Ha Noi

Ha Noi is where Vietnam’s story begins. The city has been the nation’s capital for over a thousand years, and that history lives in every corner — from the Temple of Literature, built in 1070, to the narrow tube houses of the Old Quarter, where 36 streets are still named after the trades that once defined them.

The Old Quarter is Ha Noi’s magnetic centre. Motorbikes weave through streets barely wide enough for a car, vendors balance shoulder poles loaded with tropical fruit, and the smell of bún chả drifts from charcoal grills on every block. This is where you’ll find the city’s best phở — Hanoians will fight you over which stall serves the definitive bowl.

Beyond the Old Quarter, Ha Noi reveals quieter pleasures. Hoan Kiem Lake offers morning tai chi and evening strolls. The French Quarter’s tree-lined boulevards hide excellent cafés. And West Lake’s perimeter road is perfect for a sunset cycle past pagodas and lotus ponds.

Ha Noi is also the gateway to Northern Vietnam’s most dramatic landscapes — Ha Long Bay, Sa Pa’s rice terraces, and Ninh Binh’s karst mountains are all within easy reach.