Devotion, Decline, and Destruction: A My Son Walking Tour

Mỹ Sơn's crumbling red-brick towers rarely get mentioned alongside Angkor or Bagan, yet this jungle sanctuary once anchored an entire civilisation. On this walking tour, you'll get under the skin of a site that most visitors struggle to make sense of. You'll learn how the Champa kingdoms fused Hindu mythology with Southeast Asian artistry across a thousand years, but you'll also the sad story of why so little of it survives today.

The tour starts at the My Son entrance, following an unusual route that provides the best introduction to the site. The path winds past a stream feeding the Thu Bồn River before reaching Group K, the site's ancient gateway. From there, you'll pass through clusters of increasingly impressive temple towers, learning why the site was abandoned, what the French did after they 'discovered' it, and how American B-52 raids in the 1960s destroyed more of Mỹ Sơn in days than six centuries of jungle encroachment.

Along the way, you'll spot carvings of Shiva, Parvati, and Kala, the devouring face of time. You'll also spot the celestial beasts that so many visitors miss, including Nandi, Garuda, and Dvarapala. The tour climaxes at the site's most impressive constructions: the once-lofty A1 tower, arguably the finest building in all of Champa, Group B's iconic boat-roofed kosagrha, and the sandstone linga and yoni uncovered in 1985, now a national treasure. The tour ends at the snack kiosk near Groups B, C, and D, where a small theatre sometimes hosts traditional Cham music and dance.

On this 90-minute tour, you'll have a chance to:

• See the Lord of the Dance carving inside Group D's reception house, capturing Shiva mid-movement
• Spot a National Treasure yoni and linga assembled from seventeen sandstone blocks inside tower A10
• Examine Cham script inscriptions, among the few surviving records of this vanished civilisation's kings and rituals
• Compare restored brickwork against untouched ruins at Group A, still scarred from wartime bombing
• Notice foliage carvings in Group C possibly influenced by artistic traditions from Java
• Learn why Indian conservators have helped restore these towers since UNESCO's 1999 listing
• Hear tips on how you can continue your journey through Champa after leaving the site

Too many visitors leave Mỹ Sơn feeling underwhelmed, having gained little understanding of its remarkable history. This tour is designed to change that, taking you beyond the ruins to uncover the stories of devotion, decline, and destruction, while placing Mỹ Sơn as an important chapter within Vietnam's rich and complex broader story.