There are those near misses that go on to anger you for years. I had been to Hanoi years back and we did the usual tourist itinerary including a visit to Uncle Ho. But I could not recall having been to Thang Long,

Now I don't mind near misses as much when it's a great site or at least a good one. For instance, as a kid we went both to Cornwall and Devon. I am not sure if we visited any of the inscribed areas; I only recall the sunny beach and the nice waves. And frankly, I really look forward to travelling there a second time 30 years later.

It's an entirely different thing, if the site is mediocre at best. As other reviewers have pointed out this is a really "doubtful" inscription asking themselves "why this site has been added". To put it bluntly: The site isn't that old, original or oustanding. In Vietnam itself you have Hue which is a way better site from mostly the same period.

And even if you feel Thang Long warrants an inscription I would argue that the site was not ready when it was inscribed. To this day (8 years later) they are still carrying out basic preservation work while a big chunk of the site is off limits due to the Vietnamese military using the compound as base. The ongoing use obviously also impairs preservation efforts.

In any case, I used a 21 hour layover in Hanoi travelling from Guangzhou to Luang Prabang to tick it off. While I did not much appreciate the site itself, coming back to Vietnam and spending a few hours in the streets of Hanoi was fun and much appreciated.

Getting There and In

Thang Long is right in the middle of Hanoi. I walked there from my hotel in the old town. Be mindful, though, that Vietnamese road crossings are challenging and the traffic chaotic to put it nicely.

As I was short on time I appreciated that the site opens at 8 a.m. I think I managed to get in a bit before that. It nowadays isn't free anymore but costs 30000 VND. Most of the site can be seen from the outside, so you could ignore the opening hours and save the entry if you wanted to. The Vietnamese have also started putting signs everywhere, so it's hard to miss.

Seeing this was only a layover stop on my way to Laos I headed back to the airport after having visited the site. I had checked my luggage directly to the final destination and was only carrying light luggage. Bus 86 stops pretty close to the site and takes you to the airport for 35000 VND. Maps.me has the proper location. Lucky me, both my passports afforded me visa free entry to Vietnam.

While You Are There

While Thang Long is not much to call home about, Hanoi is a wonderful city with plenty of temples, Communist sites and French colonial buildings. Pertsonally, I think specifically the French Colonial buildings would warrant an inscription, but understand if the Vietnamese are reluctant on the subject.

Excursions to Halong Bay and Trang An (Ninh Binh) can be arranged in Hanoi at most hotels. Both are definitively superior world heritage sites than Thang Long.