Job Discussion Forums

chim35 · Joined: 25 Jun 2010 Posts: 35

Is there a place in Hanoi with comfy cheap hotels inhabited mainly by long-term resident foreigners, similar to the Saigon District 1 hotels in the alley between Co Bac St. and Co Giang?

I've stayed in the latter place for a long time and feel secure there.
Now I may go to Hanoi for a few months just to check it out (not to work), and I want to find a place similar to what I have now, pay a monthly rent without a lease. A place where I can go out without worrying whether my computer will still be there when I return. (I always have a cable lock on it, but that's only limited protection).

Hanoi makes me nervous in that regard, as I have a feeling it is generally a more harsh and hostile place to live than Saigon, with more ripoffs directed against foreigners.

Thanks for any advice.

snollygoster · Joined: 04 Jun 2009 Posts: 478

Plenty in the old quarter around Hoan Kiem lake. There is no real "backpacker ghetto" in Hanoi like the famous PNL in Saigon.
There are plenty of "tay" living in the Westlake area (Ho Tay), but rents tend to be on the upper end of the scale.

chim35 · Joined: 25 Jun 2010 Posts: 35

Thanks Snolly, but I am hoping to avoid the Old Quarter. My one visit to Hanoi 4 years ago was marred by scamming and rude hoteliers there. Also I think most of the mini hotels there are predominantly for tourists and not for long-stay residents. Hotels for long-stay people would tend to be more secure I would think, and that's what I want to find.

I don't want to arrive in Hanoi and start climbing stairs to find something, loaded down with luggage. I'd like to find a street that has a lot of long-stay places, that would be easy to check out because they're all near one another. Like the alley in Saigon that I referred to.

Westlake sounds like it might be a good place. I wonder how much a monthly rent of a comfortable room there would be? Possible to find one there for 4 to 6 million dong a month?

snollygoster · Joined: 04 Jun 2009 Posts: 478

newhanoian.com
check "housing".

LettersAthruZ · Joined: 25 Apr 2010 Posts: 466 Location: North Viet Nam

Noooooo! Couple things you'll sadly realise about Ha Noi -

- short-to-mid-term rents in Ha Noi are much higher than in Saigon

- Pay is SLIGHTLY less

- Ho Tay ("West Lake") is where the posh-de-la-posh 5-star hotels are and it's a nice area! 6 Million Dong per month won't get you a back shed there, sadly Sad

Snolly's right - NewHanoian is yer best bet!