Hanoi rewards travellers with empty pockets: most temples charge nothing, a bowl of noodles costs 35,000đ, and bia hơi is still 10,000đ a glass. These three days link free viewpoints, working markets and 1930s cafés on foot.
Eiffel-designed 1902 cantilever bridge, bombed and patched through the American War. The narrow side walkway is free and open 24/7 — walk out over the Red River past scooters and the freight line to the sandbanks below.
Twenty arches of the old French rail viaduct were bricked up and painted in 2018 with scenes of subsidy-era Hanoi — ration shops, tram cars, a 1980s TV set. Open air, unstaffed, free at any hour, and it runs straight into the train line.
The oldest of the Old Quarter's four guardian temples, founded in the 11th century for the white horse that showed Lý Công Uẩn where to build his citadel walls. Free entry, 08:00–11:00 and 14:00–17:00, closed Mondays.
Vietnam's oldest pagoda, founded in the 6th century, sits on a spit of land on West Lake with an eleven-tier red stupa. Entry is free, 08:00–16:00 for the grounds, but the causeway itself stays open for sunset over the water.
Hanoi's largest covered market, three floors of fabric, haberdashery and dried goods since 1889. Entry free, 06:00–18:00. The real target is the food alley on Ngõ Đồng Xuân behind it — bún chả, bún ốc and chè for 30,000–50,000đ.
A pavement counter turning out grilled pork and pâté baguettes for 25,000–40,000đ, open 07:00–21:00. Order at the cart, take the ticket, then sit on the plastic stools across the lane where iced tea costs 5,000đ.
The Old Quarter's wet market spilled onto Gia Ngư and Cầu Gỗ after the covered hall closed in 2010. Rotisserie chicken, char-grilled pork belly and cooked-food trays sold by weight — a full takeaway lunch runs 40,000–70,000đ.
The intersection of Tạ Hiện and Lương Ngọc Quyến where fresh draught bia hơi is poured from steel kegs into glasses for 10,000–15,000đ. Stools go out at dusk; the street is closed to traffic Friday to Sunday evenings.
A silt island under Long Biên Bridge planted with banana groves and vegetable plots, reached by a dirt track down from the bridge's mid-span stairs. No fee, no gate — Hanoians swim and grow corn here a kilometre from the Old Quarter.
Tray meals of fried tofu, rice noodle blocks, boiled pork and fermented shrimp paste served under the rail arches on Gầm Cầu street for 40,000–60,000đ. Squat stools, laminated trays, no English menu, busiest 11:30–13:30.
Fifty-four ethnic groups documented indoors, plus an outdoor park of full-scale rebuilt houses including a 19-metre Bahnar communal roof you can climb. 40,000đ entry, 20,000đ for students, open 08:30–17:30, closed Mondays.
Second-floor café up an unmarked staircase beside a silk shop, run by the family of the woman who invented egg coffee. Cà phê trứng is 30,000–35,000đ and buys you a window seat looking straight down over Hoàn Kiếm's north shore.