200-year-old palace in Hue to host visitors in late November

Thai Hoa Palace (the Palace of Supreme Harmony), part of the Complex of Hue Monuments, a UNESCO-recognised world cultural heritage in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue, will be opened to tourists on November 23, months earlier than scheduled, according to Director of the Hue Monuments Conservation Centre Hoang Viet Trung.

With a history of more than 200 years, Thai Hoa Palace is the most important palace in the Hue Imperial Citadel. This is also the coronation place of the 13 kings of the Nguyen Dynasty, from Gia Long to Bao Dai.

The construction of Thai Hoa Palace was started by King Gia Long in February 1805 and completed in October of the same year. This palace was the venue to organise important ceremonies such as the coronation ceremony (ascension to the throne), the Van Tho ceremony (the king's birthday), the Tu tuan or Ngu tuan dai khanh tiet ceremony (to celebrate the Emperor’s longevity), and the Hung quoc khanh niem ceremony (the National Day). It was also a place to welcome envoys of other countries and carry out diplomatic etiquette.

It was recognised by UNESCO as a world documentary heritage in 2021. The same year, the Government allocated a budget of nearly 129 billion VND (5.12 million USD) to urgently restore this building.

According to Trung, the palace opening is expected to create a highlight for the Complex of Hue Monuments, contributing to luring more visitors to the site. Currently, the Hue Monuments Conservation Centre is selling about 10,000 tickets a day to visitors to relic sites in the complex.

He revealed that later this year, the centre will launch a project to restore and upgrade Can Chanh Palace located behind Thai Hoa Palace in the Hue Imperial City./.

VNA