Where to stay in Hanoi, and which district actually suits you

Where to stay in Hanoi comes down to one trade, not to a hotel. The old lanes are slow to drive through and quick to walk, so being central is worth more here than in most cities. What it costs you is quiet.

Where should you stay in Hanoi?

The streets immediately south of Hoan Kiem lake, for a first visit of two or three nights. They sit a five-minute walk from the Old Quarter's lanes without being inside them. The same money buys a quieter room than it does two streets north, and everything in the things-to-do guide except West Lake stays within a 30-minute walk.

The rest of this page argues the other four answers. Where to stay in Hanoi depends on how long you have and how lightly you sleep.

Old Quarter or French Quarter?

The Old Quarter is louder, cheaper and more central. The French Quarter is quieter, grander and roughly ten minutes further out. Both are inside Hoan Kiem district, and the walk between them takes less time than most people expect.

Pick the Old Quarter for a short stay. Its thirty-six trade-named lanes are the reason people come to Hanoi, and waking up inside them is a different experience to visiting them. Pick the French Quarter for a week or more, or if you sleep lightly. It is also where the hotels have lifts and lobbies rather than six storeys of narrow townhouse stairs.

How much does a hotel in Hanoi cost?

A family guesthouse runs about 15 to 30 US dollars a night, a three-star hotel 80 to 110, and a dorm bed a few dollars. Those are the same tiers set out in the country-wide accommodation guide, and Hanoi sits at the cheaper end of them.

The reason is supply. The centre is dense with narrow buildings holding six to eight rooms each, so competition inside a small area is fierce. Hoi An and Phu Quoc face nothing like it. Rooms move by a few dollars either side of those figures rather than by half.

Two things move the price sharply. Tet fills the city and lifts rates for a week on either side of it. The second is a room with a real window. Many cheap Hanoi rooms are interior, and the listing will not always say so.

Should you stay near West Lake?

Only for a longer stay. Tay Ho is greener and calmer, and it has the best cafes in the city — which is why a lot of people who live in Hanoi pick it. It is also 20 to 30 minutes from Hoan Kiem, and that journey twice a day eats a short trip.

The rule that works: under five nights, stay central. Over a week, or on a working trip, Tay Ho is the better place to spend evenings. The traffic stops mattering once you are not fighting it twice a day.

What about Ba Dinh and the areas across the river?

Ba Dinh is the quiet middle option. It holds the Mausoleum, the Temple of Literature and several museums, so a morning there needs no transport at all. Rooms cost less than the lake for the same standard. The trade is that evenings are dead — you will be travelling back towards Hoan Kiem to eat.

Across the Red River, in Long Bien and beyond, rooms are cheaper again and the bridge is a real barrier. It is a reasonable choice for a long stay with a motorbike and a poor one for anything else.

What should you check before booking a room in Hanoi?

Noise, stairs and whether the room has a window. Hanoi's buildings are narrow and tall, and a lift is not a given above three floors. A fourth-floor room with luggage is a decision rather than a detail.

On noise, two specifics beat any general advice. Street kitchens and deliveries start around 6am, so a room over a main lane is awake before you are. And from 7pm on Friday until midnight on Sunday, the streets around Hoan Kiem close to traffic for the pedestrian zone. That is a good evening out and a hard night's sleep if your window faces it.

Ask for a room at the back and above the third floor. In a Hanoi townhouse that single request does more for a night's sleep than moving district does.

Where should you stay for an early train or bus?

Stay where you already are. Hanoi's stations sit close to the centre: the main railway station is about 2 km from Hoan Kiem. A taxi at five in the morning takes ten minutes on empty roads.

The exception is a sleeper bus to Sapa or Ha Giang, which usually leaves from My Dinh in the west rather than from the centre. That is a 30 to 40 minute ride. Confirm which station your ticket means before you book a last night that is convenient for the wrong one. The northern route sets out how those legs fit together.