You can have breakfast at hotel or walk out and visit a street food vendor/local restaurant to try a popular breakfast dish loved by Hanoians such as “banh my” or “Phở” (traditional beef noodle), or Xôi Xéo (Vietnamese sticky rice with mung bean), etc. While the foods could be similarly prepared by local chefs, street eating can give you an atmosphere of a typical morning breakfast among locals.

Spend half a day touring Hanoi’s colonial buildings, tree-lined boulevards, and gorgeous lakes. Hanoi’s Old Quarter coffee shops offer a glimpse into local life. Visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, a marble and granite structure built to preserve the body of Vietnamese revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh, known as “Uncle Ho.” The One Pillar Pagoda, built in 1049 from wood in the shape of a lotus blossom and supported by a single stone pillar, is Vietnam’s most famous pagoda and worth to stop at. Take a short drive to the late-11th-century Temple of Literature, Vietnam’s first national university. 

Have lunch at a local restaurant to try authentic Vietnamese cuisines.

In the afternoon, Explore Hanoi’s hidden gem—the Vietnamese Women’s Museum, this four-story museum invites you on a captivating journey through the lives of Vietnamese women across time. Back to central Hanoi for a cyclo ride through the scenic Old Quarter, where each street is named for its original wares, from silk to silver. Stroll through the interesting network of back alleyways, fronted by narrow “tunnels” or “tube houses”  built to escape taxes depending on their street frontage, for a truly eclectic view into Hanoi street life.

Conclude your day by watching an entertaining water puppet performance, a uniquely northern Vietnamese art form said to have originated in the flooded rice fields of the Red River Delta where villagers entertained themselves by manipulating puppets over the water. The show uses colourful wooden puppets to depict scenes of rural life and episodes of national history set to music.  

Overnight in Hanoi.