We have three days in Hanoi, plus a half day the day we return from Halong Bay. Unfortunately, our stay in Hanoi is broken into two parts as our itinerary is Hanoi (one day) - Halong Bay (overnight) - Hanoi (two days).

I'm trying to organize a sightseeing itinerary and how to group the sights - especially the sights near the HCM Mausoleum. Unfotunately, the Mausoleum is only open on one of three days we are in the city and that is a Thursday. Ideally we'd head to the Mausoleum early. Just wondering which sights we should tackle after the Mausoleum on Thursday. These are sights we plan on visiting:-

HCM Mausoleum
One Pillar Pagoda
St Josephs
Hoa Lo Prision
Presidential Palace
HCM's Stilt House
Hanoi Opera House - we have tickets on the first day for a show at the Opera House
Hoan Kiem Lake

Is the Temple of Literature and National University a must see?

What is the best way to travel to the sights? We are staying in the Old Quarter and have read many negative reviews of taxi scams.

Any advise how to organize our sightseeing itinerary will be appreciated. Thank you.

Ho’s Mausoleum, the Presidential Palace, the Stilt House and One Pillar Pagoda are all close to one another and you could see all of them in the one morning. The Temple of Literature is a 20 min walk away and definitely worth seeing. There are some decent restaurants near the temple so maybe have lunch and visit afterwards. The Vietnam Military Museum is also in the vicinity and worth a visit so maybe call in there afterwards. Train Street is also close to the Military museum and worth a quick look.

I would get a taxi from the old quarter and walk the rest from there. Taxis are easy to get near most of those sights and reports of scams are vastly overhyped. Stick to Mai Linh and Taxi Group taxis, both are metered. Tipping not expected but rounding up is appreciated.
I haven’t been to or heard of the National University.

St Joseph’s and the the Opera House are around Hoan Kiem Lake so should be grouped together ( again walk) . You could easily walk there from your old quarter hotel.

Hoa Lo prison is south of Hoan Kiem Lake. I would walk but probably best to get a taxi. Just around the corner from there is the Police Museum which we found very interesting.

Here is a link to te Vietnam section of our blog https://accidentalnomads.com/2014/12...ray-for-hanoi/ towards the end of the posts is one specifically about Hanoi and I cover some of th sights you mention. If this is your first visit i also suggest you have a peek at the only slightly "tongue in cheek" guide I wrote to surviving the traffic in Vietnam.

Hope this helps. Any other questions, feel free to ask away.

I agree that the Temple of Literature is well worth visiting. Across the street from it are KOTO, a restaurant that trains street kids in food service jobs, and a fair trade crafts shop next door.

Another place I would recommend in Hanoi is the Ethnographic Museum.

i'd skip the mausoleum.. long line---boring.

I use a van from Tonkin travel to take us from place to place.. very reasonable.

Like it or not, the War Remnants museum is critical to modern Vietnamese history. Of course some of it is unpleasant. A lot of it is propaganda. But some balances can be seen. And many people see it; the museum is one of Hanoi's top attractions.The majority of Vietnamese were born after the wars -- plural, including the long campaign to expel the French. They seem welcoming to all western tourists (I can't speak to how the Chinese are greeted.)
Recover by checking out the flourishing craft-beer pubs in the city.

Southam - The War Remnants Museum is indeed one of the top places to visit in Vietnam but it is Ho Chi Minh City not Hanoi. Perhaps you meant the Military History Museum which is on Dien Bien Phu St?



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