One-Day Motorbike Itineraries
Hung Yen’s Pho Hien From Hanoi by Motorbike: A Heritage Day Trip to a Former River Port
About 6 minutes to read
Pho Hien, in Hung Yen province, was once a busy trading port on the Red River and is now a Special National Monument area of temples, pagodas and an old temple of literature. The only road distance in the sources is “nearly 60 km” on an old provincial page (listed 2004); a department page gives 55 km, but by river, so about 60 km is an approximate road figure and a current map should settle it. As the sources describe it, the appeal lies in layered history spread across many temples and pagodas.
Most heritage descriptions below come from pages published in 2018 and 2019, with a few items from 2025 and 2026. No source reviewed gives ticket prices, opening hours, parking, riding time, road quality, or how to reach individual temples by motorbike, so none of those are stated here. Where sources disagree, both figures are given.
What Pho Hien was
A VNA wire story on the tourism authority’s site, dated 28 May 2018, describes Pho Hien as a bustling commercial port on the Red River, second only to the imperial capital Thang Long as a trading point and well known to merchants from China, the Netherlands, Japan and France. The sources date the peak slightly differently: the 2018 wire says the 17th and 18th centuries, while the 2019 feature from the Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT) speaks of the 16th and 17th. A Lao Dong article of 14 February 2026 adds that the port’s role declined from the 18th century.
The old quarter no longer sits on the river bank: a Hung Yen Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism page dated 15 March 2019 says silt has left it about 2 km from the Red River.
Getting there: distance and what the sources leave out
The Hung Yen provincial portal puts Pho Hien nearly 60 km from Hanoi and describes the road route as Highway 5 to Noi town, then a turn onto Road 39A through maize and rice fields and longan groves. That page carries a listing date of 26 October 2004, so it is old. The department page of 2019 gives 55 km, but as the distance by river, not by road. Treat about 60 km as an approximate road figure and check a current map, since newer roads may have changed the best way to go.
No source reviewed says how long the ride takes, what the surface is like, or which roads suit motorbikes. With about 60 km to cover each way, Fatigue on a Hanoi Motorbike Day Trip: Rest Stops and a Return Cutoff covers rest stops and a return cutoff, and Download Offline Hanoi Maps Before a Motorbike Day Trip is about preparing maps before a day trip.
One naming point helps with searches. Older pages call the place Hung Yen town or city. Since the merger of Hung Yen and Thai Binh provinces on 1 July 2025, Pho Hien is a ward of the new Hung Yen province and a central urban area, according to the Hung Yen Newspaper piece of 23 October 2026; Lao Dong’s article of 14 February 2026 uses the same name.
The monument area
The VNAT feature of 15 May 2019 says the Pho Hien relic complex was recognised as a Special National Monument in 2014 and is made up of 16 representative sites. These include the Xich Dang Temple of Literature, Chuong Pagoda, Mau (Mother) Temple, Tran Temple and Hien Pagoda. The department page says the cluster is strung out over roughly 5 km by 1 km in Hung Yen city, so the sites lie in a strip a few kilometres long.
| Site | What the sources say |
|---|---|
| Mau (Mother) Temple | Suggested as the first stop by the 2019 VNAT feature, beside the Ban Nguyet (half-moon) lake |
| Xich Dang Temple of Literature | Keeps nine stone steles naming 161 high-ranking examination laureates of the old Son Nam region |
| Chuong Pagoda | One of the 16 listed sites, called the area’s foremost scenic spot in the 2019 feature |
| Hien Pagoda | Two stone steles in front, dated 1625 and 1709, record how the old trading port settled |
| Pho Pagoda | Its incense hall resembles a Catholic church, with an arched roof |
The 2019 feature says that within a radius of about 5 km, visitors need only hire a bicycle, a motorbike or a cyclo to explore Pho Hien. That is a description of the town in 2019, not a statement about rental availability now. Parking at individual temples, entry fees and opening hours are not covered, so they are worth checking with the Hung Yen tourism office before a visit.
A mix of architectural styles
The same feature stresses that the monuments blend Vietnamese, Chinese and Western styles. The clearest example it names is the incense hall at Pho Pagoda. It also lists Vo Mieu, Thien Hau Temple and Dong Do Quang Hoi among the relics that keep Chinese-style architecture, a reminder of the Chinese families who once settled in the port.
What is restored and what is not
Counts vary: VNAT lists 16 representative sites in the special monument area; the provincial portal (2004) and the promotion centre give about 60 historic relics and 100 inscribed steles; the department page (2019) says more than 100. The sources do not reconcile these counts.
The promotion centre’s page, which is undated but cites a provincial report of 4 March 2025, mentions a project to rebuild and restore ancient Pho Hien. Lao Dong’s article of 14 February 2026 is more cautious: it says restoration remains fragmented and has not yet recreated the old cultural space. Since works are ongoing, conditions on site may differ from the 2018 and 2019 descriptions.
Festival timing
The 2019 department page says Hung Yen city holds a Pho Hien folk festival every year in the third lunar month. The exact dates change with the lunar calendar and are not given in any source, so they need confirming locally.
Other heritage outings from Hanoi
Elsewhere on the site, Co Loa Citadel from Hanoi by Motorbike: A Practical Visit Plan and Duong Lam from Hanoi by Motorbike: Village Access and a Day-Trip Plan cover those two destinations, and Motorbike Rental Hanoi: Best Day Trips Around the City covers day trips around the city more broadly.
Sources checked
- Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism, Vietnamese-language feature (15 May 2019): 2014 recognition, 16 listed sites, steles, architecture and visit suggestions. VNAT feature on Pho Hien
- Hung Yen Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism (15 March 2019): distance from the river, the 5 km by 1 km area, distance from Hanoi and the folk festival. Department page on Pho Hien
- Hung Yen provincial government portal (page listed 26 October 2004): distance from Hanoi and the Highway 5 and Road 39A route. Provincial portal page
- Hung Yen Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Centre (undated, cites a report of 4 March 2025): relic and stele counts and the restoration project. Promotion centre page
- Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism, VNA wire (28 May 2018): the trading port and its heyday. VNAT report on Pho Hien
- Lao Dong newspaper, English edition (14 February 2026): the port’s decline, fragmented restoration and the ward name. Lao Dong article
- Hung Yen Newspaper via vietnam.vn (23 October 2026): the 1 July 2025 merger and Pho Hien’s present status. Hung Yen Newspaper article
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