Things to do — Central Vietnam

Central Vietnam offers a range of experiences that covers history, nature, food and beach with rare density. Three cities and one archaeological site structure most of the travel in the region.

Hoi An is the centrepiece of the centre and one of Asia's most beautiful towns. The Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, packs centuries of trading history into a few hundred metres: 17th-century Chinese merchant houses, a covered Japanese bridge, community pagodas and French colonial warehouses. The Old Town is best enjoyed in late afternoon and evening, when the silk lanterns light up and day-trip groups have departed. The following morning, the central market and street food stalls (cao lầu, bánh mì Phượng, White Rose) open at dawn. Hoi An's beaches — An Bang and Cua Dai — are a 30-minute bicycle ride from the Old Town along the river; the Tra Que vegetable gardens and the Cam Thanh fishing village by kayak fill out the countryside.

Hue, 120 km to the north on the Perfume River, is the least touristy and most moving of the three central cities. The Imperial Citadel of the Nguyen dynasty (19th century) — partially destroyed during the Vietnam War — is one of the country's most important monuments and deserves a full morning. The imperial tombs of Tu Duc, Minh Mang and Khai Dinh, scattered across the countryside around Hue, are masterpieces of royal funerary architecture visited by scooter in a single day. The Perfume River is best explored by boat upstream to the Thien Mu Pagoda (7-storey tower, Hue's emblem) for a sunset seen from the water.

The My Son ruins, 45 km from Hoi An, are the most important Cham archaeological site in Vietnam. Built between the 4th and 14th centuries by Cham kings who worshipped Shiva here, the complex of red-brick towers rises from dense jungle in a steep-sided valley partly devastated by American bombing. Despite the damage, the atmosphere is striking — a rare tropical archaeology experience on the Asian continent. Arrive at opening time (6:30 am) to beat the heat and the tour groups.