My Son Sanctuary by bus and boat: Visit the ancient Champa Kingdom of My Son Sanctuary by bus and boat, a UNESCO World Heritage Site nestled between lush valley and mountain that was the spiritual and political center of the Champa Kingdom from the 4th to 13th Century.
Discover the history of the 300 year pottery village and learn the techniques of making ceramic.
My Son is a great place to learn the history and culture of the ancient Cham People. Although the temples were bombed by the US Airforce in 1968, there is still plenty to see. Arriving in My Son, our guide will take you back to the old time of 1400 years ago when the Champa Kingdom achieved regional dominance of the south Vietnam. Getting on the buggies, we will enjoy the cool breeze from nature first, then take a walk through the primary forest and in front of you, there will be the magnificent My Son Complex. Most importantly, our knowledgeable guide will explain to you about each temple and its functions. A lot of photo opportunities are waiting for you as well.
Saying good bye to My Son, we will go to a boat then enjoy the river breeze. On the way we stop by the 400 year old Thanh Ha pottery village to learn about the ceramic producing process before going back to Hoi An.
So many places to see, knowledge to learn, photos to take in a half day tour, My Son Sanctuary by bus and boat is a perfect choice for those who want to discover mysterious things and learn about the local life.
What is My Son Sanctuary?
In the 4th century, Cham People lived in the south of Vietnam today. They built a country named Champa Kingdom. Where Cham people came from is still unknown, but according to some research, they might come from Indonesia, or India,… Like those countries, Cham people were Hinduist.
In the 4th century, The Cham King (Bhadravarman I) built the first temple from wood, and it was burnt accidentally. In the 6th century (200 years later), A Cham King ( Sambhuvarman) built the first brick temple and later other kings built their own temples. Rumor has it each prince when they took over the throne had to built a temple ( There are about 70 discovered temples, there could be 70 kings ruling the Kingdom from the 4th to the 13th century).
All the temples in My Son sanctuary were built mainly to dedicate to Shiva ( the destruction in Hindu). Other than Shiva, they also worshiped other gods such as Vishnu (the protection), Brahma( The creation).
In the 14th century, Champa Kingdom was invaded by the Vietnamese from the North. Gradually the Vietnamese took over the Kingdom in the 19th century.
My Son was abandoned for almost a hundred years in the primary forest of My Son valley. In 1885, the French discovered it. 10 years later, they started studying inscriptions and architecture.
In 1969, My Son sanctuary was bombed by the US Airforce. 90% of the old sanctuary was destructed. In 1997, the Vietnamese government with the support of Poland, India, Italy started restoring the temples. During the restorations, the archeologists met a lot of difficulties due to lacks of documents which were destroyed in the wars.
My Son is situated in a valley and surrounded by sand stone mountains. It will be very hot in the Summer when the heat is trapped inside. Best time of the year to visit My Son is from February to April. In the rainy season ( From October to December), the road to My Son can be flooded.
There are 3 times during the day when you can visit the My Son: Early morning, morning, and the afternoon. It depends on your plans, available time, you can choose your most suitable times.
My Son sunrise: You will start at 5.00 am. You will reach My Son at 6.00. The benefit of getting early is you will have the place to yourself, avoid the heat in the summer, take a lot of good photos, see the beautiful sunrise.
My Son morning: you will start at 7.30 or 8.00. Note: the weather can be hot from 10.00 in the Summer
My Son afternoon tour: You will start at 13.00 or 13.30. If you finish late at My Son, you may see the sunset.
How to get to My Son?
From Hoi An and Da Nang, it is not difficult to get to My Son. You can easily go there by your self.
By private car with a driver:Â You can book a car to get there, the cost is around 600,000 vnd to 1 millions vnd. The driver will pick you up from your hotels, transfer you to My Son, wait for you for 2 hours and bring you back. Taking taxi or grab car can cost more, because they will run by meters.
Motorbike taxi:Â Motorbike taxi will cost much, because My Son is quite far from Hoi An and Da Nang ( 60 km). Grab bike ( You can download the app online) is available at the cost of 200.000 vnd, but you have to make sure that driver will wait for you in My Son, because grab bike offers no service there, you will find it difficult to go back. Booking with grab bike is sometimes limited, because due to the long distance, the drivers can deny your booking.
Scooter rental:Â You can also rent a scooter and drive there yourself, which requires you to have good driving skills. The cost of a scooter rental for one day is from 180,000 vnd to 250,000 vnd. It will be fun if you can drive safely. You will not only see more things on the way but also interact more with people. Of course this is not recommended if you are not used to the traffic in Vietnam.
A private My Son sanctuary tour: A private My Son sanctuary tour can have all the advantages above and eliminate the advantages. Mate Hoi An tours provides you with private tours which include tickets, tour guide, water, transportations. Book other tours here.
It takes 60 minutes to get to My Son.
Our guide will walk you through temples and give you lots of information of its history.
The Cham musical show is very colorful and full of traditions. You will have a chance to look deeper into their culture.
Free time to wander around the relics and take photos
Take a refreshing boat cruise on the river
The tour takes 5 hours including the drive
No, it requires a little bit of walking. There is buggy bringing you to the sanctuary half way.
No, the tour includes bottles water, tickets, transportations, guide.
English is used in this tour.
The boat ride takes 20 minutes
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One of the highlights of our Vietnam tour
Snow –
This is an amazing tour of My Son Sanctuary. The guide is so knowledgeable of this area and makes the tour interesting and informative. .The visit to learn about pottery making was fun and the boat trip back to town enjoyable. We recommend this tour!