Vietnam, located in Southeast Asia, has become a favorite destination for many travelers. The country’s natural beauty is just one of the many reasons why it is so popular. Another unique aspect of Vietnam is its long-standing tradition of craft villages.

Vietnam is home to many traditional craft villages. These villages have been passed down from generation to generation for centuries, and the products they create are highly prized both domestically and internationally. Through these products, visitors can catch a glimpse of Vietnamese customs, traditions, and cultures. If you’re planning a trip to Vietnam, be sure to add one or more of these traditional craft villages to your itinerary.

Here are some traditional craft villages in Vietnam that one must visit:

Bat Trang Pottery Making Village 

Bat Trang village is located in Gia Lam district, Hanoi, and has been making fine ceramics for centuries. The village is known for its clay-rich soil, which makes the pottery products highly rated in both domestic and international markets. These products are used for daily household use, worshipping, and decoration purposes. Tourists can take part in pottery-making activities, go for a walk around the village, or join a buffalo tour for shopping and sightseeing.

Quat Dong Embroidery Village: 

Quat Dong embroidery village is located in Thuong Tin district, Hanoi, and is known for its unique embroidery technique. Embroidery is considered a long-standing tradition among villagers, and intricate needlework is done by everyone, regardless of age or gender. The products have different designs such as folktale scenes, flowers, countryside landscapes, or a beautiful woman.

Van Phuc Silk Village: 

Van Phuc silk village in Ha Dong district, Hanoi, is more than 100 years old and is one of the most visited traditional crafts villages in Hanoi. The silk products from this village are popular because of their light weight and smooth texture. Visitors can buy handicrafts and souvenirs at reasonable prices.

Kim Son Sedge Mats Village

Kim Son sedge mats village is located 30 km from Ninh Binh city and is known for its high-quality sedge handicraft products. The alluvial soil is an ideal condition for growing sedge plants, and freshly harvested sedges are cut and woven into mats and other products. The mats made by Kim Son villagers are beautiful, durable, and hard to find elsewhere. Tourists can buy products like lanterns, carpets, boxes, cups, and handbags.

Dong Ho Folk Painting Village: 

Dong Ho Folk Painting Village is a small village located in the Thuan Thanh district of Bac Ninh province. The village is famous for its unique and impressive folk paintings, which are printed on poonah or Do paper made from the powders of Do trees. The paintings depict traditional customers and Vietnamese festivals, and are created using natural materials like bricks, flowers, straw, and different trees. There are five main colors used in the paintings, including green, red, yellow, black, and indigo. Visitors can learn about the process of making these paintings and purchase them as souvenirs.

Chuong Conical Hat Making Village: 

Located in the Thanh Oai district of Hanoi, Chuong Conical Hat Making Village is known for its traditional conical hats, which are made from palm leaves from Quang Binh province, silk thread from Trieu Khuc village, and bamboo from Hoa Binh province. These hats are stunning and robust and can be used as shelter from the rain and sun. Visitors can learn about the hat-making process and purchase these iconic hats as souvenirs.

Vong Green Young Sticky Rice Making Village: 

Vong Green Young Sticky Rice Making Village, located in the Cau Giay district of Hanoi, is known for its specialty green young sticky rice, which is a favorite elegant food in the fall season. This food can be eaten by hand and is usually served with ripe bananas. Visitors can observe the process of making the sticky rice and appreciate the scents and flavors of the young rice.

Lang Van Rice Wine Village: 

Lang Van Rice Wine Village is located in the Van Ha commune of Bac Giang province. The village is famous for its local rice wine, which is made from Golden flower glutinous rice (Nep cai hoa vang) grown in the fields of Van Xa village. The wine is glassy and beautiful as the sunlight in the summer, and adds a special essence to meals. Visitors can learn about the process of making rice wine and purchase it as a souvenir.

Bau Truc Pottery Making Village

Located in Phuoc Dan Town, Ninh Phuoc district, Ninh Thuan province, Bau Truc pottery making village is the oldest pottery village in Southeast Asia. It is home to more than 400 families, of which about 85% make a living by traditional pottery making craft. The pottery products in Bau Truc village are decorated with simple flowers, seashells, or hand-made paintings, featuring the daily life of Cham people.

Yen Thai Poonah-paper Making Village 

Yen Thai Poonah-paper making village, located in Quang Binh province, has been famous for producing different kinds of paper for more than 6 centuries. The villagers use poonah trees to make paper, which is widely used for writing Han scripts, printing folk paintings and books. The products are taken through many precise and complicated processing steps, from selecting good materials to soaking them in water, pounding and flattening.

Non Nuoc Stone Carving Village

Non Nuoc stone carving village, located in Hoa Hai ward, Ngu Hanh Son district, Da Nang, has a history of more than 200 years. The products, including grain grinders, rice mortars, and tombstones, were initially made to serve the daily life of local people. Nowadays, they have become one of the highest value exports of the city.

Kim Bong Carpentry Village

Kim Bong carpentry village, located in Cam Kim commune, Hoi An, Quang Nam, marks unique cultural values and many artistic works. The carpentry’s style is a great mixture of China, Japanese, Cham kingdom, and the talented hands of Vietnamese craftsmen. The products made from wood are beautiful and impressive, attracting many domestic and international tourists.

Phuoc Kieu Bronze-casting Village

Phuoc Kieu bronze-casting village, located in Dien Phuong commune, Dien Ban district, Quang Nam province, is well known for traditional bronze casting. The villagers have been using their skillful hands to make various bronze products since the 16th century. They produce numerous instruments, especially gongs for ethnic communities in Vietnam. Visiting the village, you can observe the whole process of making bronze products, from scratch to final products, and even enjoy a bronze musical performance from the artists.

Tan Chau Black Silk Village 

Tan Chau Black Silk Village, located in the northwest of An Giang province, is renowned for its high-quality silk products. Visitors can see the mulberry fields, which are the primary source of raw silk, and watch the traditional process of making silk from cocoon to finished product. Local villagers are friendly and willing to teach visitors how to make silk, and even let them try the process themselves. The village is a great place to learn about Vietnam’s traditional silk-making techniques.

Ben Tre Coconut Candy Village 

Ben Tre Coconut Candy Village is famous for its delicious coconut candies, which are made from locally sourced coconuts, sugar, malt, and coconut milk. This village is the first to create and develop the art of making coconut candy in Vietnam. Visitors can watch the entire process of making coconut candy, from boiling the coconut milk to wrapping the candy in paper. The village is a great place to experience Vietnam’s traditional manual labor and to learn about the importance of coconuts in the local culture.

Ba Dai Ship-crafting Village

Ba Dai Ship-crafting Village is located in the Long Hau commune, Lai Vung district, Dong Thap province. The village is renowned for producing high-quality boats and junks, which are made by skilled craftsmen. Boat-making has been a traditional craft in the Mekong Delta for centuries, and Ba Dai Ship-crafting Village is one of the most famous and respected boat-making villages in the region. Visitors can watch the boat-making process and even try their hand at making a souvenir to take home.

Ha Thai Lacquer Village

Ha Thai Village is a picturesque village located south of Hanoi, famous for its exquisite lacquer art. The art of lacquer painting has been practiced in the village for over 200 years and is known for its use in coating doors, statues, altars, thrones, and boxes. Western art introduced during the French colonial era in the 1920s gave traditional lacquer painting an impressive reformation. New techniques experimented with layers of different colors, adding other materials like gold and silver leaf, pieces of eggshells and seashells. Visitors can stroll around various workshops to see craftsmen inlaying eggshells into the lacquer, painting Vietnamese countryside landscapes, and coating bowls, flower vases, plates, and chopsticks with beautiful lacquer designs. Vietnamese lacquer is considered the best among several Asian countries with a long history of vegetable lacquer, including China, Thailand, Myanmar, and Japan.