Option Private Tour: Ba Duong Noi Flute Kite Village

Visit Ba Duong Noi, a small village along the banks of the Red River in Hong Ha commune, Dan Phuong district. Meet local residents who work hard preserving and continuing the traditional pastime of kite flute flying.

Learn about the craft of making kites and the hobby of flying kites, which have existed for more than a thousand years. Discover how villagers prepare their kites from August of the previous year, aiming for the best possible outcome for the annual kite festival in March.

See how kites are made from Do paper (a kind of mulberry tree/Rhamnus balansae) and how the adhesive is the resin of the fruit of the civet tree. Watch as the fruit is crushed and mixed with water, with the residue removed, and the resulting liquid, as thick as rice water, is spread on the paper. When dry, the paper turns brown, hard, and waterproof.

Learn how kite strings were initially made from bamboo. Discover how, every year, around the third lunar month, people in Ba Duong Noi village look for young bamboo trees with white powder on their stems. See how they cut the bamboo into thin strips and boil them with a mixture of salt and castor oil seeds. They boil them for about six to eight hours, then take them out and tie them together. This type of kite string is flexible and tough. When exposed to wind, the strings are taut and light.

Hear the legend of the kite and flute, which were created as an invitation to remember the deep affection between the immortal world and the mortal world. Learn how the Vietnamese flute type is ranked as special; no other country has it. Hear how the Vietnamese kite flute team participated in the kite festivals of China in 2011 and France in 2013. When the Vietnamese kite soared high in foreign skies, and the flute’s sound resonated with each wind, it captivated international friends with surprise and admiration. Because, there is nowhere in the world to find such a strange, melodious, deep and flexible flute sound. Discover how to make a standard kite and a standard flute. Learn all the steps.

Option HALF DAY Group Tour : Visit 2 Villages: Conical Hat and Incense Craft Village + Train Street (optional)

Duration: ~ 6 hours
Morning from 7:45~13:30
Afternoon from 11:45~17:30

Start with a pickup from Hanoi’s Old Quarter and head to Chuong, a village that has been well-known for the craft of conical hat-making for over 300 years. Get an observe how conical hats are made and decorate a hat by painting it then bring it home as a souvenir.

Depart for the Quang Phu Cau village, which has been producing incense for more than 100 years. Take a walk to the centre of the village and see how locals make incense on the artisanal, family scale. Meet a family who specialises in dyeing incense sticks and take in the colourful bundles of incense.

Back to the city centre. First place for drop off: Hanoi Train Street. If you don't want to get drop off here, please wait in the car.