over most of southern Vietnam until around the early 1800s.
Most artefacts are of the Hindu pantheon. Special exhibitions have included the Sa Huyn who predate the Cham, and also contemporary exhibitions on Cham minorities in Vietnam, especially Ninh Thuan Province.
Discover more about the Cham at My Son Sanctuary
8. War Remnants Museum, HCMC – Best War Museum
- Opening times: 7:30 am to 6 pm
- Entry: 40 000 VND
- Discretion advised for children
Experience: Detailed and largely photographic exhibits of the Vietnam American War and how the war affected people and families on both sides. Curated collections include works donated by acclaimed war photographers. There’s an armament exhibit outside.
The War Remnants Museum is probably the most popular museum experience in Ho Chi Minh City. There are many moving moments to be had at this museum. A special focus is the agent orange display and documentations of various war crimes.
Despite the treasure trove of 20 000 or so rare documents, photographs, and artifacts the inside environment is often hot, stuffy, lacking proper seating or ventilation. It’s well worth a visit, but the subject matter could afford a little more dignity to the space.
Discover more about the War Remnants Museum
For Hanoi, see The Vietnam Military History Museum
9. Institute of Oceanography, Nha Trang – Best Marine Museum in Vietnam
- Opening times: 6 am to 6 pm
- Entry: Adult 40 000 VND; Child (6+) 15 000 VND
- Good for children
Experience: Models and photographic info display on Vietnam’s continental ocean shelf and sea life. Enjoy large and small aquariums with various species, There’s a formidable dated collection of preserved remains, as well as a humpback whale and dugong skeleton.
Not surprisingly, the best marine museums you can find is the Oceanographic Institute in Nha Trang. There’s a lot to learn here about Vietnam’s marine ecosystems and ongoing conservation efforts.
Large tanks keep species such as scorpion fish, horseshoe crabs, sharks, rays, and sea turtles. There are also small aquariums with plenty of coral and colorful reef fish. The upper floor has thousands of marine animals in formaldehyde jars. There are also taxidermied birds and displays of fishing artefacts.
10. Museum of Royal Antiquities, Hue – Best for Exquisite Artifacts
- Opening times: 7 am to 5 pm
- Entry: 50 000 VND
Experience: A relatively decent collection of royal artefacts from the Nguyen Dynasty housed in an historic building near to the Hue Citadel. Included is a display on the Cham Empire with additional artefacts.
If you’re visiting the Hue Citadel, this small museum is included in the ticket with no extra charge. This often overlooked yet precious museum is never that busy. It was established by the Emperor Khai Dinh as one of the first museums in Vietnam.
The building, Long An Palace, consists of 128 pillars with carvings and poems written in Chinese script. Artefacts include things such as beautiful hand stitched royal robes, gilded books, ivory works, ceramics, and comfy royal beds. There’s not a lot of detailed information in English and a visit may last an hour or less.
