In the first time to Hanoi Capital, everyone always spends time for Hanoi Old Quarter. Someone chooses walking, someone chooses riding, some other like sitting on rickshaw or electric car to admire Hanoi 36 Old Streets. Now, you can list one more option way to explore Hanoi: Hop on – Hop Off Bus.
 

In the morning of May 30th, the two floor bus Hop on – Hop off Hanoi City Tour has officially been opened, serving for tourists coming to the city. This is the first travel bus of Hanoi with the route passing 25 streets with 13 stops that facilitates tourists to discover all the famous attractions in the central areas of Hanoi. 

Hop on – Hop off Hanoi City Tour appears with the opened 2- floor – buses which are the specializing designed buses for travel that facilitate tourists to watching for the outside landscapes from above. The buses are equipped with the voice – over system about the attractions with auto translations into different languages. Thus, tourists can base on that to decide whether get off the attraction or skip that place for the next one.
 

Hanoi Hop On Hop Off bus with the salient red bus.
 

The vehicles are designed to meet with Euro 4 emissions standard with the flat and low floor that facilitate the travel of the old and children or the wheelchair of the disable to get on and get off the bus. On the bus, there are free wifi, USB socket, refrigerator, screen and camera.

The operation time for Hop on – Hop off Hanoi City Tour is from 9 am to 17 pm with the frequency of every 30 minutes. Ticket for this service costs 300,000 VND (~ $13), 450,000 VND (~ $20) and 650,000 VND (~ $28) for 4 hours, 24 hours and 48 hours tickets respectively. Tourists can use the vehicle any time when the ticket still in effect.
 

Bus Route for hop on - hop of around Hanoi Old Quarters.

Hop on – Hop off city tour is a popular and familiar service in other large cities in the world including Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, London, Vancouver and so on. The biggest advantage of using this service is that you can actively choose your destinations to travel based on the available schedule of Hop on – Hop off.

Photographer William E Crawford has spent his 30 years recording the changes of Hanoi Old Quarter with 36 streets. Take a look at those corners in the past to see if you can place them when coming across at present. 

The Old Quarter with 36 streets has long become the symbol of Hanoi. Although the time has covered the streets with an old and denuded appearance, it remains a precious present for the residents of Hanoi. The streets of Hanoi are often short but the nostalgia that people spend for them is by no mean short. It is the nostalgia for the winter day when they walk in the space full of fragrance of milk flowers in bloom or the summer evening sitting at a street stall for a cup of cold fruit juice, enjoying some sunflower seed and watching for the streets with people coming and going.

William E Crawford is also a photographer who is heavy – hearted from the Old Quarter of Hanoi. He is one of the first western photographers working in the North of Vietnam after the year 1975. He is also the author of the book Hanoi Streets 19885 – 2015. During the previous 30 years, his camera has recorded the image of 36 streets in various corners and directions. Each photo draws a corner of the ancient, quiet and peaceful capital in the past.
 

 

A dental clinic on Hang Bong Street in 1980.

 A newsstand on Hang Bong Street in 1986.
 

 

Hang Gai Street in 1986.
 

A little food shop on Ma May Street in 1988.
 

 

A dormitory in Hanoi in 1988.
 

 

Nguyen Quang Bich Street in 1991.
 

 

Can you place the intersection of Hang Gai – Hang Dao streets which is now a busy area? 
 

 

 
The street vendors with their burdens is considered a typical feature of Hanoi.
The photo was taken at Hang Bac Street in 1995.
The medicine shop you see in the photo remains existing today. 

 
A repair shop on Hang Bac Street, photo taken in 1995.

 
A veston tailor on Hang Bong Street in 2000.
 

In 2009, many houses in modern architecture have appeared on Hang Tre Street.


A small stall for drinks on Thuoc Bac Street in 2015.