In the morning, board a boat for a trip on the Perfume River to visit the towering Thien Mu Pagoda, one of the most famous Vietnamese landmarks. Differing legends explain how the pagoda came to be - one tells of an old woman who instructed Lord Hoang Nguyen in 1601 to walk contemplatively along the river with a lit incense stick and to build a city at the spot where the incense stopped burning.
We then take a short drive into a lush valley of the river where seven tombs were built for seven Nguyen emperors. Each is an expression of the unique personality of the man whose remains it holds and each is comprised of three elements: a temple dedicated to the worship of the deceased emperor and his queen, a stone stele that records the biographical and historical high points of his life, and the royal tomb itself. We will visit two of the tombs of emperors Minh Mang and Tu Duc before driving outside of town for a lunch of classic Hue cuisine at a restaurant in a beautiful garden setting.
In the afternoon, we return to the center of Hué city. The massive Kinh Thanh Citadel is the most well known and iconic site in Hué. Begun in 1805 by Emperor Gia Long, it is actually a sprawling complex comprised of the Imperial City, several museums, lakes, and lovely gardens, all laid out in a series of concentric circles. We also visit the Forbidden Purple City, originally built in the early 1800s for the personal use of the emperor and staffed by eunuchs who posed no threat to the royal concubines. Read more Nearly destroyed in the Tet Offensive, the ruins today house the Royal Library and the grounds flourish with mimosa plants and vegetable gardens.
Late afternoon will find you in the Dong Ba market, the biggest and most significant market in Hue in particular and Central Viet Nam in general. Here, you can find traditional local products who are on sale along with varieties of goods, from the conical hats, toothpicks to luxurious jewelleries. After this visit you return to your hotel.