Located on an island on Hoan Kiem Lake, Ngoc Son Temple is easily accessible by a red bridge.

Vietnam’s two largest cities are polar opposites—Ho Chi Minh is a sleek, modern city of skyscrapers while the charming capital of Hanoi is filled with ancient history. Hanoi is the best for watching motorbikes defy gravity with their loads ranging from refrigerators to a family of five with a dog. It’s home to the country’s largest airport and the gateway to Ha Long and Lan Ha Bay and Ninh Binh. 

These recommendations are based on my experience living and working for travel companies in Southeast Asia for the past decade. (I visit Vietnam at least once a year for work.)

Here are the best things to do in Hanoi along with the best time to visit and where to stay!

You can easily do all these things on your own, but if you’re short on time consider a city tour.

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Conical hats and fresh flowers are a few of the many items for sale in the historic Old Quarter, the heart of the city’s shopping district.

Explore the Old Quarter

Hanoi’s Old Quarter lies North and slightly west of Hoàn Kiếm Lake and consists of 36 streets.It’s a great place for strolling and watching motorbikes with their outrageous loads. The streets are organized by the items they sell from shoes to silver jewelry. Here are a few of the most famous shopping streets:

Hang Dau – Shoe Street
Hang Ma – Lantern Street
Hang Bac – Silver Street
Hang Vai – Bamboo Street
Hang Duong – Sugar Street
Lan Ong – Traditional Medicine Street
Hang Gai – Silk Street

​Ngoc Son Temple is one a popular spot to visit and crowded on holidays.

Hoàn Kiếm Lake

No trip to Hanoi is complete without a stroll around Hoàn Kiếm Lake. On weekend evenings, traffic is banned by the lake making it easy to explore. You’ll find a good mix of locals and travelers. Be sure to cross the red bridge to visit the photogenic Ngoc Son Temple.

Cyclo Ride

To get an overview of the city, hop on a three-wheeled cyclo, which resemble a backwards tricycle, for an orientation tour. While it might seem touristy, it’s a fun way to support a traditional and eco-friendly transportation method in a city with a huge pollution problem. Rides start around 400,000 VND ($4 USD).

​For an adrenaline rush, go have a coffee on Hanoi’s famous train street.

Visit Hanoi’s Train Street

There are two different streets where you can sip a coffee while a train whishes by just inches away from your table. The best one is a bit south of the Old Quarter and directly west of Thong Nhat Park. While it’s lined with cafes, I visited Hanoi 1990s, which I made a reservation with on WhatsApp in advance. (Plenty of people seemed to just be walking up, but I wanted to be safe.) The cafe told me to call them when I arrived, but it was easy to enter without calling because street Ngõ 222 Đ. Lê Duẩn crosses the tracks right by the cafe.

The trains get so close that the cafe lays down all the tables, makes you put your drinks on the ground and turn your body against the wall. It’s a bit scary but fun. Drinks cost around 60,000 VND. (There’s a minimum charge of 40,000 VND to sit if you don’t order a drink.)

Check the Hanoi 1990s Instagram for the train schedule. The trains departing from Hanoi station are always on time, so opt for those departures.

Left: A banh mi and smoothie from Banh Mi 25; Right: The eclectic decor of The Note Café.

Relax at one of Hanoi’s Cafes & Eat a Banh Mi

Vietnam does cafes well. The Note Cafe is covered floor-to-ceiling in notes and stickers and worth a stop. Even though it’s an Instagram hotspot, their smoothies are delicious, and it’s a great view of the lake. Climb to the higher floors for solitude. Don’t miss JOMA, my favorite café chain in Southeast Asia, for homemade bagels and delicious pumpkin soup!

While there’s no shortage of bánh mi restaurants, one of the most famous is Banh Mi 25. Due to its popularity, it now covers three storefronts on the same street—it’s a great place for a budget-friendly and tasty meal. I had a tasty sandwich AND a strawberry banana smoothie for $3 USD.

Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is a marble moment is the resting place of the famed leader and is known for the changing of the guard ceremony.

Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Grounds

Behind the Ho Chi Minh Museum lies a large green space featuring a wide variety of the city’s attractions related to the former ruler including the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum where you can walk by his embodied body on display. (The building exterior is photogenic and lit up at night.) Other attractions include Ho Chi Minh’s Stilt House and One Pillar Pagoda, a wooden building built on top of a single concrete pillar meant to resemble a lotus flower. It was built in 1054 later destroyed by French in 1954 and later rebuilt.

Vietnam Museum of Ethnology

This museum does a deep dive into the 54 recognized ethnic groups that comprise modern-day Vietnam. One of the highlights is the outdoor architectural garden that includes a life-size republic of traditional houses that you can explore, including the awe-inspiring 19-meter-high Bahnar communal house (my favorite.)

Scenic views of the interior and exterior of the Temple of Literature.

Temple of Literature

Famous for its traditional Vietnamese architecture, this historic attraction was the site of Vietnam’s first university and a Confucius temple, founded in 1070 by Emperor Ly Thanh. (You’ll recognize it as the temple on the back of the 100,000d bill.) It’s crowded on holidays, like TET, and during graduation season, when it’s often used as a photogenic backdrop.

Vietnamese water puppet shows are a fun-filled attraction for all ages.

Water Puppet Show

Water puppetry is a traditional form of Vietnamese theater dating back over a century performed in a waist-deep pool accompanied by traditional folk music. While the show is entirely in Vietnamese, it’s easy to follow along with the action and laughs. (I go to one water puppet show every year for work, and it’s a really fun to experience at least once.)

The Lotus Water Puppet Theater and Thang Long Water Puppet Theater have regular performances. (You can buy tickets in person or in advance on Klook for the same price.) All water puppet shows across Vietnam are similar storylines, so no need to see shows in multiple cities.

The twin bell towers of St. Joseph Cathedral in Hanoi.

St. Joseph Cathedral

Built in 1886, the neo-Gothic façade of St. Joseph Cathedral is a landmark leftover from the colonial era, known for its towering bell towers. The main entrance is only open during mass times while the side entrance is used other times. The street to the right is lined with cute cafes including the taproom for my favorite Vietnamese brewery, Pasteur Street.

Rooftop Drinks

Who doesn’t love a good sunset cocktail? On a recent trip, I googled rooftop bars and found one next to my hotel called the Terraco Sky Bar on top of the La Sinfonia del Rey Hotel & Spa overlooking the lake for happy hour. The food was also delicious. No matter where you are staying in the city, just Google rooftop bars and pick a spot with a 4.5 rating or above. That’s a trick that always works for me.

The best places to stay in Hanoi are around Hoàn Kiếm Lake and the Old Quarter.

The Best Places to Stay in Hanoi

Hotels: The highest-rated budget hotels include Hanoi Saga Hotel ($27/night) and TrangTrang Premium Hotel & Sky Bar ($37/night). The La Sinfonia del Rey Hotel & Spa ($82/night) is lovely and has that great rooftop I mentioned. I’ve also stayed at the Hanoi Authentic Boutique Hotel ($62), which has a great location.

Hostels: The Old Quarter View Hanoi Hostel has 6-12 dorm rooms with a/c starting at $18.

Splurge: If you’re looking to do a crazy splurge or cash in some credit card points, the historic 1901 Sofitel Legend Metropole is one of the nicest hotels in Vietnam. Even if you aren’t staying there, book one of their historic tours that takes you down into the wartime bunker!

The Best Time to Go to Hanoi

May through October is the rainy season, which also means the foliage will be very lush and green. Temperatures will start to cool down in November and December. January can be cold a night (50s Fahrenheit)! (Personally, I love October in Asia in between the rainy and dry seasons.)

The winter months usually mean dreary skies and high air pollution due to several factors including heavy traffic and industrial pollution from power plants. (In rural parts of Asia, farmers burn the fields in winter to prepare for planting, which creates a huge amount of air pollution.) The colder weather in Hanoi traps these pollutants closer to the ground.

During TET (Lunar New Year), the city is emptier than normal because many attractions and restaurants shutdown. It’s best to avoid this time of year because prices spike. 

Hanoi’s famous train street is lined with cafes just inches from the tracks.

Vietnam FAQ

Where’s the best place to buy a SIM card in Vietnam?

The easiest thing to do is buy a Vietnam-specific eSIM card from Airalo that will work instantly when you arrive. (Airalo partners with Viettel, the fastest network in Vietnam.) For more details, read my review of Airalo eSIM cards in Southeast Asia.

Promo Codes: New customers save 15% off with NEWTOAIRALO15 and existing users save 10% with AIRALOESIM10.

If you are traveling to multiple countries in Southeast Asia on a short trip, then consider one of their Asia Regional eSIM cards. (Both the country-specific and regional eSIMs have worked wonderfully for me and even have a mobile hotspot option that’s critical for me because I’m always working remotely.)  Keep in mind it’s always cheaper to buy a country-specific eSIM than a regional one.

Do you need travel medical insurance for Vietnam?

Yes, travel medical insurance is one of the most important things to purchase for any trip abroad, especially Vietnam. It covers all the things that could go wrong from injuries to travel delays so that you don’t have to worry and can focus on traveling!

SafetyWing’s Nomad Insurance offers $0 deductible travel medical insurance coverage for over 180 countries for people aged 69 and under when traveling outside their home country. The best part is that it only costs a few dollars a day! If you get sick or injured abroad, you can visit any hospital or doctor.

Other benefits of Nomad Insurance include coverage for lost checked luggage, travel delays over 12 hours, motor accidents (if properly licensed, wearing all safety equipment and not intoxicated) and injuries from sports or leisure activities. You can even add adventure sports, electronics theft and U.S. coverage (for non-residents) to your policy.

One of the best things about SafetyWing is that you can buy policies abroad and speak to a REAL human from the 24/7 customer support team if you have questions! (I can vouch that they are excellent at assisting and will follow up with you afterward.) Pay in full or choose an auto-renewing plan that can be canceled anytime.

For more details, read my review of using SafetyWing in Southeast Asia.