This Hanoi trip was planned as a five-day, four-night itinerary. Looking back, Hanoi isn’t the kind of city you fall in love with at first sight — it’s raw, bustling with everyday life, and incredibly dense, which kept me alert for pretty much the whole trip. This post covers pre-trip prep, the overnight Halong Bay cruise, food and sights in Hanoi’s Old Quarter, and a number of things nobody told me before I left. I’ve written up the itinerary and the mistakes honestly, for anyone else considering a trip to Hanoi and Halong Bay.
01Before You Go
You can apply for Vietnam’s e-visa online — a single-entry visa costs USD 25. The process isn’t complicated, but leave yourself plenty of buffer time. We flew with VietJet Air; their carry-on allowance is one personal item plus one cabin bag per person, with maximum dimensions of 56×36×23 cm and a 7 kg limit, while checked baggage is limited to 119×119×81 cm and 20 kg.
VietJet’s online check-in is only available for certain countries, and Taiwan isn’t one of them, so budget extra time to check in at the airport counter.
Meals aren’t included on the outbound flight, and since the plane lands in the evening and immigration without fast-track can take around two hours, I’d recommend having dinner in Taiwan before boarding. Also, link a credit card to Grab before you leave Taiwan — you’ll rely on it for rides and payment once you land. Travel insurance is worth getting too; it isn’t expensive and it helps if there’s a flight delay or something unexpected comes up.
02Hanoi Weather in December
Most people assume Vietnam is hot year-round, but late December in Hanoi is actually quite cool — daytime highs of around 19–23°C, dropping to about 15°C at night. A thin long-sleeve top plus a heavier jacket handles the day-to-night swing and the strong wind on the Halong Bay cruise deck. Sunscreen is still worth packing, but the real priorities this season are staying warm and wearing clothes that are easy to move.
03Day 1 — Arrival in Hanoi
VietJet flight VJ947 departed Kaohsiung at 16:15 and landed in Hanoi at 18:05 (Vietnam is one hour behind Taiwan). Based on what I’d read before the trip, I had budgeted an hour for entry formalities; in reality it took nearly two, with almost no staff directing the queue and everyone guessing where the line went — chaotic and disorganized. Once we were through, it took another hour or so to get from the airport to our Old Quarter accommodation, so don’t overpack the first evening’s schedule.
One thing worth knowing before you call a Grab at Noi Bai Airport: drivers don’t stop directly in front of the arrivals hall. You’ll be swarmed by taxi touts as soon as you walk out, but the Grab pickup point is further away — you need to leave the terminal, cross the crosswalk, and meet your driver in the parking area ahead.
We stayed at Tamundi Homestay (Train Street View), right in the Old Quarter of Hoan Kiem, within walking distance of Train Street and the 36 Old Streets. We tried three different room types over the stay, all with warm wood-toned interiors — but the real surprise was the room with an open-air bathtub on the first night. After dropping our bags, hungry from the trip, we grabbed a quick bowl at the 24-hour Phở Thìn Bờ Hồ (Lê Văn Hưu branch), which unexpectedly turned out to be the best bowl of phở of the whole trip.
04Day 2 — Halong Bay Cruise
Day two brought us to the highlight of the trip: Halong Bay. There’s an interesting land/sea split to how it’s organized — a bit like Tokyo Disneyland’s two parks — and we went with the sea side. Early in the morning, a shuttle from the cruise company picked us up from our Old Quarter hotel and took us to the cruise port; we checked in around noon and started the day’s activities right after lunch.
You only need one change of clothes for the cruise — leave your big luggage at your city homestay instead of hauling it all the way to Halong Bay and onto the boat.
The first afternoon stop, Ti Top Island, is named after Soviet cosmonaut Gherman Titov. It has a viewing path with over 400 steps; following the crowd to the top gives you a full 360° view of Halong Bay, with a crescent of white sand beach at the base. Next was Luon Cave, where local boatmen paddle small bamboo boats slowly through the limestone formations — the calmest, most peaceful stretch of the day on the water.
05Day 3 — Halong Bay Cruise & Old Quarter
On the morning of day three we visited Hang Sung Sot (Surprise Cave), the largest limestone cave in Halong Bay at around 10,000 square meters. It was discovered by the French in 1901 and named for how astonishingly vast and dramatic the interior turned out to be. The entrance looks unremarkable, but inside it opens up like an underground palace, with colorful lights on the stalactites giving it an oddly mysterious feel — it reminded me, for some reason, of the Phantom’s hidden lair deep beneath the Paris Opera House in The Phantom of the Opera.
Overall the cabin views on the cruise were great, but remember to pull the curtain closed when using the toilet or shower. The cabin only stocks shampoo and shower gel — toothbrushes need to be requested at the front desk, and the slippers provided are reused flip-flops, so bring your own if that bothers you. It’s also worth bringing a reusable water bottle, since only hot water is free and other drinks are charged separately. Booking an all-inclusive package is the easiest way to do an overnight cruise, with transfers, the boat, and meals all covered. Below is a link to Amanda Cruise, which we actually sailed with — the service was excellent. Since disembarkation day happened to be my sister’s birthday, the crew surprised her with a fruit cake and a group sing-along the night before, which made for a really special memory on Halong Bay.
We got back to Hanoi around 3 p.m., rested briefly at the homestay, and then headed to Tầm Vị, a Vietnamese home-style restaurant that has held a Michelin star for several years. It wasn’t dramatically impressive overall, but for a Michelin star at such affordable prices, it’s still worth trying. I booked ahead via Facebook — if you mention a birthday in your booking note, they’ll bring out a small cake.
Full and happy, we headed to Hanoi Train Street. Since we’d already been to Thailand’s famous Maeklong Railway Market, we didn’t specifically time our visit around a train passing, and we didn’t run into the police turning people away that you sometimes read about online. We wrapped up day three at King Roti Hàng Gai, known for its freshly baked coffee butter rolls.
Hanoi Train Street runs through the old city, lined with homes and cafés where visitors sit trackside sipping coffee and watch the trains pass close by. Maeklong Railway Market, by contrast, is a traditional market on the outskirts, where vendors scramble to pull back their awnings and goods each time a train comes through. The two experiences are actually quite different.
Bonus mention: a lot of people ask whether we tried a Vietnamese-style hair wash — we did. Our homestay gave us a voucher for a partner shop, so we went without doing any research at all. We couldn’t get a walk-in slot on night three, so we booked for the next day instead. The result was incredible — my hair felt unbelievably light and smooth, unlike anything I’d experienced before. If you’re curious, feel free to DM me on Instagram, or check my highlights, where I’ve shared the shop name and raved about how such a no-frills place delivers such great results.
06Day 4 — Hanoi Old Quarter
Back in Hanoi proper, day four was basically about eating and wandering. Breakfast started at Bánh Mì 25, a well-known Vietnamese-style baguette spot an eight-minute walk from our homestay, then on to Cong Cafe – Cau Go — the chain that built its name on a retro Vietnamese-communist aesthetic and opened branches in Taiwan in 2024 — for their signature coconut coffee smoothie.
Once full, we walked about halfway around Hoan Kiem Lake to St. Joseph’s Cathedral. Motorbikes are banned from the lakeside footpath, making it one of the few genuinely walkable stretches in the Old Quarter. Michelin Bib Gourmand pick Pho 10 Lý Quốc Sư is nearby, so it’s worth joining the queue right after visiting the cathedral — by the time you reach the front, you’ll probably be hungry again anyway.
Full again, we made a stop at UNIQLO Hoan Kiem, which is worth a look — the all-white, ornately detailed building is very photogenic, and inside there are Vietnam-exclusive graphic tees, plus a third-floor restroom open to visitors. Wandering on, we happened across Trang Tien Ice Cream, a Hanoi institution, and were startled by how large it was, laid out almost like a courtyard house. Different service windows sell different budget-friendly flavors, and on a weekend afternoon the long queues and the crowds sitting or standing around eating ice cream carry on a tradition Hanoi locals have kept alive for half a century.
We finally made it to Cafe Giảng, said to be the birthplace of egg coffee. Sitting on wooden stools sipping the rich, creamy egg coffee was a memorable experience, though personally I still preferred Cong Cafe’s coconut coffee smoothie. Dinner was at the hard-to-book Pizza 4P’s (Bao Khanh branch), which serves pasta and salads alongside its pizzas. The Burrata Parma Ham pizza is the must-order signature, and you can go Half & Half to get two flavors in one pizza — a nice touch.
One thing did make the pasta taste better than the pizza to me: our pizza at Pizza 4P’s arrived cold — possibly because it had been left standing at room temperature while the second flavor finished baking.
07Day 5 — Departure
On the last morning, we wandered around Dong Xuan Market to take in the local market scene and pick up a few souvenirs. A Grab or taxi from the Old Quarter to Noi Bai Airport in the early morning usually takes 30–40 minutes — smoother than expected, since you avoid the daytime traffic. VietJet flight VJ946 departed at 11:45 and landed at 15:15.
Dong Xuan Market (Chợ Đồng Xuân) is the largest indoor wholesale and retail market in Hanoi’s Hoan Kiem district. Originally built in 1804, the current building dates from the French colonial period and spans three floors selling clothing, household goods, fresh produce, and all kinds of Vietnamese souvenirs — a good place to see everyday local life and pick up gifts.
08What I Actually Learned in Hanoi
Watch Your Change
Vietnamese dong bills have a lot of trailing zeros, so it’s easy to misread one at checkout. Always double-check your change on the spot before walking away — it’s the safest habit.
Packing & Daily Life Tips
- Vietnam uses a mix of Type A outlets (Taiwan’s flat two-pin plug) and Type C (European round two-pin). Most of the time, a Taiwanese plug will fit directly.
- Our homestay’s toiletries were well stocked overall, but the toothpaste tube was about half the size of a usual travel one — barely enough for two days, so bring your own if that matters to you.
- Toilet paper is generally quite thick (except at the airport) and it can’t be flushed — dispose of it in the bin next to the toilet instead.
- Restaurants don’t always provide tissues or water, so carry your own — bottled water is the safer choice.
City Observations & Safety Notes
A small, obscure detail: Vietnamese license plates have a decimal point on them, which struck me as odd the first time I noticed it. It turns out it’s just a separator that splits the five-digit serial number into a group of three and a group of two (like 123.45) to make it easier to read and remember, and to cut down on misreads.
Tired City, a small shop selling Vietnamese street-culture and local-artist merchandise, pops up every few steps in the Old Quarter and is worth a browse.
Two safety notes as well: when crossing the street, don’t wait for the motorbikes to stop completely — walking at a steady, confident pace when there’s a gap is actually safer. And it’s worth using a phone strap and keeping your phone tucked away in crowded areas to reduce the chance of it being snatched.
ENDSo, Is Hanoi Worth It?
I didn’t fall in love with Hanoi, but I don’t regret going. It’s not the kind of city that hands you a curated, relaxed experience — it keeps nudging you to stay alert and think for yourself the whole time. The streets are dense and loud, but the contrast with the Old Quarter’s old-house cafés, the quiet of Hoan Kiem Lake at dawn, and the openness of Halong Bay leaves a real impression. If you enjoy the process of finding order in chaos, Hanoi has plenty to offer; if you’re after a mindless, relaxing getaway, you might want to adjust your expectations first.
