Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City—find out which one's right for you

This article was produced by National Geographic Traveller (UK).

Hanoi may be Vietnam’s capital, but Ho Chi Minh City isn’t your ordinary ‘second city’. Its appeal for travellers is on a par with Hanoi’s, but the two cities have a very different atmosphere. Since Ho Chi Minh City’s name was changed from ‘Saigon’ following the country’s reunification after the Vietnam War, it’s evolved and grown exponentially. While Hanoi, in the north, is on the doorstep of popular attractions like the Sapa hill tribes and Ha Long Bay, southerly Ho Chi Minh City is a gateway to the mighty Mekong Delta. Which one suits you best?

Hanoi

Population: 8.6 million
Key experience: Catching a mua roi nuoc (water puppetry) show
Climate: Subtropical, with cool winters (17C in Jan) & hot summers (29C in Jul)

The city vibe is… cultural, historical and traditional. Hanoi is Vietnam’s capital, a sophisticated, thousand-year-old city whose heartbeat emanates from the Old Quarter. Here, 19th-century teak-beamed Chinese shophouses shelter cafes with French names and traditional music mingles with the sound of millions of motorbikes. Amid the bustle, a source of calm is Hoan Kiem Lake, a serene body of water on the edge of the Old Quarter.

If you like… museums, Hanoi is home to many of Vietnam’s finest. Highlights include the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, which showcases the country’s 54 ethnic groups, and the Vietnamese Women’s Museum, which explores folk religion and features exhibits about wartime heroines. There are always long lines at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Ba Dinh district, where the embalmed body of Vietnam’s greatest national hero, communist leader Ho Chi Minh, is on display.

If you want to explore… architecture, you’ll find many elegant examples here. Perhaps the city’s most iconic structure is Thap Rua, a weather-worn, moss-strewn tower on a tiny island in Hoan Kiem Lake. Also, don’t miss the Temple of Literature, built in the 11th century to honour the Chinese philosopher Confucius.

If you’re hungry for… pho, Hanoi is the home of this national noodle broth dish. It’s said to have originated here in the 19th-century French colonial period and is served everywhere from street stalls to high-end restaurants. One legendary spot is no-frills Pho Gia Truyen restaurant, near Hoan Kiem.

Go now because… the city is easier to navigate on foot thanks to new hefty traffic fines, which are making the roads safer. The Hanoi Metro Line 3 opened in 2024, too, connecting the centre with the west of Hanoi.

Ho Chi Minh City

Population: 10 million
Key experience: Discovering its street food and bars after dark
Climate: Tropical, with highs of around 32C all year; the dry season is Dec-Apr

The city vibe is… cosmopolitan, vibrant and cool. Ho Chi Minh City is a place of superlatives. Vietnam’s largest urban hub, it’s brasher, louder and more restless than Hanoi — and it’s growing at breakneck speed.

If you like… bars, Ho Chi Minh City is second only to Bangkok when it comes to Southeast Asian nightlife — and there are countless voguish bars and cocktail clubs. Head for the rooftop bar of the five-star Hôtel des Arts in District 3 for some of the best views of the city or book a cocktail tour with Secret Experiences to find hidden speakeasies.

If you want to explore… art galleries, Galerie Quynh, in District 1, showcases cutting-edge sculpture and installations, while the Lotus Gallery in District 7 scours the country for the finest modern painters. Traditional Vietnamese lacquer and silk painting can be found at District 1’s Museum of Fine Arts, housed in a 1930s French villa.

If you’re hungry for… street food, Ho Chi Minh City brings the country’s best dishes together in one place, with some great markets and a number of stall-lined ‘food streets’ famed for particular specialities. Feast on crab and sea snails, washed down with local beer, on raucous Nguyen Thuong Hien Street in District 3, or head to Cô Giang Street in District 1 for delicious com tam (broken rice with grilled pork and spring onions). Highlight markets include Ben Thanh Market and Ben Nghe Market, both in District 1.

Go now because… Ho Chi Minh City is at the heart of Vietnam’s economic boom, but still retains the traditional spirit and bustle of its street food markets, Chinese temples and stately French squares. December 2024 also saw the opening of Ho Chi Minh’s first Metro line, making it easier to get around.