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Vincom Mega Mall Royal City – Asia’s largest underground retail & entertainment complex

Came across Vincom Mega Mall Royal City while reading the news so we decided to come here on our second last day to check this place out. VMMRC is about 7km southwest of the Old Quarter. The taxi ride (booked via GrabTaxi) from our hotel to here cost 80,000 VND (SGD5). Vincom Mega Mall Royal […]

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Vietnam Museum of Ethnology – Featuring the Culture and Heritage of 54 Different Ethnic Groups

Of all the places of interest I had visited so far in Hanoi, I would say the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology is one of the most interesting. We spent a good couple of hours here because the museum collection is impressively extensive so set aside time as there’ll be lots to explore. Vietnam Museum of […]

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Temple of Literature – Dedicated to Confucius, sages and scholars

Before I came to Hanoi, I had read up a lot about its places of interest and the Temple of Literature (entrance fee of 30,000 VND/person) was one of the must-visit attractions. Temple of Literature 58 Quoc Tu Giam Van Mieu, Dong Da Hanoi, Vietnam Tel: +84 4 3747 6013 Also known as the Temple […]

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Ho Chi Minh Museum and One Pillar Pagoda in Hanoi

Not far from the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is the Ho Chi Minh Museum (entrance fee 40,000 VND per pax) where you can learn about the life of Ho Chi Minh – his background, ideals and revolutionary career. To be honest, before I came to Hanoi, I didn’t have a clue what HCM actually meant […]

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Imperial Citadel of Thang Long – A UNESCO World Heritage Site in Hanoi

If you’re heading to Hanoi for a holiday, do make sure you have the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long in your list of to-visit places because it’s one of the few attractions in Hanoi that’s really worth checking out. The hotel reception staff had given us the wrong information/direction on where the entrance to the […]

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Things to see in Hanoi – More sights & attractions to explore

It’s Chinese New Year Eve! Gosh, by the time this post goes live, I must be busy in the kitchen preparing a 10-course feast for tonight’s Reunion Dinner. In the end, I still decided to cook and have everyone eat in because we couldn’t find a CNY menu that everyone was happy with – we’re […]

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Lenin Park, Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Presidential Palace in Hanoi, Vietnam

In one of my earlier travel posts, I’ve mentioned that if you’re staying in the Old Quarter in Hanoi, it’s actually very easy to get around on foot. In fact, many of the notable attractions and must-see places in Hanoi are also within walking distances from the Old Quarter. Well, when I say ‘walking distance’ […]

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Truc Bach Lake, West Lake Hanoi and Bo Bia

Hubby and I were in the vicinity of Truc Bach Lake after having bun cha for lunch. We planned to explore the lake on foot and at the same time, check out the Tran Quoc Pagoda which is the oldest Buddhist Temple in Hanoi. From Chau Long Street, we started walking around the lake in […]

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Hoan Kiem Lake and Ngoc Son Temple

Hoan Kiem Lake a.k.a. Lake of the Returned Sword or Lake of the Restored Sword is located within Hanoi Old Quarter, which makes it a good spot to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life. It’s probably also the only place to get ‘fresher’ air in the Hoan Kiem district which is […]

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Hanoi Old Quarter – Where East Meets West

Before I go on to introduce more drool-worthy eats in Hanoi, I thought I would take you all to the streets of the Hanoi Old Quarter to discover more about the Vietnamese culture and their way of life. The Hanoi Old Quarter a.k.a. Hoan Kiem District is the main tourist attraction and commercial hub of […]

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Dong Xuan Market – Hanoi’s Largest Indoor Market

On our first day while exploring the Old Quarter on foot, we came by Cho Dong Xuan or Dong Xuan Market which was Hanoi’s largest indoor market. It was a Thursday afternoon and it didn’t look that crowded on the outside so we thought it would be a good time to walk around and have […]

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