A Local’s Guide to Hanoi Old Quarter
How to walk the Old Quarter without just following the crowd.
Sample article — to be replaced by The Good Vibes.
The Old Quarter is a grid of short streets north of Hoan Kiem Lake. Many still carry the name of the trade that once filled them: Hang Bac for silver, Hang Gai for silk, Hang Ma for paper offerings.
Go early, then go again late
At 6 a.m. the lake is full of people exercising and the streets belong to the street-food sellers. After dark the same streets turn into a slow river of motorbikes, plastic stools and conversation.
A simple walk
- Start at Hoan Kiem Lake and the red Huc Bridge.
- Walk north up Hang Dao towards Dong Xuan Market.
- Turn into Hang Ma, then Hang Bac, and look up — the tube houses are narrow at the front and very long inside.
- Finish with a bowl of noodles on a small stool. Point at what the people next to you are eating.
On Friday to Sunday evenings the streets around the lake close to traffic and become a walking area.
