Tay Thien Temple Complex

Tay Thien runs up the eastern flank of the Tam Dao range as a chain of shrines and pagodas, and its central figure is Quoc Mau Tay Thien - a mountain mother goddess honoured here as a national mother, whose worship at this site is old and whose main temple stands high on the slope. Buddhist foundations are strung along the same route, including the Truc Lam Tay Thien monastery lower down, built in the 2000s. The climb is several kilometres of stone steps through forest, or a cable car in two stages. The festival in the second lunar month brings very large numbers up the mountain.

What you actually see

• A chain of shrines up a mountain - on the Tam Dao flank.
• Quoc Mau Tay Thien - the mother goddess the site centres on.
• A modern Truc Lam monastery - lower on the same route.
• A cable car or a long stair - the two ways up.

When to go

Year round; the second lunar month for the festival. A full day.

Honest expectations

The climb is long and steep and most people take the cable car, which is charged and queues. Cloud sits on the range often. Festival crowds are heavy. Much of the modern building is recent.

Nearby

Tam Dao town is over the ridge; Hanoi is south-east.