Hanoi, Vietnam

This wonderful museum is in the old quarter of Hanoi, just 500m away from the Hoan Kiem Lake.  It was opened in 1987 and is a modern museum dedicated to the story of women in Vietnam, both in terms of their place in society and their role in the history of the country.

The museum is run by the Vietnam Women’s Union and aims to “enhance public knowledge and understanding of history and cultural heritage of Vietnamese women… thus contributing to promoting gender equality.”

It houses a permanent exhibition organised along three themes – women in family, women in history and women’s fashion.  In addition to this there are ever changing temporary exhibitions.

The museum houses over 100 different artefacts representing many facets of Vietnamese women.  It is utterly fascinating – there are many stories of the part played in the war by individual women which are extremely moving.  Propaganda posters offer an insight into the politics while the exhibits around marriage and children are particularly interesting.

All displays are in both English and French.

In addition to the exhibitions the museum is actively involved in various programmes designed to improve the lives of women in modern Vietnam.  For example, they support a local organisation which is dedicated to helping people with disabilities by providing vocational training and assistance in finding suitable work.  Items made by the individuals are sold in the museum’s gift shop with proceeds going back directly to the charity.

The museum has been rated as one of the top 25 museums to visit in Asia and offers an. intriguing glimpse into the lives of women, both historically and in modern day Vietnam.

 General accessibility information

There is a large flight of steps at the entrance to the museum but don’t be put off.  To the right of the building there is a ramp which allows access in to the main building.  This is fairly steep and can be a little slippery when raining.  The ramp takes you up to a side door which needs to be opened by a member of staff.  This could pose difficulties if a lone traveller as someone needs to go in to the museum first to alert staff.

Once inside the museum it is easy to get around as there is a lift to access all floors.  The floor surface is hard and wheelchair friendly and there is plenty of room for manoeuvring.

Disabled toilet facilities

No specific disabled facilities available.