Hanoi · With kids
WITH KIDS
Water puppets, an outdoor museum of stilt houses, and pavements that make carriers beat prams.
Thang Long Water Puppets
Forty-five minute shows several times daily on a flooded stage beside Hoan Kiem, with live musicians. Book the same morning. Ages 3+.
Museum of Ethnology
Full-size stilt houses and a Sasak-style longhouse to climb through in the garden, plus weekend water-puppet performances. Ages 5+.
Trang An, Ninh Binh
Two hours south, rowed sampans thread limestone caves and rice fields — calmer and shorter than a Ha Long overnight. Ages 5+.
Thu Le Park and zoo
A lakeside park in Ba Dinh with paddle boats, shaded paths and a modest zoo; a cheap hour when the museums pall. Ages 3+.
Scooters, kerbs and winter
Old Quarter pavements are parked solid with motorbikes, so carry rather than push. Cross slowly and steadily. December to February is genuinely cold and damp.