Hanoi itineraries
Ba Dinh to the Old Quarter
Stand on the square outside Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum in the morning, walk the Temple of Literature courtyards at midday, then end with water-puppet drums and a plastic stool on Ta Hien. For a first day in Hanoi, this order wastes the least time.
Old Quarter night, West Lake morning
Day one stays within a kilometre of the hotel: Old Quarter, French Quarter, beer street. Day two starts with pho, heads out to Ba Dinh and West Lake, and ends with a coffee on Train Street before the airport. One day on foot, one on wheels.
Two days Hanoi, one Ninh Binh
Unpack in a lane beside the cathedral. Day one is the lake and sunset on Long Bien Bridge, day two a rowing boat through the limestone peaks of Trang An, day three the Ethnology Museum and the north shore of West Lake before the airport. City, countryside and museums get a day each.
Festivals & seasons
- 1 — Winter drizzle and chill
- 2 — Tet flower markets (Hang Luoc, Quang Ba)
- 2 — Tet (Lunar New Year)
- 6 — West Lake lotus season
- 7 — Midsummer heat and downpours
- 9 — National Day
- 9 — Hanoi Autumn Festival
- 9 — Hanoi Jazztival
- 9 — Mid-Autumn Festival on Hang Ma
- 10 — Autumn, the best walking weather
- 11 — Hanoi Beer Festival
- 12 — Christmas Eve at the cathedral
Souvenirs
- Vietnamese coffee beans and weasel coffee
- West Lake lotus tea
- Bat Trang ceramics
- Silk scarves and a tailored ao dai
- Lacquerware (Hanoia)
- Prints and tote bags from Tired City and Collective Memories
- Dried mango, cashews and sweets from Dong Xuan Market