Van Phuc Silk Village is also known as Ha Dong Silk Village. This village is located right on the banks of Nhue River, in Van Phuc Ward, Ha Dong District, 10km far from the center of Hanoi. Although the process of urbanization is taking place rapidly here, Van Phuc silk village still retains its ancient beauty.

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1.History of Van Phuc silk village

Van Phuc village is the later name. At first, this craft village was called Van Bao village, but because this name is the same as the name of the Nguyen Dynasty, therefore, it changed to Van Phuc village.

According to legend, Van Phuc silk village has a history of more than 1000 years. People in the past used to say that: Silk craft was born from Ms. La Thi Nuong, the wife of Cao Bien, a marshal of the Tang Dynasty from China, who had governed  Giao Chi district (the name of Vietnam by the Chinese in Tang dynasty). Ms. La Thi Nuong lived at Van Bao site. Here, she taught local people how to do business, to weave silk. After Ms. La Thi Nuong died, the villagers named her the village's emperor.

Van Phuc silk was first known to international comrades in 1931, at the Marseille international fair in 1932 in Paris, France, and was shown out at very high prices. Today, Van Phuc silk is exported to many countries around the world.

Raw materials for making Van Phuc silk are mainly from silk because of its softness and toughness. In order to create perfect silk products, workers have to do many elaborate stages such as silk, sizing, weaving, dyeing, drying... Van Phuc silk has a variety of designs. Patterns have four categories: animals, plants, objects, and graphics. Among the traditional silks, the most famous is Van silk, which has floating flowers that are smooth on the surface of the silk, and submerged flowers are only visible when exposed to light.

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2. How to go to Van Phuc Silk Village

If going by private vehicle, from the center of Hanoi, you can go via Nguyen Trai street to Ha Dong post office then turn right, or follow the route Le Van Luong - To Huu.

Alternatively, you can go to the village by bus. Bus routes to Van Phuc Silk Village are: 03, 07, 14, 20c, 25, 26, 31,32, 36, 50, 55, 79.

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3. Explore Van Phuc Silk Village

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Van Phuc Silk Village

Right passing through the village gate, visitors will be able to see the walking path decorated with colorful umbrellas. Along the two sides of the walking path, there are many shops closed together where to display and sell products such as scarves, ao dai, bags, clothes... with a variety of designs for visitors to choose. If you want to wear Vietnamese dress (Ao Dai) to take pictures, the shops also have Ao Dai rental services.

One of the most prestigious and famous selling addresses is the silk weaving workshop of artisan Trieu Van Mao, Van Xuan silk shop, or Van Phuc silk market, where you can freely choose the products you like best.

Van Phuc silk market is a place to introduce, promote and sell products to visitors. Each store has its own layout, but the common point at this market is the colors are always bright and fresh, and the product designs are diverse from towels, shirts, pants, Ao dai, as well as many other products. Decorative products are also made of silk.

Coming to Van Phuc village, in addition to buying traditional costumes, visitors also have the opportunity to learn about the industry of mulberry cultivation, silkworm rearing, and cloth weaving.

Woven frames with eye-catching colorful threads.

Besides the "silk road" with many shops, Van Phuc village also hides many interesting conners for you to explore and enjoy the peaceful and ancient village scene.

Relic of the bridge which has the appearance of Hoi An is made of wood, looking down on the blue water. The bridge leads from the modern road with busy traffic to the other side where the idyllic village is. Every day, villagers sit on both sides of the river, enjoying the wind and fishing.

The wooden bridge over a small lotus lake with luxuriant and cool trees around is a suitable destination during summer weekends in Hanoi.

The bamboo road is about 10 meters long, leading to the ancient mulberry garden - where the villagers maintained silkworm farming and weaving in the past.

 In the evening, when the lights shine on the colorful umbrellas, it creates a feeling of shimmering brilliance.

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Van Phuc Pagoda

Just on the left of the gate of Van Phuc village, you will see the ancient Van Phuc pagoda, the temple bearing the architecture of the Northern pagoda with the ancient banyan tree, lotus pond and wooden bridge that will surely give you a feeling of relaxation.

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The Long Mural Wall

The Long Mural Wall is an unforgettable mark for tourists when traveling to Van Phuc silk village. The village wall was changed by a giant painting that recreated the scenes of the old craft village painted by the villagers and preschool teachers in the village.

The mural wall is in the center of the village, in front of it is a spacious and peaceful communal house. It is so peaceful that you can even hear the birds chirping on the old tree canopy or even the children's reading in the kindergarten next door.

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Uncle Ho memorial house

Not many visitors going to Van Phuc village know about a national monument located near the bridge, which is preserved intact. Uncle Ho's memorial house is where President Ho Chi Minh lived and worked in December 1946 and wrote a call for the National Resistance.

The memorial house owns a lovely campus, with many green trees such as areca trees, loofah, rose garden, big jars... Many areas in the house display artifacts from the time President Ho Chi Minh lived here, along with other items associated with the life of Van Phuc people such as rice pestle, cloth weaving machine...

At the end of the tour of Van Phuc silk village, visitors can enjoy familiar dishes sold here such as coconut jelly, ice cream, nuggets, coffee, lemon tea, snacks... at reasonable prices.

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Tips for you: 

The most appropriate time to travel to Van Phuc Ha Dong silk village is during the cultural week that takes place around mid-November at the end of the year or in the evening on weekends. At that time, the atmosphere of the whole neighborhood will be busier, more colorful, also be a great suggestion for young people who like to check in.

On the first or full moon days of every month by the solar calendar, when you come to visit and shop, we should limit bargaining, because it has a bad meaning to the seller.

At the village gate, there is a quite large parking spot with a reasonable price of 5,000 VND/motorbike; 30,000 VND/car… You can park your car, walk to visit and shop comfortably.