Hanoi

Hanoi is Vietnam’s thousand-year-old capital, shaped by lakes, tree-lined French boulevards and the dense lanes of the Old Quarter. Temples, the opera house, coffee culture and some of Asia’s most memorable street food give the city layered history and everyday intimacy.

Hanoi was founded as the capital Thang Long in 1010, and its oldest landmarks reach back almost that far: the Temple of Literature, Vietnam’s first university, and the excavated Imperial Citadel, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Hoan Kiem Lake sits at the heart of the city, with the red Huc Bridge leading to its island temple, and West Lake opens the sky to the north.

South and east of Hoan Kiem, the French laid out a quarter of villas, ministries and the 1911 opera house, modelled on the Palais Garnier. To the north, the Old Quarter’s streets still carry the names of the guilds that once worked them. Hanoi is also the natural starting point for Ha Long Bay and the limestone landscapes of Ninh Binh.

Northern Vietnam has true seasons. Autumn, from September to November, is the most beautiful: dry, warm days, clear skies and the scent of milk flowers in the evening streets. Spring, from March to April, is mild and often misty, and the lakes are at their most photogenic. Both are ideal for excursions to Ha Long Bay.

Summer, from May to August, is hot, humid and wet, with heavy afternoon rain. Winter, from December to February, is cool and grey, sometimes surprisingly cold. Tet, the Lunar New Year in late January or February, fills the markets with peach blossom and kumquat trees before the city falls quiet; the Mid-Autumn Festival fills Hang Ma Street with lanterns.

Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi, opened in 1901 in the French Quarter, is the city’s historic grand hotel and still its defining address. Capella Hanoi, a few streets away, is a theatrical homage to the golden age of opera, and InterContinental Hanoi Westlake sets its pavilions on the water of West Lake. LVXVRY books the Metropole through Accor Preferred and InterContinental through IHG Destined, with the privileges each programme attaches to the stay; for Capella, LVXVRY advises on and arranges the stay directly.