Truc Bach Lake Travel Guide - Great Things To Do In Truc Bach Lake

1. Overview Truc Bach Lake

1.1. Where is Truc Bach Lake?

This was originally a part of West Lake, located on the South East side back in the old days. Its name “Truc Bach”, which can be translated into “white bamboo tree” in English, was only named in the 18th century by the local inhabitants. Since then, this lake has been nominated as one of the most beautiful and breathtaking places in Hanoi for tourists and visitors to come and enjoy every bit of it.

The pristine and antique beauty of Truc Bach Lake during the afternoon

For the first time arriving at Hanoi, you will surely not notice that the West Lake is literally next to Truc Bach Lake and it was truly a part of this lake hundreds of years ago. After some actions were made by the locals who lived nearby, Truc Bach Lake “was born” and officially existed as a symbol of wilderness in Hanoi.

1.2. History of Truc Bach Lake

Truc Bach Lake was a creative idea from people who were living near West Lake at the beginning of the 17th century. They separated a part of this lake and then Truc Bach Lake “was born” during this process. Not so many local people know about this story or any myths about the creation of Truc Bach Lake. This lake used to be a sightseeing place that was exclusively arranged for Lord Trinh Giang with a palace during the Civil War time in Vietnam in the middle of the 17th century. Along with its outstanding scenery and atmosphere not so many lakes back then had and fortunately had become a favorite destination for the nobles. Truc Bach Lake had also witnessed the failure of the USAF in Operation Linebacker II with the event of Major John McCarthy being shot down by VC AA guns decades ago.

Nowadays, visitors can feel free to enter and have a look at every corner of Truc Bach Lake. Combined with so many interesting activities that people in the past can only imagine.

A bridge leads into Tran Quoc pagoda near Truc Bach Lake

2. Great things to do in Truc Bach Lake

Surprisingly, there are countless things that you can participate in during your visit to Truc Bach Lake. However, you can count on using a bit of sun cream just in case. Here are many fascinating and exciting activities you can do for a day at this lake:

Visit John McCain monument

On the side of the lake today there is a special relief commemorating an event associated with the nation's history. On October 26, 1967, during the Vietnam War, John McCain (US Navy pilot) while on a mission to attack the Hanoi power plant was shot down by an anti

This place attracted many tourists, especially American veterans who participated in the war in Vietnam.

US President Joe Biden visit the monument

Experience Highlands Coffee Shop on a yacht

Highlands Coffee yacht on the lake has proven to be the most scenic and stupendous area in Truc Bach Lake for visitors to come and enjoy. If you choose a seat on the second floor, you can fully observe the beautiful scenery of both Truc Bach and West Lake with eye-catching angles.

Experience riding a duck boat on Truc Bach Lake

This is considered to be the most amazing and fluctuating activity that you can try during your visit to Truc Bach Lake. The exact price for every ticket is around 100.000 VND for each small boat and double for each larger boat (family-size boat). After purchasing the ticket, you can freely use these boats for about an hour to discover the entire water surface of Truc Bach Lake.

Exploring islands of Truc Bach Lake

Interestingly, these two islands Chau Chu and Ngu Xa are the icons of Vietnamese traditional culture. When traveling here, tourists will have a chance to visit an old shrine whose name is Thuy Trung Tien - a fairy in the water. This shrine originally worshiped the God of dogs, a mythical creature in the ancient culture of Northern Vietnam in the past.

In this shrine, you shall find out more and more facts about both Vietnamese traditions and beliefs than anywhere else in Hanoi (Except for Quan Thanh temple, of course).

Thanh Nien Street - the natural border between West Lake and Truc Bach Lake

The origin of this street was once the canal which was created by Lord Trinh Giang and the people who lived nearby in order to separate West Lake from Truc Bach Lake in the past. Time after time, this canal has been changed into a new plain road for citizens of Hanoi to travel along Truc Bach Lake during the previous century.

Tourists can rent a bike and then ride along this road to experience the utmost and pristine beauty of this historical lake at an affordable price.

Tran Quoc pagoda - a must-go destination for anyone

This pagoda has been nominated as the oldest pagoda in Vietnam and still holds that title for many years until now. Nevertheless, there were some innovations made by historians to make this place more favorable but intact for visitors and disciples to come and worship the Buddha.

Tran Quoc pagoda has a unique style of ancient architecture and has been lasting for more than 1300 years. Such a fantastic place to pay a visit during your trip to Truc Bach Lake.

3. How to get there?

You can choose to travel by bus or by taxi, Grab, Be, etc. to reach Truc Bach Lake in no time. It is located in the central area of Hanoi so that would not be a problem for any tourist. Renting a motorbike is a great deal but make sure that you can find a good place to park it.

4. Extra tips for visitors

If you are getting tired of walking too much, there are many good hotels and motels nearby that you can choose to stay at. Mostly affordable prices if you want to know but there is a bit of inconvenience for the cheap ones. Also, visitors must be aware of pickpockets and burglaries along the street. If you have sensitive skin, a small portion of sun cream is advisable and will surely help you a lot.

Summary

Not as deep, ancient, and mysterious as Sword Lake, nor as dreamy as West Lake, Truc Bach has an idyllic, very lifelike beauty. The lake shore is embanked with stones, the sidewalk is paved with gravel. The flower beds planted around the willows along the path create a peaceful scene of "Hearty Hanoi". This is an ideal destination for all types of visitors day and night.