UNESCO has recognized 9 world natural and cultural heritage sites in Vietnam, of which the Ha Long - Cat Ba complex stands out for its natural beauty; Hue and Hoi An are attractive for their cultural heritage, while Trang An is a combination of natural and cultural values.

On September 16, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee recognized the Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba archipelago complex as a world natural heritage. Thus, Vietnam currently has 3 natural heritages, 5 cultural heritages, and 1 mixed heritage.

According to the Department of Cultural Heritage, Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba archipelago is recognized by UNESCO for containing many areas of natural beauty, including limestone islands covered with vegetation and sharp peaks of limestone mountains above sea level with associated karst features such as domes and caves. The breathtaking, untouched scenery of islands covered with vegetation, saltwater lakes, and sharp limestone peaks with cliffs rising above the sea is also part of the reason.

Also read: Halong Bay recognized as World Heritage Site the second time

"Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba archipelago is a geological museum containing heritage with outstanding global value. This place witnesses typical changes in the Earth's historical development", excerpt comments from the Department of Cultural Heritage.

In addition to the new title awarded on September 16, Ha Long Bay is a world natural heritage recognized by UNESCO twice before. In 1994, the bay was recognized as a natural heritage with outstanding global aesthetic value and became the first natural heritage of Vietnam to be honoured. In 2020, Ha Long Bay was recognized for the second time as a world natural heritage, but this time according to the geological and geomorphological value standards.

Located in the Northeast region, including the waters of Ha Long City, Cam Pha, and part of the Van Don island district, Ha Long Bay has a total area of more than 1,550 km2 with 1,969 large and small islands. The world-recognized heritage area has an area of 434 km2, including 775 islands, like a triangle with three vertices: Dau Go Island (west), Ba Ham Lake (south) and Cong Tay Island (east), according to the National Tourism Administration.

Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, Quang Binh province, was twice honoured by UNESCO. In 2003, Phong Nha-Ke Bang was honoured as a heritage site for the first time according to exceptional geological and geomorphological value criteria. In July 2015, this place was honoured for the second time for two criteria: "being an outstanding example representing ecological processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial ecosystems" and "possessing the natural habitats" are most significant for biodiversity conservation.

Read more: Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng on list of world's 25 best national parks

The World Heritage Committee 2015 approved expanding the Park from 85,754 hectares to 123,326 hectares.

Trang An Complex was recognized by UNESCO as a world cultural and natural heritage, becoming the first mixed heritage site in Vietnam in 2014. Located in Ninh Binh province, in the south of the Red River Delta, Trang An scenic complex includes 3 main conservation areas: Hoa Lu Ancient Capital Special National Monument; Special National Relics Trang An - Tam Coc - Bich Dong Scenic Area and Hoa Lu Special-Use Forest.

The total area of the complex is 4,000 hectares, occupying the entire Trang An limestone massif and surrounded by a buffer zone of 8,000 hectares, consisting mainly of rice fields.

UNESCO recognized the Ho Dynasty Citadel relics in Thanh Hoa as a world cultural heritage in June 2011.

As the capital of the Ho Dynasty, the citadel was built by Ho Quy Ly in 1397, also known as Tay Do, to distinguish it from Dong Do (Thang Long - Hanoi). After building the citadel, Ho Quy Ly moved the capital from Thang Long to Tay Do. However, the Ho Dynasty only existed for 7 years (from 1400).

The central relic area of Thang Long Imperial Citadel, Hanoi, was recognized by UNESCO as a world cultural heritage in August 2010. According to the Vice Chairwoman of the Hanoi People's Committee at that time, Ms Ngo Thi Thanh Hang, the Imperial Citadel was the successive power centre of Vietnam for more than a thousand years of history and was a unique testament to the evolution of the Vietnamese national civilization in the history of the development of a Southeast Asian monarchy. The Central Imperial Citadel of Thang Long - cultural expression, values and events of global significance mark Hanoi.

Three outstanding characteristics recognize the outstanding global values of the heritage site:

• The length of cultural history
• The continuity of heritage as a centre of power
• The layers of relics

The ancient town of Hoi An connects to the East Sea through Cua Dai, borders Duy Xuyen and Dien Ban districts, 20 km from Da Nang, and was recognized by UNESCO as a world cultural heritage in 1999. From the 17th century onwards, Hoi An was connected to the East Sea trade with Da Nang via Co Co River. Currently, this is the most popular tourist attraction in Quang Nam province.

Read more: What makes Hoi An ancient town outstanding among Vietnam spots?

The Hue Monuments Complex, built from the early 19th century to the first half of the 20th century, became a world cultural heritage in 1993. The structure stands out with three citadels from largest to smallest: Imperial City, Imperial City and Forbidden City.

The Imperial Citadel is an important construction, including a defence area, a ceremony area, a shrine area... placed in the middle of a large natural space. After nearly 2 centuries and witnessing many important historical events of the nation, Ngo Mon Gate still exists and is considered an excellent ancient architecture.

My Son relic site in Duy Phu commune, Duy Xuyen district, Quang Nam province, was recognized by UNESCO as a world cultural heritage in 1999. Built by King Bhadravarman in the 4th century and completed at the end of the 13th century, In the early 14th century under the reign of King Che Man, My Son was a complex with more than 70 temples and towers with many architectural and sculptural styles representing each historical period of the Champa kingdom.

Most of the architectural works and sculptures at My Son are influenced by Hinduism. Most of the temples and towers face the east direction of the rising Sun, the abode of the gods, except for a few towers facing west or both east-west directions, expressing the thoughts of the afterlife kings who were deified after death and showing nostalgia for their ancestors, according to the Web Portal in Quang Nam province. 

In addition to the 9 world natural and cultural heritages mentioned above, Vietnam has many intangible cultural and documentary heritages recognized by UNESCO, such as Woodblocks of the Nguyen Dynasty, Hue Royal Court Music, and pulling rituals.