Hanoi Stay Hotel

Intrepid Tours - Scenic Vietnam, Day 1 Upon arrival at the hotel Hong Ngoc Cochinchine we were greeted with smiles. The lady asked for our passports and was quick to provide us great service with offerings of some orange juice, which I've noticed in Vietnam seems to always be a little sweeter to what I'm used to. Moving into our rooms I began to wonder that most of Vietnams buildings seem to quite narrow with many floors. We were placed on the 8th floor being the top floor and we travelled via the elevator to the 7th floor, walking a set of stairs finally getting to our room. As I entered the room I noticed it to be neat and clean. Decorated with Vietnamese oriental furnishings of red, brown and gold I was surprised that the accommodation exceeded my expectations of a three star rating. The group meeting was at 6pm. There was a range of ages and nationalities from British to Irish, Canadian, American, NewZealanders Australians and even Austrian (not to be confused with being Aussie). Overall there was a great sense of belonging with the feelings of uncertainty being dispelled by the tour leader (Phi) with his sense of humour and long story telling. We soon ventured out taking taxis to the proposed dinner venue, an optional choice but highly recommend by Phi. Sixty Nine was the restaurant by name serving up a collective range of Vietnamese cuisine appealing to ones tastes of wonder. Bun Cha was my personal choice. Not knowing the food itself, it was presented on a woven bamboo platter with banana leaves used a presentational base and various ingredients of thin rice noodles, pork, chilli, chicken and a combination of salads consisting of mint, coriander, lettuce and sprouts. There was hints of garlic and sweetened dressing. The fusion of flavours left the mouth tingling with hot then smoothed by sweet. Overall I found this dining experience satisfying. After dinner we walked through the streets of Hanoi. The night life was bustling with art, street music, people on the pavement eating, drinking and socialising and to top it of jammed packed with markets selling various items from clothing, gadgets and food. The remarkable thing about the Vietnamese markets is that no one is pushy. The Vietnamese people are happy to bargain and they do not get upset of you change your mind. They will greet you with smiles and wish you well when you leave.

Good located, reasonably priced hotel down a little side street in the centre of Hanoi with very friendly and helpful staff. All in all i would recommend this hotel.

My wife and I stayed here for 2 nights in March 2011 and paid $20 per night. We arrived in Hanoi at 2AM from China and took a taxi to the hotel. Even though we had directions written down and the address it was extremely hard for the driver to find as its hidden in a maze of small streets near Hoan Kim Lake. We had emailed prior to let them know we would be arrive late and even though we were assured it wouldnt be a problem the place was locked down and no one was answering the door buzzer. Luckily our taxi driver used his cell phone to call the hotel and wake someone up so we could get checked in and get some sleep. Our room was quite big and looked clean enough but had this old and dingy feel and smell to it. The bathroom fixtures were barely attached and the shower leaked out onto the floor and into the main room. We were a little disturbed by the fact that the balcony door could not be locked and the balcony was basically shared with a room from the hotel next door. The staff were pleasent enough and the breakfast provided was minimal but OK. The one good thing was the location and ambiance of the area during the day. Its very close to Hoan Kim Lake and within walking distance of tourist highlights and great shopping.