Hanoi, Vietnam probably has the best hotels in Vietnam (more than Ho Chi Minh City) from Sofitel Metropole where Donald trump stayed or JW Marriott hotel where former president Obama stayed. The room rate ranges from $250 -$500 which is pricy, but you will get the best experience from the hotel. Especially, Sofitel Metropole has a long history from french colonization to Vietnam war where you can be part of the history. 

Here, I want to talk about Lotte hotel where we stayed after a long week in Sapa, Vietnam. Here are the Goods and the Bads of the Lotte hotel, Hanoi. 

The Goods

Lotte Hotel in Hanoi Is the Tallest Building in Hanoi Where You Will Get an OMG Room with a View of The City

Lotte hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam is the tallest building in Hanoi. The views from the room are truly amazing. One thing that Hanoi doesn’t have (compared to Ho Chi Minh City) is an amazing roof top to enjoy the view of the city. But if you stay at Lotte hotel, you can get that view for free. If you are not staying at the hotel, you can still go to the rooftop bar and get that view.

Lotte Hotel Is a Brand New Hotel with Excellent Amenities 

It is part of the fabulous Lotte group, and the hotel just opened in 2014. Because of that everything is brand new. Beds are comfortable, the service is excellent and the amenities are superb. As a club floor guests, you will get three free ironing, breakfast, afternoon tea and happy hour with unlimited drinks.

The outdoor pools and indoor pools are modern luxury. The jacuzzi next to the indoor pool is perfect for a chilly weather in December. And this was all for $150 a night which I thought it was a bargain compared to Sofitel or Marriot. 

But because of the location, nothing is really walking distant. It is connected to Lotte department store where you can roam around, and have some food but that is about it. If you are looking for more than just food at the department store, you can read our blog post about best Buncha in Hanoi here (Bun Cha is a traditional dish in Hanoi). So, shall we move on to the bads?

The Bads

The Location of Lotte hotel Is in Financial District which Is Not the Best for Travelers 

The location is not the best for travelers. One of the charm of staying in Hanoi is just casually walking around the old street and the French Quarter. You wake up in the morning and open the french style window, look out and scream cảm ơn (Thank you in Vietnamese) for the beautiful day. You know, just like Carrie Bradshaw in Sex and the City in Paris. But in Hanoi. 

The reason I loved Hanoi was because you can just wake up in the morning and go grab a coffee in your pajamas. Sit outside and sip on you coffee with the locals. I love Hanoi because you can easily walk everywhere like New York. You don’t really need a cab to go from A to B. I love Hanoi because you can just cross the road to a small local bar and get the best cocktail in the (almost) world, and come back home for a quick nap. 

If you stay in Lotte hotel, none of this is possible. You have to take a cab to the old town and then start from there to have lunch, drink coffee or a sip on your vodka soda. The taxi ride just doesn’t go with the flow for me. There is no fluidity or smoothness in my I-Am-Experienceing-the Hanoian-Lifestyle.  Sorry, but that is a really bummer for me. 

There is no authentic local restaurants around Lotte hotel. You have to cross a big lane to find one decent Vietnamese restaurant. Everything in the department store is a chain, and the Michelin winning Tim Ho Wan restaurant is not as good as regular dim Sum restaurants. 

 

My Experience

We decided to stay at Lotte hotel after trekking in Sapa, Vietnam. We are not neccessarily a hiking people and not trained for it. After a three day hiking, my legs were shaking and couldn’t even go up the stairs lol. So we thought it would be nice to stay at a nice hotel with a more reasonable price.

Even though it was far from the city center, it was perfect for us. We have already done a week of Old Town Hanoi, so we just need a good two day rest. So we just booked it for two nights, and it was great. 

When to Go/ Spent Time

The best time to go in Hanoi is before December if you don’t want the cold weather. If you want more details, you can read it here. 

I think Hanoi is not a place for sightseeing or treking, but understanding the culture of Vietnam and eating good food. I think it is perfect to base your stay in Hanoi and go out of town to here and there. Also, here are some of the places I would recommend to go. 

How to Get There

The only way to get there is by cab or Uber. By cab it will cost about 300, 000 and by Uber we paid around 150,000. The only problem with Uber with us was we had to wait 15 minutes to get here. If you are luck or have the patience, def try Uber.