Hanoi is one of the most popular city destinations in South East Asia for backpackers to visit, however it can become overwhelming to see everything as the city never sleeps! We found the best way to make the most of our stay in Hanoi is by creating a checklist, including places to visit in Hanoi.
Compiling our checklist of Hanoi things to do doesn’t just allow us to see everything the city has to offer, but also tailors it to what we enjoy and the activities we are most interested in. We could also plan our days dependant on everything we wanted to see and where each activity was in terms of location. If you need help planning your trip, check this post here!
When travelling, you usually have a limited time in each place so it’s best to have a rough guide to hand so you can get the most out of your stay.
So, we did the research and came up with the best experiences in Hanoi and have provided it for you to see below!
*This post contains affiliate links where we can earn a commission. However, all opinions we share are genuine and our own.
Top things to do in Hanoi
Walk Across Train Street
Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre
Hanoi Night Market
Hoa Lo Prison Historical Relic
Visit Hoan Kiem Lake
Try an Egg Coffee
Vietnam Military History Museum
The Quang Phu Cau Incense Village
Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum
Try Banh Mi
These 10 activities will immerse you in the cities culture and let you see the best of what Hanoi has to offer!
Best place to stay in Hanoi?
For your trip to Hanoi, we would highly recommend this hostel here. This was one of the best hostels we stayed in within Southeast Asia, for it’s low price, but high quality features. It was extremely spacious and clean, with a lot of personal space and great attention to detail. Everyone was so friendly, and the location was central- perfect for exploring!
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Known as the city of love, Paris is bursting with beautiful architecture, eccentric fashion, amazing food, and lots of places to wander. It is always a pleasure walking around the Parisian cobbled streets, soaking in the views.
Paris can become a very expensive trip (and very quickly too), so we will include a range of budget activities for this list, so hopefully you will find a range of activities fit for whatever your budget is!
We visited over Valentine’s Day and it was so fun! We would recommend planning your activities a bit more in-depth, due to costs, opening times/days and more. If possible, we would recommend to visit from Wednesday onwards, as Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays can bring a lot of closures!
So, check out our Paris bucket list, ready to plan your adventure to this romantic European City!
Visit the Louvre and meet the Mona Lisa
Take an iconic photo with the Eiffel Tower
Visit the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, and check out the new exhibitions
Eat a freshly made croissant and coffee
Try eating traditional escargot
Take in the views of the Pantheon
Listen to street music by the Notre Dame
Walk the streets around the Sacré-Cœur Basilica
Explore the underground catacombs
Window shop along the designer streets
Have you done any of these things?
Would you add anything else to this list? If you have been previously, what is your favourite thing to do? And if you haven’t been, what is your most idolised thing to do?
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As travellers, Aimee and I have highlighted many… and I mean many places we both want to travel and explore. I mean for me it’s every country in the world, and Aimee’s isn’t far off! So, we tasked ourselves to find the top 3 countries we would like to visit in Europe.
As I am working full time, it is hard to plan many trips throughout the year, and we really are limited to picking and choosing when, and most importantly where, we go to maximise the time. So, creating this Blog doesn’t only help you learn more about some European countries (and get your tastebuds tingling for more travel), but also helps us work out how we can plan our trips/holidays for the year!
Below we have detailed 3 top locations each in Europe, with the reasons why we are looking to visit each spot. Our aim for the year is to try and tick off one place from each list!
Jack’s List
Iceland
First up on my list is Iceland. I think the country speaks for itself to why it was on our list. There are so many things to do! From whale watching, to swimming between tectonic plates, to waterfalls, riding snowmobiles and so much more! The list is endless on things we want to do here.
Funny story: during the end of lockdown and covid-19, Aimee and I spontaneously booked a 4/5 day trip to Iceland and we had a plan to try do everything we wanted here. I mean what’s not to love about the place! However, due to money constraints and work issues, we were unable to get on that plane. This leaves Iceland as the country “we almost went to” which makes me want to go even more!
One of the main issues with Iceland I have noticed is the cost of travelling in Iceland. From research, it seems to cost a lot more than your average cost around Europe which over 4/5 days can stack up to a pretty hefty cost!
Even with all this, the country has so much to offer, and has been on my to do list for some time now. As a lover of Astronomy, nothing excites me more than the Aurora Borealis. It’s something I saw when I was younger, and I have been fascinated by ever since. I couldn’t think of anything better than laying in the middle of nowhere, at night, marvelling at the sky. This is also a reason I want to visit Morrocco and do the same in the desert – this is a story for another blog!
The lagoons are picturesque and so beautifully placed in the natural lava fields; a place to relax which is completely different to anywhere else in the world. We would normally find a beach and enjoy the heat from the sun, but here… no! It’s naturally heated pools from lava. It doesn’t get better than that!
All in all, it’s a country that is probably top of my list and one we plan to visit within the coming years. It’s a difficult one to plan as the itinerary is likely to require at least a week in the country so we would need to save ALOT to afford this trip.
However, this trip for me is a once in a lifetime holiday, one that I would recommend to anyone so for me, it is so worth it!
Switzerland
Now, Switzerland for me is a rogue one. From choosing a cold country like Iceland, to a cold country in the Alps, it seems like I don’t like the warm (not true). Switzerland is a country that seems to fall under the radar for a lot of people, and certainly looks beautiful no matter where you visit there.
There are 2 main reasons why Switzerland is included for me..
1 – is the beautiful countryside and astonishing views you get with the lakes and mountains. I truly believe that I could live in some of these locations- and no matter how sad I am, the view could change my mood. Aesthetically, it seems like one of the most beautiful parts of Europe and one I do not want to pass up on. Also, it’s important to note how beautiful some of the towns and buildings are!
The 2nd reason is because I have always wanted to try skiing or snowboarding. I hate the fact that I am 25 and still haven’t experienced it yet. The Alps seem like the perfect place to experience this to the fullest! I mean I could of chose a few countries in this region that have amazing Skiing and drop-dead views!
Greece
I have visited Greece before.. Well, some of the islands (that have been amazing and so fun in their own right). But mainland Greece is on this list for a whole different reason.
Mainly, I want to visit mainland Greece to learn more about the history, and to visit the old ruins that have stood for thousands of years. I have visited Rome to see the Colosseum and local ruins which was something I really enjoyed. And I want to do the same with Greece!
Greece has a rich history but unfortunately a lot of the structures have been destroyed through historic battles, or natural erosion over the years. However, there are still ancient buildings such as the Acropolis (which is such a great monument).
The Greek people have always been kind and fun to be around, and the food is to die for! Tzatziki, Souvlaki & Gyros are some amazing foods which I love to eat when in England so when we travel to Greece, it will be at the top of my list to try and experience! I love trying new foods, so visiting Greece for this reason is exciting! Also, with it being on the mediterranean, the fish and fresh foods will be so worth the trip.
Greece has so much to offer, from the ancient history to beautiful islands and warm waters, to yummy foods – it’s definitely a place I can explore for weeks and never get bored.
Aimee’s list
Italy
Italy is a place I have wanted visit since I was young. The food alone is enough to draw myself to the country… as some of my favourite food is pasta and pizza! I literally cannot get enough of it! A creamy carbonara is my favourite.. but imagine how nice it is from Italy! Going here would just be us eating pasta and pizza, with Jack drinking Italian wine, what’s not to love?
The country has so many regions that speak to me. Rome and it’s architecture. Florence and it’s artwork. Milan and it’s fashion! The Amalfi coast too?!
I feel like each area of the country is divided into different experiences, and would be the perfect place to travel for months as it would feel like you are entering new countries for every city you visit.
One thing for sure is the buildings ad architecture is something that I have admired across Europe, and something I definitely want to marvel at in Italy. There are so many picture-perfect spots in Italy, places to just wander and find little niche shops, whether it’s fashion, food spots, gelato parlours, you name it. There’s so much to explore round every corner, and is a place I do not want to miss out on.
Albania
A beautiful mediterranean country which I have only recently discovered. Everyone knows about Greece, Italy, and some of the local islands in south Europe but many do not mention Albania- and I’m unsure why!
From research, the cities are colourful and scenic with spectacular views. It has a perfect balance of luscious countryside’s, picture-perfect beaches and traditional cities which are just awaiting to be explored. There is such variety in the country- each day can be so different from the next.
It is also known to be such a friendly place with some amazing architecture and markets which are perfect to explore in the cities.
There aren’t many countries that offer such variety when visiting and therefore it definitely deserves a spot on my list, and a country I cannot wait to visit!
Turkey
This has been a place close to my heart since I was little. It was a popular place for my family to visit which we met locals that I have been friends with for years. However, I never really explored the culture/city side of the country. It would usually be sun, sea and all-inclusive holidays!
Since getting older, I have learned a lot more about the rich history in Turkey, and it has made me fall in love with the country more. Istanbul is a city full of adventure, beautiful stories and markets, which I can only dream of exploring. The architecture and religious mosques are stunning and something I would love to witness when visiting.
As I have been Turkey many times, I have had the pleasure to eat many local dishes which always taste as good as the first time I tried it. A particular favourite being the sweet treat baklava! Something on my bucket list would be to find local street markets and delve into their culture and cuisine to immerse myself into such a beautiful country.
When writing this blog, we really had to evaluate many countries as there are many, we dream of visiting which weren’t included into this list. We honestly could sit here for hours researching, writing, and daydreaming of being in all these countries. That’s why they call it a dream!
I mean this is just a little snapshot of our reasons to why these places are the top of our lists and many other travellers. Sometime in the future – hopefully soon – we will be writing about our experiences in each of these countries and how AMAZING each one of these were! But for now, let’s just dream of being there.
A few honourable mentions that just missed out on this list are Croatia, Germany, Poland & Estonia!
We would be interested to learn any countries that are a MUST DO for us in the future! Please let us know your top 3 countries to visit in Europe are!!
Thank you for reading this blog post and we have fun on your travels!
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When travelling, being unorganised can be a blessing, but also a curse! Spontaneity is always fun, and can be great when meeting new people… However, you can miss out on seeing things you’d planned on due to lack of time, and ending up needing to reorganise and prioritise plans!
We have found that creating a bucket list of things we wanted to see and do really helped in prioritising while travelling!
While on our trip to Budapest, we made a list of things that were more important to see, and once we’d met new people, we shared this list with them! This also then made organising plans with others easier, since we already had ideas!
We have altered this list slightly to cater to more people than just our preferences… so let us know your thoughts! We will plan to make a more in-depth review of Budapest (imagine a full travel guide), but for now, this is our Budapest Bucket List!
So, here is our Budapest Bucket List
Visit the Fisherman’s Bastion
Learn about Soviet History at the House Of Terror
Take in the view and architecture of the St Stephen’s Basilica
Dance in Szimpla Kert in a ruin bar
Try a traditional Chimney Cake
Pay respects at the Shoes on the Danube
Have a stroll around the Hungarian Parliament
Relax in the Thermal Baths
Cruise in a boat along the Danube River
Eat some Hungarian Goulash
Have you been to any of these places? What are your thoughts? Would you recommend any other places, or leave out others?
Where to stay!
Don’t know where to stay? We stayed at this hostel, which is in a great central location! It has great transport links, and is extremely budget friendly. Want to know more? Find it here *
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