Perfume River or Huong river flows through many forests of aromatic plants before reaching Hue, bringing with it a pure and fresh aroma,so locals called it Huong river,means river with perfume- like aroma. two weeks ago, when i visited Hue,i took a dragon boat twice.boating to dong ba market at the first time, another day boating to Thien Mu pagoda. you have to bargain with the owner of the dragon boat. it is a bit harder,but you can try,if the price fits your budget, then go ahead. along the river, you can see the famous Truong Tien Bridge, part of Hue city, and some local houses. i think perfume river more charming during night time, cuz the bridge will become colourful at night.

Visiting the Imperial Palace - Hue main attraction, will consume more than 2 hours with lot of walking. So, after that it was very relaxing to sit on a dragon boat and watch the scenery around while the boat gently sailed the Perfume river. As a guide explained the name derives from the plant fields away from Hue where the river flows through, bringing the aroma to the city (which I did not smell, honestly). Anyway, nothing unseen but relaxing and pleasant time.

The river is the focal point of Hue and very nice for a stroll alongside and to see the many old French colonial buildings and parks in this area. Beware though as mentioned by others the women selling boat tours are relentless! I went on one of the dragon boat trips and would certainly recommend as a) was very peaceful and scenic and b) why walk to the pagoda when you can pop on a boat? Yes, most of the boats have a lady selling things from a stall but none of our group found her pushy in any way (we approached her to see things). And, actually, there were some nice clothes and folding hats which we purchased.

Perfume River is a long river that flows through the city of Hue. Its name comes from the fact that various fragrances fall into its waters from along its banks and make it smell nice, or so the story goes... Taking a cruise along the river is a great idea as you get to see quite a lot of interesting things.