Latest experience visiting Hanoi's "ancient town" 2024

What is in Duong Lam ancient village?

Duong Lam ancient village is located 44 km west of Hanoi city center, in Son Tay town, Hanoi. Although often called an ancient village, Duong Lam actually used to consist of 9 villages belonging to Cam Gia Thinh commune, Phuc Tho district, Son Tay town, of which 5 villages are Mong Phu, Dong Sang, Cam Thinh, Doai Giap and Cam Lam adjacent to each other. These villages are linked together into a unified entity with customs, habits and beliefs that have not changed for thousands of years. This place is also known as the land of two kings because it is the birthplace of Phung Hung and Ngo Quyen.

Photo: Internet.

Today, this is the only Vietnamese village that still retains its ancient features. The houses in Duong Lam are built from laterite and earth, looking extremely simple and ancient.

Mong Phu village gate was built in 1833 with arched architecture and laterite layer next to the banyan tree over 300 years old creating a truly peaceful and ancient landscape. This village is called laterite village.

Today, this is the only Vietnamese village that still retains ancient features from ancient times. Photo: Internet.

Right in the middle of the village is Mong Phu communal house. The communal house was built 380 years ago, is 1800m2 wide, and has strong Vietnamese-Muong architectural features, simulating the architecture of a stilt house with a wooden floor above the ground. Inside the communal house, there are many prominent parallel sentences.

Coming to Duong Lam ancient village during the festival season, visitors can participate in folk games such as blindfolded duck catching, Chinese chess, cockfighting, tug of war... with the sound of drums and an unforgettable, joyful and bustling atmosphere.

Coming here, visitors will be free to visit traditional craft villages such as: soy sauce making village, peanut candy making village, gai cake making village,... Especially the scene here is kept almost intact as in ancient times. The working life in Duong Lam ancient village will also make visitors feel peaceful with the image of farmers plowing rice and doing handicrafts.

The best way to visit Duong Lam is on foot or by bicycle because visitors can go into every corner of the village without disturbing the quiet, peaceful atmosphere of the ancient houses here. Photo: Internet.

To get here, visitors can easily use motorbikes, cars or buses. Currently, the motorbike parking fee is 10,000 VND/bike and the entrance fee is 20,000 VND/adult and 10,000 VND/child. Visitors can also rent bicycles for 30-50,000 VND/hour or 80-100,000 VND/day.

Tourists can visit Ba Dien ancient house. This house is 200 years old. The traditional house has 3 rooms in the ancient Northern architectural style, the altar is placed in the middle facing the door, in the yard are flower gardens and very old wine jars.

Photo: Internet.

Tourists should also visit Mr. Hung's ancient house. This is the oldest house in Mong Phu village, built in 1649, nearly 400 years old with 12 generations living here. The house is structured in the style of 5 rooms and 2 wings, the 3 middle rooms are the place to worship ancestors next to the decoration is a set of sofas used to receive guests, 2 rooms on the side are used as bedrooms, the system of street doors is in the middle of the house. Outside the yard are gardens, flower beds, typical wine jars creating a very peaceful scene. Up to now, the house has been preserved almost intact the quintessence of Vietnamese architectural art.

Directions to Lam Street

Tourists can take the bus to Duong Lam. From My Dinh bus station to Son Tay bus station, take bus number 71, ticket price 14,000 VND. From Kim Ma bus station to Son Tay bus station, route number 70. From Ha Dong bus station to Son Tay bus station, choose route number 77. At Son Tay bus station, tourists take a motorbike taxi or taxi to Duong Lam ancient village.

At tourist attractions, if there are people from the relic management board, they will introduce the place to visitors. Photo: Internet

Buses are also a reasonable choice if tourists want to go to Duong Lam ancient village. Tourists can take the bus route My Dinh - Phu Tho, which is very convenient and has many trips continuously, only about 1 hour and 15 minutes to have a new trip.

If you want to be free in terms of time and schedule, you can go by personal vehicle. You can follow Thang Long Avenue or Highway 32 to Son Tay town. The road is also quite easy and convenient.

The best way to visit Duong Lam is by foot or by bicycle because visitors can go into every corner of the village without disturbing the tranquility and peace of the ancient houses here. In addition, when traveling by motorbike to each tourist attraction, visitors will have to park their motorbike and spend a lot of money on parking.

The houses in Duong Lam are built from laterite and earth, looking extremely simple and ancient.

At tourist attractions, if there are people from the relic management board, they will introduce the place to visitors. Tipping is not mandatory, but visitors should also respond to their enthusiasm. When visiting ancient houses, greet and ask permission from the family members politely, they will welcome visitors very warmly and friendly.

What are the specialties of Duong Lam ancient village?

Coming to Duong Lam, visitors will encounter households making and selling Che Lam. Here, Che Lam is a rustic specialty. In addition, there are famous peanut candies, sesame candies, gai cakes or te cakes.

Coming to Duong Lam, you must definitely enjoy tea with sesame candy, fried candy, fragrant peanut candy or bowls of cool, refreshing Che Lam. Photo: Internet

Rice sauce is also a popular dish for everyone, every family in the Doai region. The sauce is used to dip raw beans, fried beans, braised fish, water spinach, sweet potato leaves, and braised meat. In particular, soy sauce is braised with fish along with some other spices such as caramel, a few slices of galangal, and a few pieces of pork belly in a clay pot to make the fish very tender and remove the fishy smell.

What to eat in Duong Lam ancient village?

If visitors want to use services such as ordering lunch or a hotel near Duong Lam ancient village but have not contacted in advance, they should find a place to contact first before going out because these families usually start cooking when visitors book.

In a country meal, the main dish can be sweet and fragrant sugarcane chicken or golden, fragrant roasted meat. Photo: Internet.

In addition, you can also taste the flavor of hot banh te or order a traditional rustic meal with extremely simple and familiar dishes such as: Son Tay banh te, sticky rice with gac fruit, braised fish, cabbage and perch soup... In the rustic meal, the main dish can be sweet and fragrant sugarcane chicken or golden, fragrant roasted meat.

Besides, you cannot miss the eggplant with soy sauce or a plate of morning glory with soy sauce. These are all delicious Hanoi dishes, simple but you will never forget them after just one bite.

Source: https://kinhtedothi.vn/di-dau-dip-le-30-4-1-5-kinh-nghiem-tham-co-tran-cua-ha-noi-moi-nhat-2024.html