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Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails
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Hanoi

Vietnam21.0285° N · 105.8542° E5 stories

Vietnam's thousand-year-old capital is one of the world's great street-food cities. In the Old Quarter's tangle of 36 guild streets, breakfast pho is ladled out beside silk shops, egg coffee is whisked in hidden cafés, and dinner happens on plastic stools at the kerb. Eating your way through Hanoi is not a side activity — it is the itinerary.

When to go

October–December, March–April

Budget level

Budget

Typical cost profile for visitors

At a glance
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  • 0 recommended stays
  • 0 places to eat
On the map

Finding Hanoi

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The stories

Reading Hanoi

Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails01
Hidden Gems

The Quiet Corners of Hanoi That Locals Love

Hanoi at full volume is famous. Hanoi at a whisper — dawn tai chi by the lake, flower markets before sunrise, a rusting French-era bridge at dusk — is the city locals actually keep for themselves.

Vietnam · 6 min
Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails02
Destinations

First Time in Hanoi: Everything You Need to Know

Vietnam's thousand-year-old capital is intense, beautiful and cheaper than you think. Here is the honest first-timer briefing — from crossing the street to choosing your season.

Vietnam · 7 min
Overhead close-up of a bowl of Vietnamese beef pho: flat rice noodles in clear broth topped with minced beef, fresh herbs, spring onion and chopped scallions in a white bowl03
Food

Hanoi street food guide: pho, banh mi and the Old Quarter

Where to eat in Vietnam's capital, venue by venue — from a legendary bowl of beef pho on Bat Dan Street to the café that invented egg coffee.

Vietnam · 5 min
Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails04
Itineraries

One Perfect Day in Hanoi

From tai chi at dawn on Hoan Kiem Lake to a bia hoi stool after dark — how to spend a single, unforgettable day in Vietnam's capital.

Vietnam · 6 min
Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails05
Stays

Hanoi Stays for Every Budget: The Areas That Make Sense

Old Quarter energy, French Quarter grandeur, or lakeside calm in Tay Ho — how to match your Hanoi neighborhood to your budget and temperament.

Vietnam · 5 min
In pictures

Hanoi, framed

Overhead close-up of a bowl of Vietnamese beef pho: flat rice noodles in clear broth topped with minced beef, fresh herbs, spring onion and chopped scallions in a white bowl
Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails
Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails
Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails
Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails
Hanoi's Train Street: a railway track running between narrow houses hung with red Vietnamese flags, with locals seated at cafés beside the rails