The Thang Long Imperial Citadel, which is over 1,000 years old, is fifth on a new list of world’s 25 budget tourist spots compiled by the Canadian-based magazine The Travel.

The night view of Thang Long Imperial Citadel in the capital Hanoi.

The entrance fee to this historical site is just VND30,000 ($1.3).

Constructed in the 11th century under the Ly Dynasty, the citadel marks the independence of Dai Viet, today’s Vietnam. The royal citadel was the center of political power for feudal dynasties.

In 2010, the Thang Long Imperial Citadel was recognized as the world heritage site by UNESCO for its significant cultural values, making it one of the most popular tourist attractions in the capital.

The ancient buildings and other vestiges at the Archaeological Site at 18 Hoang Dieu Street, Ba Dinh District presents evidence of a Southeast Asian culture specific to the lower Red River Valley, at the crossroads of influences from China in the North and the ancient Kingdom of Champa in the South.

Thang Long Imperial Citadel.

Taj Mahal topped the global list, followed by Penang and Melaka in Malaysia, Torre de Belém in Portugal, Ottawa in Canada, Great Wall in China, Komodo National Park in Indonesia and Thailand’s Ayutthaya Historical Park.

Hanoi is currently the center of global attention as it will host the second historic summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. president Donald Trump.

International arrivals to Hanoi in 2018 rose 16 percent to more than 5.74 million from the previous year.

Rituals to see in New Year re-enacted at Thang Long citadel

Traditional rituals to see off the old year and ring in the new year were performed at the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long, a UNESCO world heritage site, on January 26.

 

Artefacts discovered in UNESCO-recognised citadel

The Conservation Centre for the Ho Citadel and the Vietnam Institute of Archaeology recently revealed the results of an excavation in the northeastern area of the Ho Dynasty Citadel and the Xuan Dai mountain archaeological relic in Vinh Loc district of central Thanh Hoa province.

 

Capturing Vietnam’s imperial citadel at fantastic moments

Award-winning photographs of Thua Thien Hue spotlight the poetic beauty of the central province’s major attractions. The "Beautiful Picture of Thua Thien Hue" competition attracted 642 works of 41 photographers. After six months, the organizers elected outstanding submissions for a prize-giving ceremony on December 21. The winning photos at the competition will be used by Thua Thien Hue Tourism Department to promote tourism in domestic and international markets.

 

Thang Long citadel featured through woodblocks

An exhibition featuring the Thang Long imperial citadel through the Nguyen dynasty’s woodblocks was held at the relic site in Hanoi on November 23 as part of activities to mark the Vietnamese Heritage Day.

 

Two underground tunnels to open at Thang Long Imperial Citadel

Two additional underground tunnels at Thang Long Imperial Citadel in Hanoi will be reconstructed and connected with the revolutionary relic system to open to the public in 2019.

 

Source: VnExpress