Ask anyone who has lived in Hanoi which season belongs to the city, and the answer comes back without hesitation. Autumn. Not the summer, when the heat sits on the Old Quarter like a hand, and not the winter, with its grey drizzle. Autumn in Hanoi. For roughly ten weeks between September and November, the…
At around eleven in the morning, something changes in the air of Hanoi’s Old Quarter. Thin blue smoke starts curling out of doorways and off the edge of the pavement, carrying the smell of pork fat hitting charcoal. Plastic stools appear. Within half an hour the whole city seems to be sitting down to the…
3 days in Hanoi is the sweet spot. Two days and you spend most of your time orienting yourself. A week and you will have seen everything twice, unless you use the city as a base for the north. Three days gives you the Old Quarter, the French Quarter, the historical sites, a proper run…
Hanoi wakes up early, and it wakes up hungry. Long before the shops on the main streets roll up their shutters, sidewalk stools are already filled with locals hunched over steaming bowls, and the smell of charcoal, broth, and fried shallots drifts through the Old Quarter’s narrow lanes. This Hanoi food guide walks through the…
Every year on October 10, red flags and fresh flowers fill the streets of Hanoi as the city marks one of the most significant dates in Hanoi history: Ngay Giai Phong Thu Do, or Hanoi Liberation Day. For travelers who happen to be in the city around this date, understanding what it commemorates adds real…
Few sights capture the energy of a Vietnamese festival quite like the pounding drums, clashing cymbals, and swirling colors of Múa Lân Vietnam, the traditional lion dance. Seen at Tet celebrations, Mid-Autumn festivities, business openings, and weddings across the country, this performance is far more than street entertainment. It is a living piece of Vietnamese…
Few foods carry as much symbolism in Vietnam as banh trung thu, Vietnam mooncakes baked and shared every year around the Vietnam Mid-Autumn Festival. Round, dense, and often intricately patterned, these cakes are as much about ritual and family as they are about flavor. For travelers visiting Hanoi in the weeks around the full moon,…
Once a year, when the moon reaches its fullest and brightest point of the season, Vietnam turns its streets over to lanterns, mooncakes, and family reunions. Known as Tet Trung Thu, Vietnam Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the most visually spectacular and culturally rich celebrations in the country, and Hanoi is where it is experienced…
Every year on September 2nd, Vietnam marks its National Day or Independence Day, the anniversary of the moment the country declared itself independent in 1945. For travelers planning a trip around this date, 2026 is a meaningful year to be in the country, and there is no better place to feel it than Hanoi, the…
Pho gets international headlines, but anyone who has eaten their way seriously through Vietnamese cuisine will tell you that Bun bo Hue Vietnam deserves equal attention. This spicy, deeply aromatic beef and pork noodle soup from the ancient imperial city of Hue is arguably the most complex bowl in the Vietnamese repertoire, built on a…
