Tu Duc Tomb Hue, Vietnam

Tu Duc Tomb Introduction

Tu Duc Tomb- Lăng Tự Đức ( 嗣德陵) is a complex of construction including the burial area of the 4th emperor of the Nguyen dynasty. Located in a narrow valley of Thuong Ba village, Thuy Xuan ward, Hue city. In the beginning, its name was Van Nien Co but when Tu Duc passed away, they changed into Khiêm Lăng (謙陵) (Modesty Tomb).

Tu Duc Tomb Hue Vietnam History

In 1864, The emperor soon thought of building his tomb as soon as he was alive. Originally a good and romantic man, he chose to give himself a place where he can sleep forever. Upon the start of the construction, the Emperor himself took the name of “Van Nien Co” to name the tomb, with a desire “The Forever Tomb”. However, due to the construction of the mausoleum too miserable, expensive so a lot of building workers and some emperor’s relatives revolted so that why he changed the Tomb name to Modesty Tomb. In 1867 the tomb completed and 10 years later, Tu Duc passed away.

Tu Duc Tomb Map

This is the best direction to visit Tu Duc Tomb Hue from Hue imperial city (Hue Citadel)

 What to see in Tu Duc Tomb (Tombeau Tu Duc)?

This is the only royal tomb not only in the burial area but also the second residence of the emperor. So there are 2 sections in this beautiful tomb.

The second residence of Tu Duc

Tu Duc was a very sad emperor because of 3 things. Under his reign, the French came and controlled Vietnam so he was losing his power. The second is when he was young, he got smallpox so he couldn’t give birth even he had 103 concubines. And the last is he got a bad reputation for killing his brother. So he would like to escape from the Citadel to live in the tomb.

Upon entering the royal tomb, there is a beautiful lake Luu Khiem and 2 Pavillions of  Xung Khiem and Du Khiem. These were the place where Tu Duc came to read books, get a good mood to compose poems, and relax.

Step up to bluestone step way, we will reach to Khiem Cung Gate, the center door opens only for the emperor. The right and left doors for civil and military servants.

After that, we will see the beautiful Hoa Khiem Palace- the working area of the Tu Duc emperor, Now it is the worshiping area of Duc Duc and his empress. On the right and left of Khoa Khiem palace is the working offices of the servants. Right behind the Hoa Khiem palace is the Luong Khiem palace- the private residence of the emperor but now it is the worship area of Tu Du emperor’s mother. On the left of Luong Khiem Palace is the royal theater Minh Khiem as known as the oldest Royal Theater still existed in Vietnam.

The Burial Area

Following the curved walking path paved by Bat Trang tiles leading to the burial area in Tu Duc Tomb. Firstly you will see a large courtyard with 2 rows of sculptures of horses, elephants, civil and military waiting for the emperor in his afterlife. After step up to 3 bluestone steps, we reach the 20 tons stone stele written about the emperor biography, his faults to the country, and the royal family. This is the biggest stone stele in the Royal Tombs system of the Nguyen dynasty.

Right behind the stone stele Pavilion are the 2 pillars- the symbol of 2 huge candles showing the emperor the right way to enter into the afterlife.

Then, there is the semicircular lake- the symbol of the Moon. Waking through the great gate is the Grave of Tu Duc emperor. The grave is quite simple but we haven’t known where the coffin is. Maybe somewhere in the tomb area or maybe in different places.

Tu Duc tomb entrance fee

To visit the Tu Duc tomb, you have to buy entrance tickets. It costs VND 150,000 roughly USD 7 for adults and VND 30,000 roughly USD 1.5 for children. Children under 5 years old are free. Moreover, the open time is from 7 am to 5 pm every day.

How to get there?

There are many ways to get to this beautiful royal tomb. You can ride a bike, take a taxi, drive a scooter with helmets, book a Grab bike, If you would like to have a day tour to visit all the must-see attractions, you should book Hue Royal Tombs Tour, Hue City Private Tour with us!