Hanoi at night is so different and attractive. If one day you come to Hanoi and cannot sleep, you can walk out into the streets to hear the night of Hanoi breathing, to see it in the old tranquility.
Hanoi is in a hurry during the day. Sometimes many people are swept away by that haste and do not have enough time to stop and admire the ancient beauty of 36 classic streets in Hanoi Old Quarter, and thousands of years of culture in Thang Long Old Captial.
So, if you want to see the peaceful charm of the city, you must wait until night, when there is no more traffic congestion, suffocating by the car horn.
Where can we visit Hanoi at night?
Go wherever you like, and walk through familiar streets to see how quiet Hanoi’s night is. But, we suggest you explore Hoan Kiem lake and go along the old streets.
If you do not recognize the old houses and streets during the day, you will be delighted at night. In addition to the lake and the Old Quarter, there are Ba Dinh Square, West Lake, Opera House, Ngo Quyen Street, Long Bien Bridge, Quang Ba Flower Market, Long Bien Night Market … many other places for you to visit.
Restaurants at night in Hanoi
Hanoi has many restaurants to taste the food at night. Here are a few places to put on your list.
- Pho Ly Quoc Su, opening: 6:00 am – 00:00 (midnight); 10 Ly Quoc Su Street, Hanoi
- Hang Dau fish noodle soup, opening: 7:00 am – 2:00 am; 42 Hang Dau Street, Hanoi
- Xoi Yen (Sticky rice), opening: 6:00 am – 00:00 am (midnight); 35B Nguyen Huu Huan Street, Hanoi
In addition to the above addresses, near the night market and Dong Xuan Market, there are still rows of porridge, vermicelli, pho… You can find something to warm your stomach on the road.
Things to pay attention to when going out at night in Hanoi
Walking around at night is very enjoyable because then the road and everything is yours. But there are also things to look out for:
- The most convenient means of transport is a motorbike, remember to fill it with gas because it is difficult to find a gas station at night. If you don’t have a motorbike, get a bicycle. No need to park a bicycle, it is easy to take it anywhere, and quite convenient.
- For safety, you should not go alone. At night you may meet indecent people, thieves, robbers, addicts… You avoid dark places and do not stop for long in places where there are no people. When you think to meet some disgraceful guys, just by seeing them you should take my stuff away.
- Wear warm clothes during the monsoon season (usually Oct to Jan), and bring identification. Do not bring a lot of money and valuables. This is just a precaution because Hanoi is one of the safe cities to visit in Vietnam, so it is too late at night, you can meet mobile police to ask for identification documents, and remember to bring your ID card and vehicle documents.
Details of the journey to explore Hanoi at night
Your journey at night can start at 8:00 pm, the first destination is Uncle Ho’s Mausoleum to watch the flag down at 8:30 pm. When the flag-down ceremony ends, Ba Dinh Square is much less crowded.
After arriving at the area of Uncle Ho’s Mausoleum, we will stop at Thanh Nien Street along West Lake. This time around 10 p.m. Streets is still crowded here, especially the section along the lake.
And coming back to Hoang Dieu Street, the section in front of the late General’s house (Vo Nguyen Giap House). This distance is often quiet, giving you a different feeling of Hanoi.
Back to Hoan Kiem lake, around 11:00 pm. There were visitors still around the lake. You can see young couples by the bench, groups of people exercising late at night, and tourists walking at a night market. Hanoi comes in late at night.
You can park the car or motorbike near the cathedral and then walk around Hoan Kiem Lake, and go up to Dinh Le and Trang Tien Streets. You will find the difference between Hanoi that is going to sleep.
Leaving the old town, we come to Long Bien to find the Quang Ba flower market on Au Co street. If you feel hungry, stop at the shop at the market gate. After finishing the bowl of hot pho there at a very affordable night price (30,000 VND – 50,000 VND), you can continue traveling more.
The flower market has so many kinds of flowers. The sellers in Quang Ba market are very gentle, they were very comfortable so you can get a lot of beautiful pictures.
Leaving the flower market at 3:30 am, we can come back to the fruit and vegetable market in Long Bien which is the busiest place in the city at night. The workforce here is mainly hard-working women. These women are in a hurry, they almost run to save time, expect to carry more goods …
It’s so wonderful to find how beautiful time is one night in Hanoi. Maybe one day, you don’t sleep and decide to walk out into the street at night to find a different life.
And, one important thing is always to pay attention to it that you should go with one local person. It’s much better.
