Hanoi + Da Nang: northern and central Vietnam, ninety minutes apart
An old quarter and Ha Long Bay in the north, beaches and the lanterns of Hoi An in the centre. One country, two completely different trips.
Why not one city
Vietnam stretches two thousand kilometres, and the north and the centre differ in climate, food and character. Hanoi is old and dense, with colonial facades and motorbikes flowing in a continuous stream. Da Nang is new and wide, on a long beach, and half an hour away lies Hoi An, the prettiest small town in the country. A week takes both, and the domestic flight is cheap.
Hanoi and around
Three days: the Old Quarter with streets named after trades, Hoan Kiem lake with its temple on an islet, the Temple of Literature, the railway street (opened and closed by turns — check locally). Then the trips out. Ha Long is a bay of thousands of limestone islands, better with an overnight on a boat than as a day trip: it is empty there in the evening and the morning. Ninh Binh, the «dry Ha Long», has the same rocks among rice fields, and the boats there are rowed with feet.
Da Nang, Hoi An and the pass
In Da Nang: the long My Khe beach, the Marble Mountains with cave shrines, Ba Na Hills with the Golden Bridge held up by giant stone hands (an attraction, but a spectacular one). Half an hour away is Hoi An: yellow walls, silk lanterns, the Japanese bridge, dozens of tailors who sew to measure overnight. To the north lies the Hai Van pass with the country's finest road and beyond it Hue with its imperial citadel and tombs along the Perfume River; that is a day of its own.
When to go
February–April is the best compromise: no longer damp in the north, not yet hot in the centre. Summer is stifling in Hanoi and peaks in the centre. From September to November central Vietnam has typhoon season and Hoi An floods regularly — worth knowing when planning autumn. Winter in the north is genuinely cold and raw, down to fifteen degrees with no heating.
About the food
North and centre eat differently. In Hanoi: pho for breakfast, bun cha (the grilled pork with noodles), egg coffee with whipped yolk. In Hoi An: cao lau, whose noodles by legend can only be made with local water, white rose dumplings, mi quang. Street cafés with plastic stools are the norm here, not a sign of poverty.
Ha Long: choosing a boat
A day trip from Hanoi means four hours of road each way and a couple of hours on the water, usually in the busiest part of the bay. An overnight changes everything: in the evening and early morning the tourist fleet is moored and the bay goes quiet. Neighbouring Lan Ha is less promoted and prettier, reached from Cat Ba island. When choosing a vessel look at the route and the number of cabins rather than the number of stars: small boats reach places the big ones cannot.
What to bring back from Vietnam
Coffee — robusta is the base here, the taste is dense and bitter, and it is drunk with condensed milk; buy beans rather than instant blends. Silk and made-to-measure clothes from Hoi An: measured in the evening, ready in the morning, and that is not an exaggeration. Ceramics from Bat Trang near Hanoi. Pepper, cashews, dried mango. And the conical non la hats, which unlike most souvenirs are genuinely used here every day.
Practical matters
Vietnam is visa-free for a Russian passport, up to 45 days. Motorbikes are rented everywhere, but riding takes practice and insurance does not work without a licence. Cash dong is needed constantly; cards work in cities but not at markets. Cross the road slowly and without stopping — the flow goes around you, and that really does work.
Moscow → Hanoi → Da Nang
Route and nights go into the form — adjust the date and passengers.