Huế

Hue was the capital of Vietnam from 1802 to 1945, under the Nguyen dynasty, Vietnam's last royal house, which ruled under French protection from the 1880s until the abdication of the last emperor in 1945. The Imperial Citadel is a walled city within a city: 10 kilometres of walls enclosing the Forbidden Purple City, the throne halls, and the ceremonial gates, built to a design that combines Chinese Qing-dynasty precedent with Vietnamese interpretation. Much was destroyed in the Tet Offensive of 1968; the restoration programme under way since the site was listed by UNESCO in 1993 has rebuilt enough to understand the scale of what was here.

The Royal Tombs (seven emperors, seven separate complexes, each expressing a different understanding of how a ruler should be commemorated) are scattered in the hills south of the city along the Perfume River. Minh Mang's tomb, built between 1840 and 1843, is the most formally composed: a symmetrical garden complex with pavilions, ponds, and the tomb mound visible from the ceremonial approach through a gate that is still locked. Tu Duc's tomb is the most personal: the emperor used it as a retreat during his lifetime, writing poetry in the garden pavilions.

Hue's cuisine is the most labour-intensive regional food tradition in Vietnam: court cooking developed to satisfy emperors, now available at family restaurants for a few dollars. Banh khoi, nem lui, and bun bo Hue (the city's version of beef noodle soup, fiercer and more complex than Hanoi pho) are dishes that reward two nights in the city rather than one.

The Citadel deserves at least half a day. Enter through the Ngo Mon Gate, the main entrance to the Imperial City, and walk past the Thai Hoa Palace, the throne hall where emperors held court. Behind it, the grounds of the Forbidden Purple City, once reserved for the emperor and his family, are now partly open lawns and partly rebuilt halls, with the restored Thai Binh reading pavilion and its gardens. The Hien Lam Pavilion and the nine dynastic urns, cast in bronze and decorated with scenes of Vietnam's landscape, are among the finest surviving pieces. In the evening, parts of the Imperial City are sometimes lit for night visits.

The Perfume River is the city's spine. The Thien Mu Pagoda, with its seven-storey tower, stands on a hill above the river west of the city and is one of the most recognisable symbols of Hue. A boat journey upstream, stopping at the pagoda and continuing towards the tombs, is a peaceful way to spend a morning. The tomb of Khai Dinh, built in the 1920s, mixes Vietnamese and European styles, with a glittering interior of ceramic and glass mosaics.

Beyond the monuments, the city has a gentle rhythm. The Dong Ba market, near the Citadel, sells local foods, conical hats and household goods. Garden houses, traditional homes with courtyards and fruit trees, can be visited in the Kim Long area. The Thanh Toan covered bridge, a Japanese-style wooden bridge in a village east of the city, is surrounded by rice fields and is best reached by bicycle. Tam Giang lagoon, north of the city, is one of the largest lagoons in Southeast Asia, with fishing villages and sunset views.

Hue is also a base for visiting the former Demilitarised Zone, the line that divided North and South Vietnam, with sites such as the Vinh Moc tunnels, where villagers lived underground during the war.

The best time to visit is from February to April, when temperatures are mild and rain is limited. Summer is hot, and the rainy season, from September to December, brings heavy rain and floods, sometimes submerging parts of the city.

Phu Bai airport, around twenty-five minutes from the centre, has flights from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The drive or train journey to Da Nang takes around two to three hours, with the Hai Van Pass along the way. The Citadel, the tombs and the river take two to three days.