Our long-awaited family holiday to Vietnam has become a reality! We planned to stay for 10 nights in Old Quarter Hanoi followed by another week in Halong Bay. Our first task was to get a reliable transfer from Hanoi Airport to Old Quarter. But which option is best?

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Arriving at Hanoi Airport

I have to say, Noi Bai International Airport is one of my favourite airports on the planet. It is clean and modern, opening back in 2015. It seems very spacious and not overly crowded, which is unusual for South East Asia.

We arrived at about 9:00 pm. This is an airport hack we often use, making sure we arrive well clear of peak hour traffic. 9:00 pm is well after peak hour, meaning our drive from Hanoi Airport to the Old Quarter is certain to be in relatively light traffic. And that means a fast, cheap drive.

How to Get From Hanoi Airport to Old Quarter

The Old Quarter in Hanoi (a.k.a. Hoan Kiem district) is the main tourist destination in Hanoi. This area is one of the busiest in Hanoi, and is a commercial hub backed with all sorts of bars, cafes, hotels and tourists. It is the number 1 place to stay if your are a tourist in Hanoi.

The distance from Hanoi Airport to the Old Quarter is 26km on Google Maps, and takes some 36 minutes to drive. There are no toll roads and the roads are great. Here are a few options to for Hanoi Airport transfers, to help you on your way.

Hanoi Airport Taxi

Getting a taxi from Hanoi Airport to your hotel is an obvious choice. Once you exit the arrivals area, if you look to your left there should be a long line of taxis. Prices are 350,000 to 400,000 Vietnamese Dong, or about $15 to $18. The same rules apply with taxis anywhere:

1. Only get into a taxi from a reputable company. Easy to spot because you should see many taxis from the same company.
2. Insist that the driver turns the taxi meter on.
3. If the driver is reluctant to turn on the meter, either get into a different taxi or agree on a price before the taxi departs.

Uber / Grab Taxi

Both Uber and Grab Taxis are available in Hanoi. These should work out a bit cheaper than catching a Hanoi Airport Taxi to Old Quarter. Average cost will be about 250,000 Vietnamese Dong, or $11. There are some pre-requisites to make this work.

1. You need the app installed on your smart phone to call and Uber / Grab taxi.
2. You will need to have a local SIM card installed in your phone, or have data roaming activated.

Vietnam is one of the simplest countries to purchase a SIM card, there are several phone company booths set up as you leave the arrivals hall. You can purchase a Mobiphone SIM card with 18 gigabyte of data for 250,000 Vietnamese Dong, or about $11. The whole process takes less than 5 minutes.

MOZIO App

I absolutely love the Mozio App. It is also in the form of a website. The concept of Mozio is simple. You can book an airport transfer virtually anywhere in the world. When you arrive there will be a driver holding a sign with your name on it, for a fast transfer. Y

ou pay in advance, and book the appropriate sized car for the right amount of people and baggage. We have used this service all over Europe, and never experienced any problems. The cost is normally a bit more than taxis, but in return you get a no-fuss, reliable transfer.

The cost of a Mozio transfer from Hanoi Airport to Old Quarter starts at $17 for 4 people and 2 bags. Not bad for a hassle free transfer.

Private Car

When you arrive at Hanoi Airport there are about 20 of tourist counters offering private car transfers. There are also official looking people offering these services to anybody who looks like they need a lift.

This is another fast reliable way to get a transfer, and you will pay up front. The standard price is $23 to $25, however a skilled negotiator will probably find a lift for $20. This was the option that we went for, and we were quite please with an efficient service and a nice clean private car.

Hanoi Airport Shuttle

If you arrive at Hanoi Airport on Vietnam Airlines or Jetstar, you can avail the Hanoi Airport Shuttle. The cost is just 40,000 Vietnamese Dong per person, or about $2. These airport shuttle buses will drop you off in the old quarter at the following addresses:

• Vietnam Airlines: 1 Quang Trung street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi
• Jetstar: 204 Tran Quang Khai street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Hanoi Airport Bus Number 86

Catching  the Number 86 bus from Hanoi Airport to Old Quarter costs 30,000 Vietnamese Dong, or about $1.30 per person. The ride takes about 1 hour, and is more comfortable than the public bus number 17.

This bus stops at several locations in the Old Quarter. Instructions to catch the Hanoi Airport Bus to Old Quarter:

1. Find the bus stop outside the arrivals area, when you reach the roadway.
2. Catch the Number 86 bus to Hanoi Old Quarter
3. When you get off the bus, catch a regular taxi to your hotel.

Hanoi Airport Bus Number 17

If you are a lone traveller, or a budget conscious traveller then a bus may be a better option. Catching  the Number 17 bus from Hanoi Airport to Old Quarter costs a mere 9,000 Vietnamese Dong, or about 40 cents per person.

The ride takes about 1 hour. Bus number 17 runs every 15 to 20 minutes from 5am to 10pm. Instructions to catch the Hanoi Airport Bus to Old Quarter:

1. Turn right as you leave the arrivals area, when you reach the roadway.
2. Catch the Number 17 bus to Long Bien Bus Station
3. When you get off the bus, catch a regular taxi to your hotel.

Our Airport Transfer to the Old Quarter

From the airport we took a 40 minute private hire car ride to the Old Quarter district. We paid $23, which is quite expensive for Hanoi, but not too bad for a typical airport transfer.

Being 9pm the traffic was very light. The traffic can get super-crazy in Hanoi but we did not experience any of this. Overall it was quite an easy, comfortable and fast trip from Noi Bai airport to the hotel. Time spent in the taxi was around 40 minutes.

Arriving in Hanoi Old Quarter

Arriving at the Hanoi Bella Rosa Suite Hotel, our hosts gave us a useful list of the things to watch out for in the tourist saturated Old Quarter Hanoi:

• Don’t get a street taxi. They are a rip off. Request the hotel to organise a taxi instead.
• Watch out for the shoe shine boys around the corner they’re relentless and charge high prices.
• Watch out in daytime, the crowds are thick and you might lose a wallet to pick-pocketers.
• There is a 24 hour convenience store 100m up the road… yay.
• A map of the best local restaurants, of which there are plenty.
• Always bargain prices down by about one-third, that is the standard markup for tourists and the sellers rarely get offended with this street haggling.

First Impressions of Hanoi

This was one of those holidays where we didn’t do much research. We knew the weather is supposed to be a little mild in March but we weren’t really expecting it to be COLD. Yes it was jumper weather, plummeting to around 10-12 degrees Celsius at night.

Old Quarter Hanoi is a charming and quaint area. Lining the streets are countless small and normal looking establishments with an old world charm. Browsing these shops are tourists from all corners of the globe.

Street sellers or shady looking characters rarely hassle tourists here, making the Old Quarter feel quite safe. Also there are lots and lots of tourists from Europe, China, Japan, USA and Australia.

This is good so we don’t stand out as a target for small time street criminals. The Old Quarter is also inexpensive – a quick survey of the prices on the street reveal that prices are crazy cheap, and that is before you get start haggling.

Exploring the Old Quarter

The first leg of our holiday involved a 10 night stay in a small boutique hotel, the Hanoi Bella Rosa Suite Hotel. The location was outstanding, right in the centre of the Old Quarter of Hanoi. This allowed us plenty of opportunity to soak up the local atmosphere.

Time to head off and do some exploring now. Find the famous Vietnamese Egg Coffee, and maybe a giant Lake Hoan Kiem turtle. And when we’re done, it should be a piece of cake to get a taxi to Hanoi Airport, now we know all the different rates.

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