Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Museum

Address: Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Ba Dinh Square, Hanoi, Vietnam

Website: http://www.baotanghochiminh.vn/

Hours: Tue-Thu, Sat-Sun 8:00am-11:00am; closed Mon and Fri for official activities (hours may vary)

Admission: Free to view outside; mausoleum entry often involves long queues and is managed by authorities (no photography inside; respectful dress required)

The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is a monumental granite structure on Ba Dinh Square in Hanoi that houses the embalmed remains of Ho Chi Minh. The completed structure dates to the mid-1970s and functions as a national memorial.

On arrival visitors queue to enter a solemn interior chamber where the leader’s body lies in state; security and ceremonial guards are posted at the entrance. The wider site includes Ba Dinh Square, the preserved stilt house where Ho Chi Minh lived, and landscaped grounds that are part of the official complex.

The mausoleum was built in the years following Ho Chi Minh’s death to provide a central memorial and place of national commemoration. The complex was designed in a monumental style and has been maintained as an official site for state ceremonies and public homage.

The mausoleum stands in the government quarter of central Hanoi on Ba Dinh Square, within walking distance of other official sites and historic attractions.

• Visitor rules: Photography inside the mausoleum is prohibited and a strict dress code and decorum are enforced during visits.
• Combining visits: The site is centrally located and is commonly combined with visits to the nearby stilt house and the One Pillar Pagoda.

What to See#

• Ba Dinh Square: Ba Dinh Square, the public plaza in front of the mausoleum where key national ceremonies are held and where Ho Chi Minh proclaimed independence in 1945.
• Stilt house and garden: Ho Chi Minh’s stilt house and garden, a modest wooden residence preserved on the site where he lived while serving as leader of North Vietnam.
• Presidential Palace grounds: Presidential Palace grounds, the colonial-era building and gardens adjacent to the mausoleum complex that are part of the broader state compound.

Located on Ba Dinh Square in central Hanoi, the mausoleum is a short walk from the Presidential Palace and Ho Chi Minh Museum. Taxis and motorbike taxis can reach the area easily; there is public access to the square but mausoleum entry has regulated hours and security checks.

• Dress conservatively - no shorts, sleeveless tops or hats inside the mausoleum; security enforces a strict dress code.
• Expect long queues and possible closures on weekends or national holidays when official ceremonies occur.
• Leave cameras outside; photography is not allowed inside the mausoleum and storage lockers are provided at the entrance.