The last of our four two-week stays in Vietnam was in Hanoi, where we actually stayed for 17 days. Although we didn’t like Hanoi as much as Da Nang, our favorite, we still had a great time and a great quality of life. Though there were still plenty of motorbikes, there were also functioning traffic lights that motorists respected (mostly), wider sidewalks that we could actually walk on (mostly), and plenty of trees and parks that made walking more pleasant (frequently). 

Here are some highlights from our adventures in Hanoi:

“Christmas” Badminton and Beer

Each year, Chad and I gift each other experiences on our travels rather than stuff for Christmas using Trivial Pursuit categories as themes. This year, rather than research gifts for each other, we came up with six joint gifts by combining each of the six categories with one of the six countries we’d be visiting in 2025, and a type of gift (event, attraction, tour, overnight, daytrip, free). 

We drew a combination of Sports & Leisure, Event, and Vietnam. After a little research, we discovered there would be an international badminton tournament in Hanoi with the finals the day after we arrived. This seemed perfect, though we weren’t able to find a lot of information about it online or even how to get tickets. But we had a location so we figured we’d show up and hope for the best.

We took a Grab up to the recreation facility where the event was being held and walked around following signs here and there until we found it. When we walked up, there was a large group of mostly young people bunched outside the entrance, which appeared locked. We decided to hang out for 15 minutes or so and see what happened. After about that long, someone opened the door and the crowd surged in. We hung back a little but followed the group pushing their way in. The woman at the door kind of shrugged as we went past and let us in too. I think the organizers had sort of given up on any sort of order. 

Inside the doors were even more people trying to go up the stairs onto the gym bleachers to watch the next match, which would be the final for the men’s singles (we’d missed the mixed doubles and women’s singles). We followed along and finally managed to make our way to the far end of the gym as the two players warmed up. Thankfully, though farther from the action, there was standing room and even a few seats on that end, and we were still able to see the match well enough.

The play was extremely impressive and the two competitors traded the first two sets. In the definitive third set, the underdog from Thailand beat the favorite from Malaysia. It was an exciting match and very fun to watch, but one match was enough for us, especially since it was 80 minutes long. So we made our way out of the crowded gym before the women’s doubles match. You can see more about the tournament here: https://bwfbadminton.com/tournament/5295/ciputra-hanoi-yonex-sunrise-vietnam-international-challenge-2025. I just learned that a Vietnamese duo won the men’s doubles in three sets. Based on the crowd, I’m sure it was incredibly exciting, though likely even more crowded.

After leaving, we took a Grab to one of the three Pasteur Street Brewery locations in Hanoi. We’d really enjoyed our visit to the original location in HCMC, so we felt it would be a fun choice for having a little snack (the delightful vegetarian bar snack again, same as in HCMC) and beer (they do a delightful Jasmine IPA) to discuss the match. 

Feeling refreshed, we walked down to the Old Quarter to check out the more touristy part of Hanoi. A night market was being set up and there were loads of tourists walking around, but it was still charming with lots of pretty balconies like New Orleans. We also walked around the beautiful Hoan Kiem Lake and then back to our neighborhood. We struggled a little with finding a restaurant but ended up at a Thai place that was fantastic. 

Cocktails and Bun Obama

We went on our Ha Long Bay cruise a couple days later, and then had our next night out on the weekend. Our building elevator (we stayed in an aparthotel, booked through Airbnb, review below) had a tourist map and one of the highlighted places was called Bun Obama. A little research revealed that this is a little restaurant where former President Obama had dinner with Anthony Bourdain on the latter’s show, Parts Unknown, in 2016. The actual name of the restaurant is Bún Chả Hương Liên, but they’ve embraced the fame that comes with a visit from a former US President. 

We started at a cocktail bar right across the street called Moonlit and had a decent pair of cocktails. If I remember right, Chad got an old fashioned and I got the Rose Moon, which was gin, rose syrup, cointreau, and grenadine. We walked across the street about a half hour before the bun restaurant’s closing time and were able to get a table right away, though downstairs rather than upstairs where they have the Obama-Bourdain table enshrined. We did not go for the Obama special, but ordered two bowls of their noodle soup (which is what bun is), a seafood roll, a crab roll, and a beer to share. The soup was actually incredibly tasty. Sometimes those types of places get overblown (we’ve been less impressed by other Bourdain favorites) but this was really great, though very red-meat heavy, which is probably why we didn’t make a return trip.

Egg Beer and Water Puppets

Our next Hanoi adventure, which came after our Sa Pa trip, was to take in a traditional water puppet show at one of the theaters near Hoan Kiem Lake. We chose the Lotus Water Puppet Theater because it seemed a little smaller and easier than the one closer to the Old Quarter where we’d seen big lines. We walked up there after work on a Wednesday and were able to walk right up and purchase tickets for the 6:30 p.m. show. They offered us two choices in their premium section – front row right or center five rows back. I asked which was better and she said definitively front row so that was our choice. The tickets were just 150,000 dong each ($6), which we paid in cash. They also have farther back tickets for 100,000 dong, but we were happy to pay more to sit up front.

We had just over an hour before the show, so took the opportunity to walk up to Cafe Giảng, http://cafegiang.vn/ which is where egg coffee was invented. Capitalizing on this reputation, the cafe has also created an egg beer that we wanted to try. The cafe can be a little challenging to find because it is down a narrow alley between two other businesses, but we followed some other tourists and were able to get a table upstairs. 

We ordered an egg coffee and an egg beer. The egg coffee was pretty much the standard version we’d had in other places, so very tasty. The egg beer was just the egg fluff in a mug that you pour a can of beer over. It created an interesting effect but not something I’d want more of. After we finished our egg drinks, we had a little more time before we needed to back at the theater for the show so we walked back to Hoan Kiem Lake and shared a second beer by the lake, which was very pleasant. A highlight was seeing an evening fitness group dancing by the lake.  

We enjoyed the water puppet show very much. It was just the right length at 50 minutes and was a good mix of music and humor. The screens on the side of the theater provided some context for the various dances and skits. We had a great time and sitting in the front row was definitely the right choice.

After the show, we found a cute place to get a couple of bowls of pho so we could experience northern pho, which we’d heard was distinct from the southern pho we had in HCMC, which is supposed to be sweeter, and the central-style pho we had in Da Nang, which is supposed to have more of a kick. We found we preferred the northern-style pho, though it didn’t come with the big plate of greens to add in, which we missed. But the broth was definitely delicate and delicious and we enjoyed the meal a lot.

Citadel and Adorable Kids

Our next adventure was on a Friday morning to the Imperial Citadel of Thăng Long, the site of the former Vietnamese imperial government before it moved to Huế in the early 19th century. We’d thought going on a Friday morning would be a little quieter, but it turned out that numerous elementary school groups were visiting that morning. However, this made our visit more unique because all the little Vietnamese children wanted to say “hello” to us. Some of the kids even spoke some English, so we learned that most of them were age 7. One teacher asked if they could take a photo of us chatting with the kids (most classes had a photographer along with them) and we consented, so we may have appeared in an issue of the homeroom newsletter!

After our initial interactions, we tried to be strategic about going into the different exhibits when there wasn’t a group inside so we wouldn’t be too distracting for the kids. But it was fun to see them learning about history and they really were adorable.

We enjoyed learning about the history and architecture of the site too. Though it was frequently rebuilt, archeologists had found lots of artifacts from various periods and we were able to get a little better understanding of the different dynasties that ruled Vietnam prior to communism. 

Parks and Pleasant Nights

The rest of our time in Hanoi was spent just living our normal life – enjoying the city, trying new foods, making regular visits to the park, and working of course. We made sure to track down the northern specialty crab noodle soup (bún riêu) and had a fun streetside meal of it in our neighborhood. I got mine with snails (which the sweet waiter double-checked I really wanted) and Chad’s was with beef and it had delicious fried bread on the side that made the dish. We also made a few visits to Kem Tràng Tiền, the famous ice cream shop specializing in unique flavors like green rice flake and green bean (both of which we tried). And we enjoyed some great banh mis. Our favorites were from Bánh Mì Tun near Lake Hoan Kiem, which we’d get to go to eat by the lake of course.  

Chad ran in Thong Nhat Park nearly every day and we also had some pleasant walks there. It also proved to be a great place to watch people play Da Cau, which is essentially foot badminton. In the most memorable match, one really talented man took on two across the net and made some truly amazing shots. We’d frequently see young people playing, just kicking the “birdie” around in a circle, but it was more fun to see in actual matches with a net. We didn’t take any photos to respect privacy but it is worth looking up “da cau Vietnam” on Youtube.

We also made time to visit to the Vietnamese Women’s Museum. Part of the exhibits were focused on traditions and family life among Vietnam’s different ethnic groups. Another floor was about the contribution of women during the war. Both parts were very interesting and we spent an engaging couple of hours at the museum. I especially enjoyed the audio guide. It was also very affordable at just 40,000 dong ($1.50) for entry and same price for the audio guide.

All and all, we enjoyed our 2.5 weeks in Hanoi, especially the great overnight trips. Though it is a little too polluted for our taste long term, it was a generally pleasant place to live. 

Hanoi Airbnb Review – My husband and I stayed for 2.5 weeks in this apartment. It was a great base for exploring Hanoi and the area. The apartment feels spacious and the kitchen was good for light cooking. The wifi was generally fast and reliable. Though there was construction nearby, which we were informed of on the day we arrived, it wasn’t too disruptive most days. The location is walkable to Hoan Kiem Lake in one direction and Thong Nhat Park in the other, which was a great place for my husband to run. The host was always responsive to messages, but we had a couple of small miscommunications about a plumbing issue when we arrived and with scheduling housekeeping. Both worked out eventually.