Duong Lam Ancient Village – a peaceful countryside near Hanoi

Coming to Duong Lam Ancient Village, you will see most of the features of an old Vietnamese village. With banyan trees, water wells, communal courtyards, temples, winding village roads, small alleys, old wooden houses, and walls built with red bricks or old mud. Duong Lam ancient village appears in modern life as a peaceful and nostalgic area.

Duong Lam is the first ancient village awarded by Vietnam with a National Historical and Cultural Relic. In terms of preserving cultural and artistic history as well as architectural scale, Duong Lam ancient village is the third one in comparison with Hoi An Ancient Town and Hanoi Old Quarter. This place still keeps intact art and architecture of an ancient countryside in the Red River Delta.

This land has a lot of famous cultural celebrities in Vietnam, such as Bo Cai Dai Vuong Phung Hung, Mia Mother, Ngo Quyen, and Mrs Man Thien. Duong Lam is a place that has the two kings Phung Hung (? – 789) and Ngo Quyen (897 – 944).

Today, Duong Lam Village becomes one of the tourist destinations near Hanoi that attracts tourists who like to explore culture and history.

Tourist places to visit in Duong Lam Ancient Village

Duong Lam Ancient Village has many places to explore associated with the architecture, old countryside culture, and historical characters or events. Each attraction has its stories with its charm and meaning that we should go to see and feel.

Mong Phu village gate

Mong Phu village gate was built in the style of ancient architecture: the upper gate has a roof like a house, and the bottom is the gate. The village gate bears the imprint of the cultural architecture of the Le dynasty (1428-1527). In the past, the village gate was a resting place for farmers, travellers, and people going to the market. The gate lives in the memories of many people who live far away from home, and they always remember and find it emotionally.

Like many other feudal village gates, Mong Phu village gate is made of laterite with two wooden doors. On the right of the gateway is a large lake, and on the left is an ancient Buddha tree that is thousands of years old. Because of this peaceful beauty, the gate to Mong Phu village is a beautiful sightseeing spot and an ideal site where most of the tourists want to take pictures when coming to this area.

Mong Phu village communal house

Mong Phu village communal house built in 1684, includes Nghi Mon (gate), communal courtyard, two buildings Ta Mac and Huu Mac on both sides, and the Dai Dinh building (main temple) in the middle. This design is popular in the architecture of the ancient feudal dynasties. Inside the communal house, many ancient relics are a hundred years. The two sides of the communal house are two old wells. Let’s see them find the difference!

Old houses in Duong Lam Village

Duong Lam ancient village has 956 ancient houses built from 1649. The buildings here have 5 or 7 compartments with traditional materials, such as ironwood, old bamboo, terracotta brick, pottery tile, laterite.

The houses are spacious and divided into many areas: the main house, horizontal building, yard, kitchen, garden, well, barn, and covered gate.

Here are the most beautiful and famous old houses in Duong Lam are:

• House of Mr Nguyen Van Hung: The home of Mr Hung is impressive with an ancient gate and the shady-tree entrance. When going into the inside, we will have a feeling of tranquillity and extremely coolness because the house is mainly made of iron and jackfruit wood.
• The old house of Mr Ha Nguyen Huyen: Mr Huyen’s old house attracts a large number of tourists because of the green space, and its yard filled with deep brown jars for making traditional soya sauce. All objects are ancient in harmony with the decoration of the house.
• The old house of Ms Duong Lan: Lan’s special feature at the home of Ms Duong Lan lies in the horn-shaped decorations and the very high doorsteps, which makes anyone who wants to step into the house must bow. These points all show that this is the house of a successful person.

Phung Hung Temple

Phung Hung was the leader in the rebellion against the harsh Northern domination of the Tang Dynasty in Vietnam. After a successful uprising, Phung Hung built up the government and ruled for 7 years.

To commemorate this special king, Phung Hung Temple was established in many places. However, the most sacred and biggest scale is the Phung Hung temple in Duong Lam Ancient Village. It is because Duong Lam is the place where this national hero was born and raised.

Ngo Quyen Temple and Tomb

500 meters from Phung Hung Temple, the guests will reach the Ngo Quyen tomb. The tomb of Ngo Quyen is in the middle of a rice field full of tranquillity and surrounded by monuments bearing the imprint of history. That was the place where leader Phung Hung fought tigers to save people and the banana trees where the war elephants of old Ngo Quyen rested.

Duong Lam ancient well

In the old village of Duong Lam, there are many ancient wells. Like the commune temple, the ancient wells are the soul of many Vietnamese villages. Going around Duong Lam, you will see many old wells. The water at these ancient wells is very clear and cool.

Mia Pagoda

Mia Pagoda (Sung Nghiem Tu) was built on high ground in Dong Sang village. This temple keeps hundreds of rare Buddha statues. Stepping into the space of Mia Pagoda, you will feel the peace of mind in the land of the magical Buddha.

Frequently asked questions about Duong Lam Ancient Village

1. When should I travel to Duong Lam ancient village?

If you want to see all the beauty of the Vietnamese countryside, you should choose to go in the rice season harvest around May and June, or the festive season in January of the lunar calendar every year.

2. How long does it takes me to visit Duong Lam ancient village?

If you visit Duong Lam Ancient Village from the Old Quarter of Hanoi, it takes you about 4 hours to explore the village and back Hanoi. If you take the time to have lunch there, you can spend one to two hours more.

3. Which is the best way to visit Duong Lam Village?

To visit Duong Lam Ancient Village from Hanoi, you take a private car to the village. Then, you can walk around on the small lanes. However, if you want to go faster and visit a bit far away, you can rent bicycles for about 30 to 50,000 VND per day day.

4. How much is the ticket to visit Duong Lam Ancient Village?

The ticket price to visit Duong Lam Ancient Village is very low, with only 20,000 VND for an adult and 10,000 VND for a child.

5. Can I find the local food in Duong Lam Ancient Village?

Duong Lam Village does not have tourist restaurants. When you want to taste the local food there, you have to book a meal in advance at a private family. It is better to range the meal at Duong Lam Ancient Village through a travel agency.