Product Description

What Will Your Hanoi & Halong Bay Encounter Be?

...dodging motorbikes and food vendors in the maze of the Old Quarter (p40)
...slurping noodles and sipping cheap beer at a streetside bia hoi joint (p18)
...bargaining for silks, ceramics and art 'til you're blue in the face (p132)
...seeing water puppetry by the Thang Long troupe, which has performed all over the world (p55)
...checking out the architecture and early-morning exercisers around Hoan Kiem Lake (p56)
...falling asleep under the stars on a Halong Bay boat (p26)

Discover Twice the City in Half the Time...

...full-color pull-out map and detailed neighborhood maps make navigation easy
...our discerning author recommends the very best neighborhoods, sights, restaurants, shops and entertainment
...listings of unique itineraries and highlights help you make the most of a short break
...locals give us the lowdown on everything from art to driving a cyclo and smoking a water pipe

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #150849 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 166 pages

Review
"...Encounter guides...discreet in size, but generous enough on page count to provide a fuller city experience minus the hefty guidebook load." -- Sherman's Travel, April 2007

Sherman's Travel, April 2007
'...Encounter guides...discreet in size, but generous enough on page count to provide a fuller city experience minus the hefty guidebook load.'

From the Publisher
Who We Are
At Lonely Planet, we see our job as inspiring and enabling travelers to connect with the world for their own benefit and for the benefit of the world at large.

What We Do
* We offer travelers the world's richest travel advice, informed by the collective wisdom of over 350 Lonely Planet authors living in 37 countries and fluent in 70 languages.
* We are relentless in finding the special, the unique and the different for travellers wherever they are.
* When we update our guidebooks, we check every listing, in person, every time.
* We always offer the trusted filter for those who are curious, open minded and independent.
* We challenge our growing community of travelers; leading debate and discussion about travel and the world.
* We tell it like it is without fear or favor in service of the travelers; not clouded by any other motive.

What We Believe
We believe that travel leads to a deeper cultural understanding and compassion and therefore a better world.

Customer Reviews

Pretty good concise book on Hanoi
The main plus with this book is that it conatined a fold out map of Hanoi. The map is paper and probably won't last more than a trip or two to Hanoi, but it was pretty detailed with a good street index. On a 5 day trip to Vietnam, I relied on this book more than most. It was pretty easy to use because it divided the city up into sections, so you could easily plan your time efficiently without criss-crossing town when it was not needed. I thought there was a lack of information about specifics, such as opening/closing times, admission prices, etc, taxi costs, etc. Also, a cab from the airport into town should cost about $15 USD or 250,000 Dong. Prices in Dong are usually quoted by dropping the three zeros (e.g. 250), so if someone quotes you a price of 2,500, they mean 2,500,000 Dong. For Lonely Planet, I thought these kinds of tips should have been included in the book, but they were lacking.

Great "little" encounter
I have always enjoyed the writing in LP books. Everything is usually up to date and to the point. I wanted something quick to read on Hanoi and Halong Bay so I tried this out. This is my first Encounter book and I can say that I am very pleased with the quality of it. It's pretty small and can fit in your pocket or small bag. Have you tried carrying some of the LP big books with you? Not easy, especially if you're on foot from place to place. The book has a nice fresh design, good writing and covers the basics of the brief time you may have in a city. A nice added touch were several profiles on almost random citizens of the area. Cities are about the people too, not just the places you eat and sleep. Comes with several maps and a pullout map of the city. Well done LP.