We liked BOTH.

But Bangkok is a winner for two main reasons. First, much, much more to see. Second, the Thai smile is a winner; the Vietnamese are friendly once you speak with them but there is without doubt an initial gruffness (it soon vanishes).

That was definitely not my experience of Vietnamese food. Both Thai and Vietnamese food are wonderful IMO.

You dont like Thai food its fantastic Vietnamese food tasteless.

vietnamese food is tasteless crap.

Wow! That’s really sad. Glad you have a place to vent! It sucks when you’re stuck somewhere you can’t stand.

I am not a fan of Hanoi either. Sorry you have to stay for another year. Sounds awful!

Everything seems to be a scam in Hanoi. People keep saying that Hanoi is cheaper than Bangkok, but we haven’t found that at all. If you’re going to live in a shared accommodation and eat garbage in the gutter, maybe it’s a tad cheaper. But if you have different standards for yourself, Hanoi works out to be much more expensive. In Bangkok, our utilities have always been included in our rent. In Hanoi, they charge ridiculous amounts for them and won’t even show you proof from the electric company. For any sorts of western goods, foods and services, prepare to pay up to twice as much in Hanoi and the options are far more limited. Vietnamese people seem to think that westerners are a bunch of drunken idiots with more money than brains and they behave as the foreigner dollars are theirs for the taking. They actually don’t really like foreigners much here and they’re quite surly. They act like you owe them something. Thai people on the other hand are all smiles and make you feel like a million bucks.

The pollution here in Hanoi is the absolute worst we’ve ever seen. We have an air purifier for each room of our apartment and it’s still not enough. Plus, every time we walk outside, it’s exhaust city and we can hardly breathe. Our hair and skin is ruined from the pollution. Our hair has been falling out and we’ve had some many allergies since coming to Hanoi (something we never had before). The water is not just dirty, it’s also full of chemicals. Whenever you eat out, you’re eating food that’s been cooked in chemical water. You can boil the water to kill bacteria, but boiling doesn’t get rid of ddt or agent orange.

We also have to have a dehumidifier for each room of our place, otherwise everything in our home gets mouldy, including all of our clothes and the stains won’t come out. I’ve never seen anything like it before. Bangkok is humid, sure, but there aren’t mould spores ever-present in the air as is the case in Hanoi.

We have encountered minor scams in Bangkok, and a motorcycle taxi snatched my bag there once. But in Hanoi, people are constantly trying to steal our belongings and scam us. Is almost as though they think they have a right to it, because westerners “have more money”.

Traffic is also the worst. I have lived in congested cities before, like Bangkok, istanbul and Mexico City, but I’ve never seen anything as bad as Hanoi before. Prepare to sit in a cab for an hour to go somewhere that’s only 6 kilometres away. And this with the cab windows rolled down while you suck on the exhaust of every motorcycle that drives by. Cabs are also way more expensive here than anywhere else I’ve lived (excluding North America and Europe of course). Forget taking public transport as it’s not really accessible to foreigners, whereas the sky train in Bangkok is awesome and super user friendly. And forget about walking anywhere in Hanoi. There are no sidewalks in most places and you’ll feel like you’re going to get run over and die every time you go outside. You’ll also be jumping or of your skin every couple of minutes as a cars randomly honk at you while driving by, even though you’re not in their way. Everyone driving or riding a motorbike in Hanoi is honking ALL THE TIME for no reason at all. If you have kids, forget about walking down the street with them if you’re any kind of a decent parent.

In Bangkok, there are police everywhere and there’s the tourist police that you can go to if you run into any issues. In Vietnam, police are almost nowhere to be found and if you do find them, you’re better off staying away from them because they won’t help you.

We’re going to be in Hanoi for another year due to work commitments, but we absolutely hate it here and regret ever coming. If you prioritize any of the following, such as your health (both physical and mental), your peace of mind, your money, how you’re treated as a tourist and as a human being, do not come to Hanoi under any circumstance.

There are people who feel differently, I’m sure. But we know we’re not the only ones who hate it here. Almost all of the couples we’ve made friends with since moving here, can’t wait to leave and never look back.

I found other areas of Vietnam to be better. Hanoi seems to be Scam City.

Pretty sure Vinni is from Hanoi trying to promote its city. For me Thailand and Bangkok win K.O to Vietnam and Hanoi in every subject. Vietnam in general should change approach to turism although is new to it . Can not imagine the scams in 20 years time when people will get use to it…