*POST UPDATED OCTOBER 2026
Hi friends! Happy Sunday! Hopefully I’ve caught you relaxing, enjoying a cup of tea or coffee, with a few spare moments to read my latest travel guide: Four Days in Hanoi, Vietnam! In case you missed it, Husband and I spent two weeks exploring Hanoi, Hội An, and Huế back in September, and I have so many fun travel guides coming your way about the trip! Today’s guide is the first of two Hanoi specific posts — the next will deal exclusively with all things food & drink! —, these will be followed by two Huế posts — again, one tourist, one food —, and then finally one huge guide to Hội An, covering everything all at once. I know — it’s gonna be great! Shall we get started?
Everything we know and love about Hanoi is detailed below, divided into the usual breakdown; fun facts / how to get there / where we stayed / where we tourist-ed. Oh, PS! If you’re planning your own trip to Vietnam, you might want to start at this post: Two Weeks in Vietnam | Our Top Tips & Itinerary.
Enjoy!
hanoi fun facts
Some fun informational tidbits for your next pub quiz!
every big Vietnamese city has its own signature coffee, and Hanoi’s is egg coffee. Invented in the city during the French War of 1946, egg coffee was born out of necessity during a milk shortage! I was more than a little grossed out at the thought of trying this pre-trip, but it was actually so tasty - who knew!
Hanoi is home to one of the cheapest beers in the world, bia hoi. The beer, which has only around 3 or 4% alcohol content, is especially popular at the more impromptu/less-proper spots, and one glass typically costs around ₫1,000 or €0.30! It is brewed daily and has a short shelf life, but oh my lord, it is so refreshing and delicious! We enjoyed many a glass during our time in town 😉
the city’s Long Biên Bridge, which crosses over the gigantic Red River, is seen as a symbol of Vietnamese resilience and courage. The bridge was heavily bombed during the war with the US, but repaired time and time again. Today, it still stands tall and proud, a little rusty perhaps, but a very cool sight regardless!
under French rule, property tax in Hanoi used to be charged on the width of the building — meaning, the wider the house, the higher the tax bill. As a result, the city is filled with crazy buildings that tower high into the sky, but are super narrow at the base. Crazy!
PS, don’t worry! There are a few more location-specific fun facts littered throughout the rest of this post 😉