Hue, the ancient capital of Vietnam, is often overlooked by families who fear so much history and culture will bore their children to tears. If you’re tight on time it’s probably the place that will get crossed off your Vietnam itinerary first.

But wait a minute, let me explain why Hue is a great family travel destination. I’ll give you some family travel tricks and tips to make your visit to Hue with toddlers an absolute success for even the littlest members of the family!

We actually stayed 4 days in Hue as we needed to unwind and regroup. We were travelling long-term and had plenty of time to spare. Looking back on our visit to Hue and on the advice of several locals, two days is the perfect amount of time to see all the sights and get a good feel for the place. Our extended stay has helped us weed out the “boring” bits and provide you all with a succinct and time-saving two-day itinerary in Hue with toddlers.

What’s so great about Hue with Toddlers?

Yes, Hanoi may have its famous Old Town and Hoi An delivers charm in abundance, but don’t skip Hue. This ancient capital offers modern conveniences alongside beautiful historical sights, lively nightlife and some great restaurants.

In fact, Hue is a lot more family-friendly than Hanoi.  Hanoi can be challenging with toddlers Read why and my tips to make Hanoi less stressful.

Hue with Toddlers Highlight #1: The Imperial Enclosure and Citadel

Hue’s Citadel is the centre of the city in more than just geographical terms. This vast and elaborate fortified area was built in the early 19^th century and, after years of neglect and war damage, it is finally being restored to its previous grandeur.

The Imperial Enclosure is the former Royal residence within the secure grounds of the Citadel. It’s a great place to stroll around with striking buildings (I love the roofs) and most signs in English – just keep an eye on the little ones due to rubble and restoration work. Deep within the Imperial Enclosure, you can see what remains of the Forbidden Purple City – a highly exclusive area that was the Emperor’s personal living quarters.

The Citadel itself is huge and as our morning visit was already turning out to be very hot and sweaty, we hired an electric golf buggy to take us around. This meant the children had lots of energy for exploring each sight and could rest between visits. They loved the buggy too. We would definitely recommend it to rest your toddler’s legs.

Hue with Toddlers Highlight #2: Royal Tombs

Despite their morbid undertones, tombs, cemeteries and catacombs are all fascinating places for toddlers and young children. The Royal tombs surrounding Hue are no exception and are some of the best we’ve ever visited.  We hired a car and driver for the morning to take us around three of the main tombs (they are all out of town) and drop us off at the Thien Mu Pagoda (see below).

My absolute favourite was the Tomb of Minh Mang. This stunning Tomb is set against a beautiful forest and is a very atmospheric place to visit. The children loved posing next to the lifesize stone soldiers and animals guarding the entrance.

Hue with Toddlers Highlight #3: Pagoda and Dragon Boat ride

Pop in a taxi from the centre of Hue to Thien Mu Pagoda (4 km outside town) or tag it on to a day trip to the tombs, which is what we did. This iconic pagoda situated in a beautiful spot overlooking the Perfume River is magnificent. The Pagoda is 7 stories high and dancing cicadas deafen you as you meander through the pretty grounds.

After a leisurely visit to Thien Mu Pagoda, we clambered on to one of the small houseboats down on the river. As part of our tour, a local family had prepared us a traditional meal of rice, meat and fish on their basic houseboat.

It was a great experience for the children as they played with the older girl who lived (and worked) on the boat. Not only did they learn about life on a boat, see water buffalo grazing on the bank but they also got to see a child’s life so different and far removed from their own but with so much in common – like playing and laughing!

Hue with Toddlers: 2 day Hue itinerary

To give you a little taste of how we structured our time in Hue, here is an outline of our very toddler-friendly itinerary. Although we spent 4 days in Hue, it’s doable in 2 days so we shrunk it down so that it can fit into most Vietnam itineraries.

Day 1: In the morning, we visited The Citadel and the Imperial Enclosure. We brought a combined ticket for the Citadel and some of the main tombs which had to be used within 2 days.

After a sweaty morning, we went back to the hotel for lunch, a swim and a siesta. We even managed to find a café with a garden hidden at the back filled with children’s play equipment and toys where we spent a very relaxing hour.  Top tip – if you’re travelling across town then hire a cyclo tuk-tuk. Our kids loved it!

Day 2: The next morning, we hired a driver to take us around the main tombs. We visited the Tombs of Tu Doc, Minh Mang and Khai Ding. All of which had beautiful grounds so the children could run around and explore. We used our lightweight Boba Air sling when Zizi got tired.  The driver dropped us off at Thien Mu Pagoda and we caught a Dragon Boat ride back to town.  Our tour driver picked us up and took us back to our hotel.

 

As we’d had a full-on morning, we rested and swam in the afternoon. For dinner, we went to the very atmospheric and local Lien Hoa, a famous vegetarian restaurant and filled our bellies with incredibly tasty and healthy vegetables.

Comments Welcome! Help other families have a great time in Hue with toddlers

Welcome to the World for a Girl community. Please share your own ideas and thoughts about Hue with toddlers. Do you agree with our Hue highlights or do you have others to add? What tips do you have for Hue with toddlers?

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Travelling around Southeast Asia with kids? We have been living, holidaying and travelling in SE Asia for almost two amazing years now. Find out our best Asia with kids travel tips, discover the best family-friendly destinations in SE Asia and learn how NOT to make the (many) mistakes we’ve made by checking out our collection of in-depth family travel posts on Myanmar | Thailand | Malaysia | Singapore | Vietnam | Cambodia and more.

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