In order to have a profound understanding on Vietnam's architecture, you should get to know several typical architecture types namely architecture for housing, temples and pagodas, tombs, and bridges.

Architecture for houses

Traditionally, Vietnamese’s houses are made of mainly wood, bamboo, leaves, and natural-related materials. However, with the development in every aspect, Vietnam’s ancient architecture has achieved much change over the past decades. Today, if you visit the country, especially big cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, you will find something similar to Western architecture style featured by multiple-storey buildings. When staying in Vietnam for a long time, you may rent a high-quality apartment which is always available for foreigners. Currently, Hanoi’s traditional houses have gradually been upgraded and replaced by stable houses, apartments and high buildings with modern lifts. If you want to step back to a place which is somehow original, you may visit the Old Quarter with 36 different traditional streets. Although not all the streets are kept in its original situation, it still preserves the basic traditional architecture style. Most tourists coming to Hanoi are attracted by the Old Quarter. You may take a short cyclo tour to travel around for sightseeing. Another ancient site is the Ancient Town of Hoi An with a combined architecture style of China, Japan and Vietnam which constitutes a featured-but-Vietnamese style. If the antique architecture of the two sites has satisfied you yet, we suggest you to take a journey to several mountainous provinces of Vietnam like Hoa Binh, Sapa, Tay Nguyen where the architecture for living houses is so special and distinctive. Nha San (in Hoa Binh, Sapa and several northern mountainous provinces) and Nha Rong (in Tay Nguyen provinces) are two typical examples for the difference. Coming to Hoa Binh, you will have chance to observe a kind of architecture which is closely attached to the native people’s customs and traditions, Nha San architecture. Many ethnic groups live in Nha San, however, Nha San of each group has specific characteristics that make it different. Another special type of houses of ethnic groups is Nha Rong which is popular in Tay Nguyen. Nha Rong is different from Nha San since it is set up not for the purpose of living; instead, it functions as a communal house where people in a village gather in important days like holidays, weddings, festivals, etc. Like Nha San, Nha Rong of each group has certain features. Nevertheless, they are all very large (about three or four times larger than normal houses) with very high roof. A small tip that you may find a little bit inconvenient is that in Nha Rong and Nha San, there are no toilets inside; instead, they are built outside. Leaving the mountainous regions, if you step back to rural provinces, you may catch some kinds of hutches or cottages (especially along several rivers like the Red River). A small number of people still live in such kinds of houses. Another less-used kind of houses is floating houses which are common seen in fishing villages. Fishers and their families live there, any daily activity take place on boat. If you are in Hanoi, you may visit Vietnam Museum of Ethnology. A lot of tourists like to visit this Museum since it contains various items and models of different ethnic groups.

Architecture for Temples and Pagodas

Eastern countries in general and Vietnam in particular possess a wide variety of temples and pagodas. In Vietnam, each temples and pagoda has a special architecture style depending on time of construction, type of construction and many other factors. However, there is one similar point in term of location that almost temples and pagodas are situated by rivers/lakes or on mountains. In the north, most temples and pagodas concentrate in Hanoi and several neighboring provinces. Temple of Literature in Hanoi is a well-known attraction to foreign tourists since it has a traditional architecture pattern. Besides, tourists can also visit a lot of pagodas in different part of Hanoi. However, you have to remember that temples and pagodas are solemn places, so you shouldn’t wear clothes which are too short or too thin. If you are planning to travel around the northern provinces of Vietnam, there are several recommended temples and pagodas which might attract you. The architecture of each pagoda and temple has distinctive and special features which can only be grasped once you directly visit them:

Bai Dinh Pagoda (Ninh Binh province): Possessing a majestic and marvelous architecture, Bai Dinh Pagoda in Ninh Binh province is the largest pagoda of Vietnam. A large number of foreign and domestic tourists are attracted by the grandiose but traditional Bai Dinh. Here, you will not only have opportunity to observe the architecture of the pagoda, but also a huge variety of Buddha statues, one of these statues is the biggest one in the Southeastern Asia.

But Thap Pagoda (Bac Ninh province) is featured by ancient artistic architecture style and original sculpture skill. Historically, it is said that the pagoda is designed by Le Thanh Tong King’s wife and two bronzes in the 17^th century.

Perfume Pagoda (Hanoi) is a cultural and religious complex of Vietnam with various pagodas, temples and communal houses. Its beauty is not only created by the architecture itself but created in the harmony of architecture, hills, mountains and a long river (Huong – Perfume river) flowing around hills and mountains.

Yen Tu pagoda (Uong Bi-Quang Ninh): Vietnam’s Buddhism is said to originate here. You must be a patient person in order to fully explore its architecture since the most important pagoda- Dong Pagoda- is located at the highest point in the top of Yen Tu mountain. However, once you get to the top, your effort will be satisfactorily compensated.

The above pagodas are just a small part in the overall temples and pagodas complex of Vietnam. Visiting all of them is really difficult but getting to know about each one’s architecture style is much more time-consuming. Incase you had a very short time in Hanoi, you could take half of a day to visit eight different pagodas around Westlake to explore the architecture of pagodas which are Van Nien, Sai, Vong Thi, Kim Lien, Tao Sach, Hoang An, Pho Linh and Tran Quoc.

Architecture for Bridges

Vietnam is the country where the two long rivers pass by. Almost of provinces in the North belong to the Red River Delta. A number of provinces in the South belong to the Mekong Delta. That is the reason why Vietnam encompasses a large number of bridges spreading along the country. Bridges have become an important part of Vietnamese daily life with diversified styles, sizes and using purposes which help transportation become easier for those living on the rive sides, which help people from this side closer to the ones from the other. Bridges are even presented in the old saying as a metaphor that is transferred from generation to generation of Vietnamese:

“Muốn sang thì bắc cầu Kiều

Muốn con hay chữ thì yêu lấy thầy”

(Would like to pass river, Kieu Bridge (a beautiful bridge in literature) should be constructed

Would like your kid knowledgeable, be kind to his teacher.)

Nowadays, Vietnam has been constructing many majestic and stable bridges with western and modern architecture style. However, there are various kinds of bridges which are so special and worth-seeing. In rural areas of Vietnam, especially in remote regions, rudimentary and simple bridges are still remained. In rural villages, you will easily catch a kind of bridges with the main material of earth soil. They are very small since they just across the ditches.

If you visit several places near the Cuu Long River in the south of Vietnam, you will find a unique type of bridge which is only applicable for people, not vehicles. Such kind of bridge is called Cau Khi (MonkeyBridge). Cau Khi is made from wood or bamboo (normally it is only made of a single bamboo or wood tree), some of which has no rail; it means you must keep yourself balanced while crossing such bridges or else you will fall into the water. Once you have experienced the feeling of crossing the bridge, you may admire the natives there since they are so skillful, just like an artist.  

Visiting Hanoi, the capital, there are also many special bridges which attract many tourists. If you want to have more knowledge of Vietnam’s architecture in colonial period, try to visit the Long Bien Bridge. It is the first bridge to across the Red River. This bridge is constructed by the French from 1899-1902 with former architecture style of bridges. Many people (especially the youth and the marriage couples) come here to take photographs, so if you are to visit it, take a camera to capture your interesting moment. There is a small bridge at Hoan Kiem Lake which helps tourists transfer to Ngoc Son Temple (which is situated in the center of the Lake). This bridge is called Thê Húc Bridge (means the concentration of sunlight at dawn). It has a special design and is painted red. Looking from a distance, it shapes like a shrimp curving on the lake surface.

It is not easy to list all the bridges in Vietnam with their distinctive architecture styles. If you want to have a deeper understanding about them, do not hesitate to put on your package and make an exploration to your favorite destination.