Hang Sơn Đoòng
Largest cave passage in the world, located in Quảng Trị, Vietnam
The largest natural cave on Earth, in Phong Nha–Kẻ Bàng National Park, in Vietnam's Quảng Trị province.
Photo: Doug Knuth from Woodstock, IL, CC BY-SA 2.0
VN · Curated travel guide
Vietnam: 10 places worth the journey
Hang Sơn Đoòng, Thiên Đường Cave, Mỹ Sơn and 7 more — what each one is, and why it is worth the detour.
- Places
- 10
- World Heritage
- 3
- Language
- Vietnamese
- Currency
- VND
What to see in Vietnam
Chosen from everything Wikidata knows about Vietnam and ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions describe them, which is about as close to "famous" as open data gets. 3 are on UNESCO's World Heritage list.
Thiên Đường Cave
Cave in Vietnam
A cave 60 km northwest of the city of Đồng Hới, in Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It sits 350 meters above sea level near the western branch of the Ho Chi Minh Highway, in Son Trach Commune, Bố Trạch District, Quảng Bình Province, Vietnam.
Photo: Genghiskhan, CC BY-SA 3.0
World Heritage
Mỹ Sơn
Ruins of Hindu temples in Da Nang city, Vietnam
A group of abandoned, partly ruined Shaiva Hindu temples in central Vietnam. The Kings of Champa, rulers of an Indianized kingdom of the Cham people, built them between the 4th and 13th centuries. They are devoted to the worship of God as Shaivism understands him, under the name Shiva, The Auspicious One.
Photo: Chainwit., CC BY 4.0
World Heritage
Citadel of the Hồ Dynasty
UNESCO World Heritage site in Thanh Hóa, Vietnam
Built of stone in the 15th century in Vietnam's Thanh Hóa province: a fortress that served as the Hồ dynasty's (1398–1407) western capital, and remained a major centre of politics, economy and culture from the 16th to the 18th century.
Photo: Loi Nguyen Duc, CC BY 2.0
World Heritage
Imperial Citadel of Thăng Long
Historic complex of buildings in Hanoi, Vietnam
Standing at the heart of Hanoi, a group of historic buildings bound up with Vietnam's past, begun in 1010 and completed early in 1011, in the reign of Emperor Lý Thái Tổ of the Lý dynasty.
Photo: Grenouille vert, CC BY-SA 3.0
Củ Chi tunnels
Network of tunnels in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
A vast network of linked tunnels in Củ Chi District, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam, part of a much bigger network under much of the country. Several military campaigns of the Vietnam War were fought here, and the Viet Cong used them as their base for the Tết Offensive in 1968.
Photo: Kevyn Jacobs, Public domain
Mekong Delta
Delta of the Mekong River at its mouth in southern Vietnam
Also called the South-western Region or the Western Region: more than 40,500 km² (15,600 sq mi) of south-western Vietnam, where the Mekong splits into many distributaries on its way to the sea.
Photo: Unknown, Public domain
Fansipan
Tallest mountain in Vietnam
A mountain in Vietnam, first measured in 1909 at 3,143 metres (10,312 ft), a figure later corrected to 3,147.3 metres (10,326 ft).
Photo: Isderion ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0 de
Landmark 81
Supertall skyscraper in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
A supertall skyscraper in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, mainly funded and developed by Vinhomes, Vietnam's biggest real-estate developer.
Photo: Joefrance1995, CC BY-SA 4.0
Hoằng Phúc Temple
Building in Vietnam, Vietnam
A temple in Thuan Trach Village, Mỹ Thủy Commune, Lệ Thủy District, Quảng Bình Province, in Vietnam's North Central Coast Region; over 700 years old, it is one of the oldest temples in Central Vietnam.
Photo: Genghiskhan, CC BY-SA 4.0
About Vietnam
Officially the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam (SRV), a country on the eastern edge of Mainland Southeast Asia, covering about 331,000 square kilometres; with over 102 million people, it ranks 16th among the world's countries by population. One of Southeast Asia's two communist states, it has China to its north and Cambodia and Laos to its west, with the Gulf of Thailand to its southwest and the South China Sea to its east, where it shares, and disputes, sea borders with other countries.
Officially The Socialist Republic of Viet Nam.
Based on the Wikipedia article, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0: the facts are Wikipedia's, the wording is this site's.
Questions travellers ask
What is worth seeing in Vietnam?
This guide lists 10: Hang Sơn Đoòng, Thiên Đường Cave, Mỹ Sơn and Citadel of the Hồ Dynasty and others. Mỹ Sơn, Citadel of the Hồ Dynasty and Imperial Citadel of Thăng Long are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
How were these places chosen?
By machine, from open data, with no human ranking them and nobody able to pay for a place on the list. Everything Wikidata records in Vietnam that is a building, a landform, a protected area or a tourist attraction, has coordinates, a photograph and an English Wikipedia article, is ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions wrote about it. Provinces, cities, airports, stations and stretches of sea shared with the neighbours are filtered out.
Which places here are UNESCO World Heritage Sites?
3 of the 10 in this guide: Mỹ Sơn, Citadel of the Hồ Dynasty and Imperial Citadel of Thăng Long. That is not the full count for Vietnam, only the listed sites that made this guide.
What language is spoken in Vietnam, and what currency?
Vietnamese. The currency is VND.
How do I get mobile data in Vietnam?
A travel eSIM is usually the cheapest way, and avoids a roaming bill. The plans suggested at the foot of this guide start at $2.09 for 1GB per day. The eSIM is data-only and sits alongside your normal SIM, so calls, texts and WhatsApp keep working on your own number.
Which networks would my phone use in Vietnam?
Viettel Mobile, MobiFone and Vinaphone. Your phone picks whichever has the best signal where you are, the same way a local phone does.
One practical note: staying online
Maps, tickets and translation all want data, and roaming is the expensive way to get it. A Computatus eSIM eSIM connects to Viettel Mobile, MobiFone and Vinaphone once you land, and installs by QR code before you leave.
See 24 Computatus eSIM plans for Vietnam from $2.09
| Plan | Data | Valid | Price | Order |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1GB per day Cheapest | 1 GB | 1 day | $2.09 | Get it → |
| 1GB per day | 1 GB | 1 day | $2.29 | Get it → |
| 1GB for 7 days | 1 GB | 7 days | $2.83 | Get it → |
| 2GB per day | 2 GB | 1 day | $2.86 | Get it → |
| 2GB per day | 2 GB | 1 day | $3.01 | Get it → |
| 3GB per day | 3 GB | 1 day | $3.94 | Get it → |
No app needed. Install by QR code before you fly, keep your own number for calls, and it connects the moment you land.
Viettel Mobile 5GMobiFone 4GVinaphone 5G
A commission on plans bought through these links is what pays for this guide. Nothing above depends on it: the places are chosen before any price is looked up.