Hoa Lo Prison - a historical destination attracting young people during the holidays

Hanoi Hoa Lo Prison is the choice of many Vietnamese and international tourists, mostly young people, during the April 30 holiday in the capital.

Hoang Anh, from Quang Ninh, in his 20s, and his friends came to Hanoi for 2 days on the occasion of April 30. They mainly spent time visiting check-in spots for young people and only went to one tourist spot, Hoa Lo Prison.

"I like the way historical stories are told through photos and concise information. There were quite a lot of visitors but I had an impressive experience. We all used the tour guide service to learn more about this place," she said. Hoang Anh said she had seen articles about this prison for a long time and now she had the chance to see it with her own eyes.

Phillip follows the stories told at Hoa Lo Prison. Photo: Anh Tu — Phillip follows the stories told at Hoa Lo Prison. Photo: *Anh Tu*

Many young foreign tourists also come to this prison to learn more about the historical stories. Phillip, a German living in Hanoi, has read many books about Hoa Lo. Since he is on vacation, he took the opportunity to come here and learn more about the past. Phillip commented that the way historical stories are told at the prison is "really interesting".

"I felt a bit heavy after reading those stories, but it helped me understand the past better," he said. The German tourist hopes to see more international visitors to the destination in the future.

Doug, from England, visited Hoa Lo Prison on the afternoon of May 2 with his family. He knew nothing about the place and only decided to visit when he accidentally saw it in a travel guide. Doug regretted not having much time to visit. Commenting on the prison, Doug emphasized that he was quite impressed with the way historical stories were arranged here through each period: fighting against the French and fighting against the Americans.

In recent years, Hoa Lo Prison has attracted a large number of visitors, especially young people who love to learn about history. On average, there are about 2,000 people every day, increasing during holidays and Tet. The prison has many new experience programs, the most prominent of which is the "Sacred Night" tour, built from meaningful stories recreating historical moments.

Communication activities are promoted with many creative forms of expression, combining popular trends on social networks of the young generation. Dry historical stories are integrated with puzzles, song lyrics, and illustrations to create new experiences. The relic's website and social networking platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Spotify are highly interactive. In 2019, Hoa Lo deployed an automatic commentary system for visitors to experience in their own way.

Tourists line up to buy tickets to Hoa Lo Prison on May 2. Photo: Anh Tu — Tourists line up to buy tickets to Hoa Lo Prison on May 2. Photo: *Anh Tu*

According to the Hoa Lo Prison Management Board, there were more than 17,000 visitors on April 30 and May 1, about four times more than usual. The busiest day was May 1 with 8,800 visitors, and April 30 with 8,000 visitors. On May 2, the number of visitors decreased, but there were still long lines to buy tickets. Although the relic site was crowded, visitors still shared their satisfaction with their experience at Hoa Lo Prison. During the five-day holiday, the prison only organized a night tour on April 29 with the program "Sacred Night 3".

The historical site of Hoa Lo Prison is located at 1 Hoa Lo Street, built in 1896. At the end of the 19th century, in order to cope with the struggles of the Vietnamese people, the French colonialists added police forces, completed the court system and built a network of prisons. The total area of Hoa Lo and the surrounding streets is nearly 13,000 m2. The original design of the prison was to detain 450 people, but in reality it held 2,000 people. This was one of the largest prisons of the French colonialists in Indochina.

Tu Nguyen

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