14 Unique Things to Do in Hanoi, Vietnam

Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam, a chaotic city full of odd nightlike oppertunities. The city is famous for its fleet of weaving scooters and odd pockets of pure serenity. There are many unique things to do in Hanoi, Vietnam, including visiting temples, boating through caves, enjoying the city’s robust night life and sample the many local dishes. Hanoi is also unique as one of the world’s oldest and most-continuously-lived-in capitals.

Located on the famous Red River, Hanoi also has tropical fruit stands, shopping stalls and a profoundly interesting night market. Visitors can enjoy well-preserved colonial structures, numerous ancient pagodas and various interesting museum.

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Taxi Warnings

Taxi’s are the primary mode of transportation around Hanoi, but they’re extremely sketchy.  Many taxis are fake, meaning they’re regular drivers who dress up their cars to attract tourists. These taxis drastically overcharge.

Other taxis may take part in various driver scams. For a list of common taxi scams, click here. The most common scam in Hanoi is called the Featherwheel Scam. These taxis have buttons installed on the left hand side of the steering wheel to make the meter jump quickly. 

Always use official taxis and try to set a price before getting into the vehicle.  Always pay with exact change, or the driver may take  the entire bill as a “tip.”  If you do get change, make sure the money received as change isn’t counterfeit.  

When in Hanoi, it’s generally much easier to use the local bus system or rideshare apps, such as Grab. These are verified, so scams are much less common.

Traffic Advice

Vietnam in general and Hanoi in particular is pretty congested when it comes to traffic.  Watch out for motorbikes and scooters, as they take up huge portions of the road and will sometimes hop onto the sidewalk when traffic is heavy.  

A lot of places in Hanoi have the same name.  This is sort of a roundabout scam, done to trick foreigners into places that seem like more famous shops and hotels.  For example, when giving an address to a taxi driver, double check you have the right hotel.  There are likely three or four which have the same or a similar name in an attempt to get visitors to patron that location or earn extra money for a driver to take you to the wrong place, and then later, the correct place

If you’re driving a scooter in Hanoi (or Vietnam in general) try to wear a tinted helmet. Cops will often stop foreigners and ask for “fines.” This can be avoided by strictly adhering to traffic laws and taking steps to avoid standing out as a foreigner.

There’s always a flow of traffic in Vietnam. To cross roads, you have to be assertive and force your way across, while also supplying plenty of time for cars to break.

Vietnam Visa Rules

Vietnam’s Visa rules are complex. These regulations are known for changing somewhat frequently.

Even though Vietnam offers a Visa on Arrival, this doesn’t mean a visitor can simply show up and get an automatic visa. The Visa on Arrival is one method for visiting Hanoi, but most tourists need to get a visa in advance. These visas are obtained through online forms and cost money ($20 for a 30 day tourist visa $70 for a 90 day tourist visa)

If you are getting a Visa on Arrival, you must complete a different online form. An Online Visa Agency will provide a Visa on Arrival Approval Letter. This letter comes with a small fee to the agency. The Visa on Arrival Approval Letter will be emailed to you. It must be printed out and two standard passport photos must be attached. Then, a tourist can bring bring these papers and the photos along with exactly $25 USD for a Single Entry Stamp. Exact change is necessary as immigration is strict about this.

Vietnam has a cool sticker which they put on a passport page on arrival.  However, this sticker takes up one full page in the passport, so be sure to have a couple of spare pages left in your passport before arrival. 

Other Advice for Hanoi

Haggling is expected in a lot of the places in Hanoi, especially on street sales.  Always offer half of the asking price and work your way up from there.  Expect to pay 70% or so of the initially quoted price.  

When considering unique things to do when visiting Hanoi, always spend time looking out for new market stalls, street foods and popular local restaurants. Hanoi’s culinary culture is amazing.

Cards aren’t accepted in many shops in Hanoi.  The closer you get to the city’s tourism districts, the more places accept cards.  However, using cash is easy and expected.  

Unique Things to Do When Visiting Hanoi

Bún Bò Nam Bộ’

A truly excellent shop which specializes in a type of dry beef noodle bowl. The shop only serves drinks and the noodle bowl, but the single entrée is incredibly popular and has a profound cult following.

 The Note Coffee Shop

A great coffee and pastry shop decorated with sticky notes from past visitors and travelers. The shop overlooks some nice scenery near Hoan Kiem Lake. The location is a great place to find other travelers.

Trấn Quốc Pagoda

The oldest Buddhist temple in Hanoi boasting a truly amazing Pagoda which looks over the surrounding lake. The temple was the capital of Vietnamese Buddhism during the Tran Dynasty. The Pagoda is very popular amongst tourists due to it’s placement against sunsets and the surrounding West Lake.

The Central Hostel

A rather nice hostel in Hanoi which has an upstairs patio area connected to the main building and serves surplus-sized alcoholic beverages. The Central Hostel is in a good area to experience the night markets, shopping streets, bars and clubs which define Hanoi’s nightlife.

Thang Long Water Puppet Show

A musical puppet show done on floating water, this show displays facets of Vietnamese culture, ancient legends, dancing traditional puppets and fire breathing. The puppeteering style was developed along the Red River Delta, using floodwaters to operate conventional puppetry. The puppets are operated from behind screens with strings and long poles, making them appear to glide along and interact with the reflective water pools.

Temple of Literature

A famous temple which has withstood time and wars, the Temple of Literature holds three major courtyards, beautiful water features and stone turtles with large tablets on their back encouraging learning. The temple is a popular place for graduate students to get photos, celebrating their academic success.

American B-52 Wreckage Monument

Located in Huu Tiep Lake, Ngoc Ha Neighborhood, the remains of a crashed American B-52 bomber are preserved. The Operation Linebacker II plane, which was shot down just before the end of the Vietnam War can still be seen along with its warped landing gear and undercarriage. There is a plaque discussing the event, stating “The Battalion No72 – Air Defence Missile Regiment No285 shot down on the spot a B52G of the US imperialist violating Ha Noi airspace … creating an important change that led the Vietnamese people’s anti-US resistance for national salvation to the complete victory.” 

The Hanoi Street Train

The Hanoi Street Train is a very popular photograph area where the streets of Old Quarter Hanoi are mere inches from an active train track. At 3PM and 7 PM every day, this train zooms down a narrow ally, speeding past drying laundry, children shops, buildings and foot paths.

Long Biên Night Market

This is a popular, well-constructed night market where many of Vietnam’s traditional foods, treats and ingredients are sold. This market isn’t designed for tourists, so expect to haggle quite a bit.

Quảng Bá Flower Market

This is one of the more popular and scenic flower markets located in Hanoi. It takes roughly 20 minutes to reach via car from Hoàn Kiếm Lake. The market is best visited between midnight and 6AM when the shopping lights of the district create shadows and patterns amongst sunflowers, lilies, roses, orchids and many other floral arrangements.

Hỏa Lò Prison Museum

Known as the Hanoi Hilton by American POWs, the Colonial era museum is a stark, historical and prominent building close to Hanoi’s city center. Generations of prisoners, both war prisoners and colonial political incarcerations, used this stark building to contain humans. Officially, the Vietnamese government maintains that reports of torture in the prison are pure fabrications, but there are an overwhelming number of such accounts.

The Taoist Temple Quán Thánh

One of the four sacred temples built to repel malevolent spirits, the temple is an active place of study and worship.  Visitors will occasionally see martial artists honing their talents. The temple itself is very well-maintained with many trees, flagstones and traditional carvings intact. The temple sits on the edge of the popular West Lake (Hồ Tây).

Hoàn Kiếm Lake

Surrounded by some of Hanoi’s most popular shopping areas, this lake has large sidewalks to loop the water and a famous tower (Turtle Tower) is erected on the lake’s island.  The lake is part of a famous legend involving a sword, a golden turtle god, a king and a war against Ming China.

Hoa Lư – Tam Cốc (Three Caves)

This area is located outside of Hanoi, making it a good day-trip area. It’s a gorgeous bit of territory with large, rounded mountains at steep angles, numerous wide rivers and endless flat rice fields of varying colors.  There are many temples, bridges and climbing trails throughout the area.  The three caves of Tam Cốc are river caverns that can be floated through.

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