Hanoi vs Ho Chi Minh (Saigon)?

I'm moving to Vietnam in a few months to teach english for a year. I've never been to Vietnam and the certification course is in Ho Chi Minh but I'm torn on rather to live in Ho Chi Minh or Hanoi.

Hanoi seems less crowned and more beautiful but I've heard that the food often isn't very good and the people are rude.

I would love any advice from anyone who has been there and keep in mind, I am looking to live there for a year, so which do you feel is a nicer place to live.

Thanks!

Having only visited both cities, my preference is for Hanoi in the North. It's much more charming and, to be honest, I hardly came across anybody in Vietnam that was rude. I was half-heartedly mugged in HCMC, however, so that might have something to do with my preference.

I would suggest that you visit both before making the decision on where to live. But if it were me, I would choose Hanoi hands down.

Good to hear. Perhaps I'm reading too many blogs which are trying to be more witty that informative and they are making me doubt Hanoi.

Definitely Hanoi -

One big difference - the streets in Saigon on way bigger and completely filled with motorcycles. Hanoi is much more walkable.
And my wife and I found better food in Hanoi. Just walk around the streets during lunchtime and get food from every place that looks popular. We both put Hanoi on our "cities we would happily live in" lists.

Scroll down for our food recommendations for Hanoi http://ephemerratic.com/dispatches/37-dispatches/140-just-like-in-the-movies-hanoi-vietnam.html and Saigon http://ephemerratic.com/dispatches/37-dispatches/125-the-zen-of-crossing-the-streets-of-saigon-ho-chi-minh-city-vietnam.html.

I have been to both on several occassions and have to say Hanoi. The food is good, its a lot more "prettier" city to live in and I would say the people are much friendlier in Hanoi. Plus from Hanoi it is a better hub to explore asia and vietnam as it is the vietnam hub for airasia so you can fly cheap to many places.

Well, I thought Hanoi was a lot more interesting and prettier architecturally , but I thought the people were a lot less agreeable than Saigon. Saigon felt smaller, and I found it to be a more pleasant city, but like a previous poster mentioned - the roads felt less walkable due to the amazing motorbike traffic. Truthfully, I'd say it was a tossup. But I'd probably go to Hanoi if I really had to make a choice.

Ha Noi has culture and more class than SaiGon which is really just another Manila, HongKong or Bangkok.

However, having lived in VN for 16+ years, I find Hanoians miserable bastards and somewhat unfriendly.

The petty crime there is equal to HCMC but they focus on fraud and pick-pocketing. the food is slightly less sweet than the south.

Flooding is a serious concern; bottled water is NECESSARY because of high ARSENIC content in tap water.

There is little heating, even in new buildings, which can be a problem when the temps hover around 0C-5C in the winter months - the north is temperate like much of Europe or the mid-eastern coast of the US Atlantic coast.

You say you are teaching English. Is this a job offer or are you heading there on the off-chance you can land some work? Security is Ha Noi (as in police) is much higher than the south as it is the political capital (some areas are barred to all).

Accommodation is tied to the duration of your visa - so make sure you get a year long visa. Accommodation is also subject to approval by police - which is where they get to know you better if they want to.

I suggest you create a 'safe room' in any apartment you rent by hardening/making secure all windows and doors. An alarm wouldn't hurt. Keep all your goodies there and keep it secure when you go out. Break and enter is common all over VN.

You will need a drivers licence so bring AN INTERNATIONAL LICENCE and you can get a VN licence using the international as a reference (they don't recognise the international EXCEPT for exchange in VN). The length of your licence is the same as the validity of your visa!

The police are stiffer on enforcement in Ha Noi but just as crooked as any other area of VN.

Hey travelologist. Your question starting jogging my memory of my trip to Vietnam and I've put up a quick post detailing my half-hearted mugging mugging in HCMC that I mentioned earlier here. Regardless, it was totally the fault of my own stupidity.

Not that something similar wouldn't happen in Hanoi — I'm sure it's possible. But I found Hanoi to be a lot more chill.

Really enjoyed that entry, Dan. Such vivid storytelling. Nice work navigating your way out of a scary situation with minimal loss.

Interesting that the consensus seems to be for Hanoi. I'm in the same boat as travelologist, planning to spend a year in Vietnam teaching English. I've been leaning towards Saigon, because I heard that Hanoi was charming but a bit uptight, whereas Saigon was supposed to be more freewheeling. I may try to visit them both before making up my mind.

By the way, this is a fun (no longer updated) video blog based out of Vietnam. Mostly Hanoi. There's a video archive here. (I'm just a fan, not one of the bloggers or anything.)