Hanoi - the capital of Vietnam is the ideal destination for solo travel

Nearly 50,000 Booking app users choose Hanoi as one of the five suitable destinations to love single days. The five most voted destinations are Hanoi, Liverpool city (UK), Ko Ngai island (Thailand), Búzios town (Brazil) and Yaeyama archipelago (Japan).

On World Singles Day 11/11, Booking conducted a survey on the most places travelers like to visit when traveling alone. This result is based on votes from nearly 50,000 people from 31 countries and territories around the world from Asia, Europe, America to Oceania.

Vietnamese assume that "Hanoi is not in a hurry". Hanoi is a great city to explore as a solo traveller because it is safe, slow and easy to get round by many kinds of vehicles. Hanoi has everything for a solo traveller such as fascinating culture, great local food supply, rich history,  interesting nightlife and many more.

Moreover, The booking app also suggest that street food in Hanoi is "memorable" and affordable. Therefore, Hanoi is also voted as one of the top 10 world destinations for an enjoyable and affordable vacation.

Some of the prominent destinations of international tourists in Hanoi are: One Pillar Pagoda, Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Presidential Palace,  Tran Quoc Pagoda,  Museum of Ethnology... 

Besides, culinary discovery is also a tourist attraction. The drink that many people like to experience the most is egg coffee.

Regarding accommodation, Hanoi has many hotels from budget to high-class, in the inner city and suburbs to serve tourists.

Easy to get around

As a tourists, you can book BEE or Grab to get around the city either by motorbike or car. They offer English interface so it is very easy to use. If you departs from the hotels, ask the reception to order a taxi for you which is also reliable. If you want to observe the slow pace of Hanoi people, you can choose to sit on a cyclo around the streets.

World famous Pho – Vietnamese noodle soup 

Pho Thin 13 Lo Duc street : Known as the best beef pho in Hanoi. After you make the payment, get your seat and they will bring it to you.

Pho Suong at Trung Yen alley way : Located in a tiny alleyway, it sometime hard to find. Tasty broth and good noodle. 

Try Banh Mi in Hanoi

Chain of Bami Bread at 98 Hang Bac st : One the best Bami in Hanoi Old Quarter with special sauce. A chicken sandwich is recommended to try here

Banh Mi 25 at 25 Hang Ca st : What makes it special is outdoor bench for people to sit and watch the traffic. On the other hand, beer, smoothies, juice are good to enjoy

Where to try Bun Cha in Hanoi

Bun Cha Dac Kim at 01 Hang Manh st : One of the place that uou cannot miss if you want to try Bun Cha. Grilled pork is served with rice noodle and fresh herb.  You are recommended to order some sea crab spring roll.

Vietnamese Crepe Recipe (Bánh Xèo Việt Nam)

Like the salad roll, Banh xeo is a dish that must be eaten hot when it's done that involves the messy but delicious process of wrapping the crepe in lettuce with vegatables such as cilantro and basil. Though the filling might fall out on your table, you will be completely lost in the crispy, warm combination of lettuce and crepe.

The name "Banh xeo" is derived from the sound it makes when frying the cake, when the dough is poured into the pan, the familiar "sizzling" (xèo xèo) sound will be heard and from that, the name "Banh xeo" was born.

When you travel to Vietnam, don't forget to try Vietnamese banh xeo because This is a unique and rustic dish with different types of fillings that are available in every countryside in Vietnam. However, there will be two distinct "banh xeo" schools: "small pancakes" in the central region and "big pancakes" in the south.

These are a pale yellow spicey Vietnamese style crepe. One piece on the bottom, and another on top encase what is usually a salad consisting of been sprouts, prawns, boiled pork and carrot. Vegetables roll outside and Drenched in fish sauce, and you have a deliciously messy of fine pleasure. Chefs in central Vietnam include star fruit and banana among their accompaniments, while southern chefs might toss mushrooms, coconut or even core of coconut tree into their pancakes. In its basic form, this ubiquitous Vietnamese sauce is prepared with a sour base of lime juice, or optionally vinegar, sugar, water, and fish sauce. However, Each region will make their own dipping sauce, Common additions include finely sliced chili peppers, garlic, shallots, spring onions, ginger, or fresh herbs, example in the South the sauce will be sweeter or will be added coconut water “Banh xeo” is prepared differently throughout the country. Tourists traveling about in Vietnam are sure to encounter a different recipe, and sometimes even a different name, for “banh xeo” depending on which region and province they are visiting.

Vincom center, where you can shop and relax

Since the opening of the first mall in 2004, Vincom Retail has owned four different brands: Vincom Center, Vincom Mega Mall, Vincom Plaza and Vincom+. These brands give Vincom a national presence. By seamlessly integrating entertainment, hospitality and retail elements, Vincom not only offers luxury shopping malls, but also cultural, arts and entertainment venues. By combining of these offers, Vincom sets new standards for shopping and entertainment in Vietnam.

Vincom is always located on the busy street in the center of every city it is located in. Therefore, it is very easy for tourists to find Vincom when visiting a new place. The building is very tall and made of glass, shiny steel and concrete like any other modern building. A place to play for all ages, from the shopping to the bookstore to the Movie theater. Supermarket, restaurants and cafes. On the lower floor there is a shopping center with many well-known brands such as Adidas, Crocs, Aristino, Canifa, Converse, Reebok and luxury brands of jewelry and accessories: Samsonite, Vascara. On the second floor you can easily see

health and cosmetic brands: Faceshop, Origani, S-line. On the third floor is the Apollo English Centre, a well-known brand from England. You can also go through the large bookstore to find anything from a book, novel, souvenir, toy, pen, etc. There is also a supermarket on this floor, it will be a pleasure, from fresh fruit, Fish, meat, vegetables to buy household items. I would like to move to a fourth floor where we have a movie theater and a food court. I can try new foods from many countries, such as Korean noodles, Japanese sushi, Thai salad, KFC chicken, pizza and pasta. The food here is rich and delicious. There are cafes with menus ranging from coffee, milk tea, juices, smoothies to mojitos. Little kids will enjoy playing Tini word, there are many games in this area, like building sandcastles, painting statues, ball houses, mini soccer fields, puzzles, animal collectors. In addition, Vincom also has a large entertainment area for adults where they can play with coins, e.g. E.g. racing, shooting fish, choosing gifts.

Tet Trung Thu or the Mid-Autumn Festival as it is called in Vietnamese as we call it in other countries is a wonderful ancient festival centered around children. Tet Trung Thu in Vietnam takes place on the night of the full moon (August 14-Eighth lunar month), the most enchanting and picturesque night of the year.  If you look at the moon on this day, you will notice that its orbit is at its lowest angle to the horizon, making the moon appear brighter and larger than at any other time of the year.  So, in honor of the beautiful full moon, a festival was accompanied with a range of entertainment activities, especial  join the Mid-Autumn Festival with traditional lantern parade. The festival includes the customs of gazing at the moon, a procession of stars and moon-shaped lanterns, lion dance, and the celebration of parties with moon cakes and other cookies. At  school, they often organize music programs with songs about the mid-autumn festival and play plays about The Moon Lady- The Moon boy, then they give snack, cookies, candies for children.

 There are several explanations for this phenomenon, as well as the tradition of celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival. Some said it began in China in the early 8th century under the reign of King Duong Minh Hoang. According to ancient manuscripts, the emperor often wanted to visit the palace on the moon. Then, with the help of a wizard, he was taken to Luna and greeted by a bunch of beautiful fairies.

He expressed his admiration for her dance called Nghe Thuong Vu Y and tried to memorize it. Later he accidentally discovered that there were similarities between the styles of Nghe Thuong Vu Y and Ba La Mon. After combining the two styles of singing and dancing into one, he gradually made it known to everyone in his distant ruling lands. The tradition of gazing at the moon, dancing and singing later became a traditional event in the mid-autumn celebration. An important event before and during the Vietnamese Mid-Autumn Festival is the lion dance.

Both amateur and professional groups of children perform dances in the streets or go into houses. If the host accepts, "the lion" enters and starts dancing as a congratulation. In addition to the lion dance, it is customary to offer banh trung thu, boxes of mooncakes that traditionally have a very rich flavor. The cakes are filled with lotus seeds, pork, ground beans and orange peel and have a salted duck egg yoke representing the moon in the middle.

 Mui Ne- Phan Thiết Tour                               

As you know, Viet Nam is a beautiful country with a lot of ecotourism. If talking about tourism in Vietnam, it is impossible not to mention the sea. With thousands of beaches spread across the provinces. Phan Thiet is a new form of tourism with many different forms of entertainment. As planed, we traveled to Phan Thiet, not far from Sai Gon, just took us 4 hours to arrive there. To go there, we can travel by train or coach but I think travel by train is the best because the air is fresh, the toilet is good and the prize is affordable. Far from Phan Thiet city about 10 kilometers is Mui Ne beach where a hundred resorts along the coast. Because we stayed there 1 day so we chose “Four Seasons Resort Beach’’, the room is not specially but it has own beach. Before go there we had luch with “com nieu’’, claypot rice is a familiar dish in Asian cuisine. With a lot of food such as roti sprim, stir-fry water spinach, eggs fried,… Next, we checked-in at the hall and took a room. We swam in the sea and took photos there, we had an experience to go around the sea by cano, which service fee is not cheap but it can made me happier when we do that. In the afternoon, we rest in the room and for dinner we came to “Bi Bo’’ restaurant to try fresh seafood there, there were a lot of different types of fish, lobsters, snails,… The price is normal for the tourists and the food is good quality and full of nutrition. That was all of the day, I had a good night. A new day started, we had buffet at the restaurant which free when we booked room. This was a heathy breakfast to have a full energy to go to the beach again, we swam here and turned home about 12 o’clock. 

Before we left this place, we went to Phan Thiet market. Phan Thiet Market is located on the Ca Ty River, right in the city center, so trading activities here are very bustling, exciting and convenient.

Cho Lon Phan Thiet is home to the largest concentration of fresh seafood in the city, especially squid. The types of squid here are extremely diverse, not only fresh but also sweeter than squid in other sea areas. In addition to fresh seafood, the market also has dried seafood and frozen seafood, serving the shopping needs of people. The price in Phan Thiet Lon market is considered reasonable, so you can rest assured to "turn around" without worrying about anything.

In addition, with friends in the food festival, you must definitely go to Phan Thiet market to "sweep" all popular shops, and enjoy Phan Thiet specialties. The famous popular dishes of Binh Thuan land such as: can cake, wet cake, soup cake, fish vermicelli, vermicelli, fish cake, sweet soup, etc. are all available at the market. Moreover, Fruits are also brought to the market very diverse. Toursists oftens choose goods here as souvenirs.

 Mui Ne- Phan Thiết Tour                               

As you know, Viet Nam is a beautiful country with a lot of ecotourism. If talking about tourism in Vietnam, it is impossible not to mention the sea. With thousands of beaches spread across the provinces. Phan Thiet is a new form of tourism with many different forms of entertainment. As planed, we traveled to Phan Thiet, not far from Sai Gon, just took us 4 hours to arrive there. To go there, we can travel by train or coach but I think travel by train is the best because the air is fresh, the toilet is good and the prize is affordable. Far from Phan Thiet city about 10 kilometers is Mui Ne beach where a hundred resorts along the coast. Because we stayed there 1 day so we chose “Four Seasons Resort Beach’’, the room is not specially but it has own beach. Before go there we had luch with “com nieu’’, claypot rice is a familiar dish in Asian cuisine. With a lot of food such as roti sprim, stir-fry water spinach, eggs fried,… Next, we checked-in at the hall and took a room. We swam in the sea and took photos there, we had an experience to go around the sea by cano, which service fee is not cheap but it can made me happier when we do that. In the afternoon, we rest in the room and for dinner we came to “Bi Bo’’ restaurant to try fresh seafood there, there were a lot of different types of fish, lobsters, snails,… The price is normal for the tourists and the food is good quality and full of nutrition. That was all of the day, I had a good night. A new day started, we had buffet at the restaurant which free when we booked room. This was a heathy breakfast to have a full energy to go to the beach again, we swam here and turned home about 12 o’clock. 

Before we left this place, we went to Phan Thiet market. Phan Thiet Market is located on the Ca Ty River, right in the city center, so trading activities here are very bustling, exciting and convenient.

Cho Lon Phan Thiet is home to the largest concentration of fresh seafood in the city, especially squid. The types of squid here are extremely diverse, not only fresh but also sweeter than squid in other sea areas. In addition to fresh seafood, the market also has dried seafood and frozen seafood, serving the shopping needs of people. The price in Phan Thiet Lon market is considered reasonable, so you can rest assured to "turn around" without worrying about anything.

In addition, with friends in the food festival, you must definitely go to Phan Thiet market to "sweep" all popular shops, and enjoy Phan Thiet specialties. The famous popular dishes of Binh Thuan land such as: can cake, wet cake, soup cake, fish vermicelli, vermicelli, fish cake, sweet soup, etc. are all available at the market. Moreover, Fruits are also brought to the market very diverse. Toursists oftens choose goods here as souvenirs.