The Hanoi Presidential Palace is a three-storey structure located on the north of Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. You won’t be allowed to enter the palace but you can go around it for a look from outside.
Presidential Palace stands as a memento of French contribution to the architectural splendor in Indochina. This mustard-yellow palace was built from 1900 to 1906 to function as the living and operational bases of the governors-general of Indo-China. Located on Hung Vuong Street and Hoang Van Thu Street, the designs of this palace were conceived by Auguste Henri Vildieu, the French architect officially appointed for Vietnam.
Hanoi in Vietnam originally grew up around Hoan Kiem Lake. With a history dated back to 3000 years, Hanoi, the capital of a united Vietnam, will impress you with its monuments, scenic beauty and reserves of history imprinted through the strife-torn colonial and political regimes. As you visit Hanoi, you must not miss out the Presidential Palace in Hanoi.
History says that Ho Chi Minh denied staying in Presidential Palace in Hanoi when he returned to independent Vietnam after defeating the French in 1954. He rather began staying in a mere cottage within the premises of the palace from 1954 to 1958. Thereafter, he built a Vietnamese house made of stilt but he continued to use the palace when important guests came to Hanoi.
The tradition continues even now as the palace offers site for official receptions to guests and for other administrative meetings.