Thuy Xuan Incense Village – a unique craft village contains the soul of the ancient capital 

As the largest incense village in the ancient capital, Thuy Xuan village is famous for its hundreds of years of traditional incense making. Up to now, this incense village is not just an idyllic incense-making place but gradually becoming a place for tourists from all over the world to come.

1. Where is Hue Incense Making Village?

Only about 7km from Hue city center, the Thuy Xuan Incense Village is located on Huyen Tran Cong Chua Street, Thuy Xuan Ward, Hue City. Together with Vong Canh Hill and the Tu Duc and Dong Khanh tombs, this ancient incense village has created a tourist route, which contributes to bringing visitors the precious experience of Hue’s traditional culture and heritage.

2. What makes Thuy Xuan Incense Village special?

Upon arrival, visitors seem to be immersed in the colorful space from red, yellow, purple, and blue incense, which are carefully and beautifully decorated. It is not simply a display for sale, but the artisans have to put their hearts into it. These colorful bouquets are unique works of art by the artist. Moreover, the faint scent of incense ingredients such as cinnamon or lemongrass essential oil also makes visitors fall in love.

Incense-making appeared in Thuy Xuan village around 700 years ago during the Nguyen Dynasty, according to the artisans. In the past, the village was a place to supply incense to the court, mandarins, and residents in Thuan Hoa and Phu Xuan areas. Today, Thuy Xuan village continues to preserve and pass on the craft of making incense for generations, not only producing and trading incense but also becoming a famous tourist attraction in Thua Thien Hue Province.

Additionally, the profession of making incense also bears the characteristics of Vietnamese culture in general and the sacred and ancient land of Hue in particular. For a long time, Vietnamese people have traditionally considered incense sticks to be a useful tool for linking the living world with the holy world. On major occasions such as Lunar New Year Festivals, the full moon day of each month, or ancestral offerings, lighting incense sticks on altars or Buddha shrines has long been a cultural and religious practice of the Vietnamese.

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3. What is the process of making incense in Thuy Xuan village?

After spending a few hours here, travelers will undoubtedly gain a better understanding of the stages of producing incense. Let’s have a look at the incense-making process in Thuy Xuan Incense Village with Deluxe Group Tours.

Firstly, choosing good quality ingredients plays an essential role to produce the best products. People often find agarwood powder, cinnamon, cardamom, pine buds, cloves, star anise, eucalyptus, cinnamon, and others as ingredients for making incense. Such materials will be blended with water to make incense powder. Other substances such as forest grapefruit peel powder, eucalyptus, and others are also used to create a fragrant smell for the product.

In the bamboo choosing stage, artisans need to be careful because incense sticks will go out easily unless they are sun-dried till dry and crispy. Binh Dien Commune, Phong Son Commune, and Nam Dong District are the three places where villagers get raw ancient bamboo from the woods to make incense sticks. The intestines are dried, then cut into small pieces. Proficient people will make even incense and never extinguish it when being burnt.

Nextly, they move to wrapping incense powder around the core. People today still use the manual method even though productivity is lower than when using a machine. Nevertheless, this does not imply that the incense sticks produced are of poor quality. The powder is blended and wrapped until it is thin and spherical enough to be dried in the sun. Although the manual ways are more difficult and time-consuming, it is folk, keeping the “soul” of traditional beauty.

Thuy Xuan Incense Village now still maintains its position in the market by offering numerous types of incense, including cinnamon, lemongrass oil, aroma remover, ring incense, agarwood buds, etc. These products do not include any chemicals and instead rely on natural components that are both environmentally safe and healthful, giving them a bright yellow hue and a delicate fragrance. These products are being sold at a reasonable price not only in the domestic market but also in the international market.

4. What to do when getting to Thuy Xuan Incense Village?

Thuy Xuan Incense Village is recently becoming a “hot trend” place that has attracted many visitors, including Hue residents, domestic tourists, and even foreigners. This incense village is suitable for those who find peaceful things inside bustling life. All visitors can have once-of-a-lifetime experiences by taking part in a vast number of fascinating activities here.

Visitors can have a deeper insight into the history and culture of the largest incense village in Thua Thien Hue Province. While being there, they can listen to the sharing from villagers who have decades of experience in incense-making, sharing interesting things about the existence of this old profession in the historical period.

They can also try once to become an incense maker by making their colorful incense sticks under the guidance of skilled locals. This helps travelers both freely use their skillful hands and understand the enthusiasm and effort that artisans put in while making quality incense. Visitors have been captivated and excited by the bright space as well as the local people’s hospitality and warmth.

Furthermore, visitors are free to explore the vibrant scenery. Initially, only brown and red incense were available, but now visitors can easily observe a variety of incense with bases of various colors: pink, purple, yellow, blue, orange… shimmering in the sun. Particularly, many young people are eager to come there thanks to the colorful space. This is a nice destination for living virtual so they capture the most beautiful pictures with their mates and enjoy your day trip to the fullest.

5. How do you go to this vibrant village?

It is very easy to get there because Thuy Xuan village is only 7 kilometers southwest of Hue city center, making it convenient and quick for travelers to check-in. Visitors only take about 20 minutes to go there from Hue city center. If you are a foreigner, traveling to the village by motorbike or scooter will be the best choice so that you can both admire the beauty of Hue and immerse yourself in the daily life of the locals. If necessary, you can search on Google Maps to find the final destination more easily.

Summer is the greatest time to visit the incense village because the weather is dry at this time of year. In the brilliant sunlight, people will dry the finished bunches of incense along the streets and roads. You will be overwhelmed by a big number of vibrant layers of incense and its pleasant scent without paying any cost while entering. Don’t hesitate, let’s go to Thuy Xuan Incense Village because viewing this unique place is an eye-opening experience.