Also known as the “Red Phoenix Flower City,” the largest port city in the North, Hai Phong is famous for its bright red phoenix trees on both sides of Tam Bac Lake every summer along with many magnificent and charming tourist attractions.

hai phong view

A noisy and vibrant city in Vietnam!

And if you are feeling difficult to decide things to do in Hai Phong, congratulations! This article is ready to help you have the most memorable journey in Hai Phong!

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1. Discover the natural beauty of Lan Ha bay

The first place to mention when listing things to do in Hai Phong – the city of red phoenix flower is Lan Ha Bay.

Discover the natural beauty of Lan Ha bay

It is located east of Cat Ba island adjacent to Halong bay. 

Lan Ha Bay has an area of ​​over 7,000 hectares with beautiful and sparkling scenery that is no less than Ha Long Bay. This place still retains the original pristine features, without human intervention with dense limestone mountains that divide the sea surface into small bays.

Coming to Lan Ha Bay, visitors can travel by small rowing boats to cross the ravines, explore the bay, and visit the natural, untapped caves. More specially, this place is also a large pearl breeding area in Vietnam; therefore, you can buy high-qualified natural pearls as a souvenir here.

2. Enjoy the crystal water of Do Son Beach

When wondering the best things to do in Hai Phong, it will be a pity if you skip Do Son – one of the best beaches  in Vietnam.

Enjoy the crystal water of Do Son Beach

You will find the most truly relaxing vacation in Do Son beach!

This place not only has beautiful scenery but is also called the paradise of sea-lovers with the blue crystal clear water or the lush green grass fields. The shell and sand in this Hai Phong beach are smooth and polished from years of abrasion.

In particular, the straight rows of coconut trees stretching on the pristine white sand will be ideal for capturing beautiful moments with your beloved friends and family.

Don’t hesitate anymore, Do Son Hai Phong Vietnam is waiting for you!

Keep scrolling down to explore more top things to do in Hai Phong!

3. Explore the grandeur of Elephant Mountain

The next tourist attraction which will make visitors fall in love with Hai Phong is Elephant Mountain – a complex of rocky mountains belonging to 3 communes of Truong Thanh, An Tien and An Thang.

When visiting here, you will have a chance to contemplate majestic natural landscape with mysterious caves, imposing mountains, and enjoy the fresh atmosphere.

The stunning caves at Elephant Mountain must be mentioned as Chieng Cave, Hong Voi Cave, Ca Chep Cave, Be Cave, etc.

Explore the grandeur of Elephant Mountain

Elephant mountain lost in the deep mist.

Besides, there is Bac Dau cave in the North and Nam Tao cave in the South. Especially in these caves, there are many layers of stalactites with a wide variety of unique shapes such as tigers, elephant heads, dragon flanking.

In addition to the impressive beauty of nature, on the top of the mountain, there are many traces of temples of the Mac Dynasty from the 16th century.

Not only the magnificent landscapes but the rocky elephants also arouse the curiosity and desire to discover by archaeologists, students, visitors who love history and ancient culture.

There is no wonder that visiting Elephant Mountain is one of the best things to do in Hai Phong!

4. Dig into Vietnam’s history in Hai Phong museum

The Museum is located in the Hai Phong city center at 65 Dien Bien Phu, Hong Bang District, Hai Phong City.

Dig into Vietnam's history in Hai Phong museum

It is considered as one of the most famous ancient architecture in this coastal city.

Hai Phong museum is a pride of the local people here, where retains an exceptional cultural beauty such as Minh The festival, buffalo-fighting festival, etc.

Hai Phong Museum is known as the place to introduce the history – revolutionary tradition, the cultural identity of Hai Phong city and permanent inhabitants.

In addition, research activities on climate, land, soil, archaeological relics, historical and cultural relics often are held in Hai Phong Museum. More notably, the generations of Hai Phong Museum staff have devoted and collected nearly 20,000 artifacts, including archaeological relics, which can prove the lengthy culture of Hai Phong.

Hai Phong Museum

These contributions help scientific research and scientific education more effective.

If you are a history lover, don’t skip this place when listing top things to do in Hai Phong Vietnam!

5. Pray for lucky things in Nghe Temple (An Bien ancient temple)

When it comes to Hai Phong, almost everyone always mentioned General Le Chan, who founded An Bien hamlet – Hai Phong now.

The An Bien Temple is one of the critical spiritual place built in the early 20th century, a national-level historical monument ranked in 1975. Female General Le Chan is a talented person in the rebellion of Hai Ba Trung.

Nghe Temple (also known as An Bien Ancient Temple) is a complex of ethnic architecture in the style of the Nguyen Dynasty. The temple gate is really a monumental, beautiful and grandiose architectural work, which look likes the entrance of medieval palaces, tombs, and temples.

When visiting this place, you will have a chance to see a wide variety of valuable antiques such as horizontal lacquered board, parallel sentences, or sophisticated sculptures, dating up to hundreds of years old.

We highly recommend Nghe Temple as one of the top things to do in Hai Phong city.

Nghe Temple

Let yourself walk around in peace in Nghe Temple.

If you have discovered this famous tourist attraction, let’s share your experience in the comment section below!

6. Discover the pristine beauty of Trung Trang Cave

Trung Trang cave, about 300 meters in length, passing through the mountain, is a cave created by nature over thousands of years in Hai Phong.

With thousands of natural stone stalactites of unique shapes, glistening like jewels, and Trung Trang Cave always makes people associate with the image of the magical fairyland.

Trung Trang Cave

The cave allows hundreds of tourists to visit at one time.

Here, there is a natural forest of Kim Giao that thrives, magnificent, and valuable in economic and scientific research.

Cave tourism is also a significant plan to develop Cat Ba tourism brand along with the importance of the worldwide biosphere reserve, National Park, Lan Ha Bay and a system of hundreds of sand beaches spread over bays in Cat Ba.

With many rocky islands rising from the sea, Cat Ba Island in Hai Phong is hidden in its unique and mysterious caves, becoming an attractive destination to tourists.

Pristine scenery and natural beauty in Trung Trang Cave are not the only reasons why this place should be listed in your things to do in Hai Phong. Let’s go and explore the cave by yourself to see other impressive charms!

7. Wander around Tam Bac Lake

Tam Bac Lake is located in the center of Hai Phong city, which is associated with the ups and downs of the history of this outstanding city. If you come to Hai Phong, take the time to walk around the lake to see the bright red phoenix flower, watch the green trees and enjoy the gentle wind blowing to feel the peace of Hai Phong.

When dark night falls, Tam Bac lake becomes sparkling and fanciful because the lighting system is arranged on the pavement on both sides of the lake.

Tam Bac Lake

The light flowed into the lake, creating symmetrical breathtaking red silk on the surface of the lake.

A tremendous number of photographers, artists, and tourists consider visiting Tam Bac Lake one of the best things to do in Hai Phong. It is impossible to ignore the picturesque night scene in Tam Bac lake.

Wander around peacefully, and take a break by the lake, visitors can listen to the story of the formation of Tam Bac lake from the guide or the local people exercising around the lake.

According to historical records, Tam Bac lake was formerly Liem Khe creek in the old An Bien village territory, now belongs to the center of the city, the branch connecting Tam Bac and Cam rivers (the main gate of Hai Phong Port).

In 1885, the French expanded and straightened Liem Khe creek into a canal to prevent the West and Vietnamese areas, which is 2.800 meters long, 74 meters wide, 7 meters deep. In 1985, the city renewed this lake by covering Tam Ky dam, preventing Tam Bac river from connecting Tran Nguyen Han street with Quang Trung street, build up ​​Tam Bac bus station, and name the lake Tam Bac.

tam bac lake hai phong

It is a pride of Hai Phong people.

In 1999, the Tam Bac lake was dredged deeper, the two sides were barricaded, planted the phoenix flower and green trees, had walkways and stone chairs for the people to take a rest and take fresh air.

8. Soothe your mind at No.1986 Cafe

After a day of exploring the beautiful and attractive landmarks of the city of Red Phoenix Flowers, in the evening, you can come to No.1986 cafe to enjoy the hot coffee and immerse yourself in the fancy space here.

No.1986 will attract you at first sight with classic well-decorated design.

No.1986 Cafe

When you step inside, you will feel the warm atmosphere with the dominant deep brown color.

When stepping through the lobby door, you will not see dense tables and chairs. Instead, which the architect wants the visitors to feel is the soul of Tonkin girls – fresh, gentle but peaceful, deep.

Tables and chairs are arranged around the floor to help customers, wherever they sit, see the sunshine of the day, feel grumpy in the summer, or enjoy soothing in the autumn. It also makes people think coffee becomes more delicious and tasty.

The long staircase is arranged in the circular space is also a unique point of No.1986. The design is hollow, long and straight, bringing diners from one exciting and unique experience to another. While the first floor is filled up with the natural fresh air, the second floor is quiet and serene, where you can find peace in your soul.

More importantly, space will become more sparkling and fanciful with golden lights in the evening, specially designed by No.1986 Cafe’s designers to create privacy and quiet for customers.

No1986 Cafe

This will be the best place for you to get beautiful photos.

If you are planning the best things to do in Hai Phong Vietnam, don’t forget this activity!

9. Seek for peace in Trang Kenh

Trang Kenh relic cluster in Trang Kenh village, Minh Duc town, Thuy Nguyen district, Hai Phong city has existed in the history of Vietnam for many generations.

Along with a rich cultural history, Trang Kenh is also a scenic place with superb natural landscapes created by limestone mountains and rivers. Because of that significance, this place has been ranked by the State as a cultural and historical site and scenic spot in 1962.

Trang Kenh

Local people believe that going to Hai Phong without visiting Trang Kenh will be a pity.

Many relics in Trang Kenh are still alive with time, and stunning highlights here make many visitors fall in love.

Trang Kenh Temple is a complex consisting of three temples and a pagoda according to the Truc Lam Tam To Buddhist lineage located in a large area.

The center of the monument is the Temple of St. Tran Hung Dao. In this land, he led brave soldiers to fight and defeat Mong – Nguyen invaders. To commemorate that great merit, Thuy Nguyen people set up a temple to worship him.

If you want to know more exciting stories about Trang Kenh, don’t miss it in your list of things to do in Hai Phong city!

10. Visit Hai Phong Opera House

The last activity we want to mention in top 10 things to do in Hai Phong is exploring Hai Phong Opera House, located in the center of Hai Phong city square.

The theater was built from the French colonial period on the background of the ancient market of An Bien village, the old central area of ​​Hai Phong city, the connecting point of the previous three French – Hoa – Vietnamese architectural areas. There are many flower gardens and commercial facilities around the Opera House.

Hai Phong Opera House architecture is built according to Baroque architecture, whose features are majestic, magnificent, splendid.

Visit Hai Phong Opera House

It can be said that the theater is one of the largest architectural works in Vietnam at that time. 

When building Hai Phong Opera House, the architects took advantage of the curves to create vibrant and lively spaces. When it comes to decoration, the most typical symbol of the theater is the image of the Lyre on the door – a symbol of music.

Dome-shaped ceiling with decorative flowers is decorated with the name of famous European musicians and actors: Mozart, Beethoven, Moliere, etc.

The work used to be a place of political and cultural activities of the indigenous rich people and the French army. Today, the main events of the Hai Phong Opera house are celebrations, meetings, performances, and so on.

If your destination for the next vacation is the city of red phoenix flower, we hope that this article about things to do in Hai Phong will help you. Contact AZ Local Trip to gain more thorough information!