The premise: for everyday spending Hanoi runs about 26 percent cheaper than Mumbai, which puts a comfortable couple's trip well within reach - but the totals people quote online usually leave out the flights, the visa and the transfers. Here is the whole bill, tier by tier, with prices checked against sources updated July to October 2026 (₹84 to the dollar; VND converted at the same date). Nothing here is a guessed flat rate; where a price moves, the range and check date are shown.
The three things to book before anything else
Flights. Delhi and Mumbai both have direct or one-stop flights to Hanoi; return fares typically run ₹18,000-32,000 per person on IndiGo, VietJet and Air India depending on season and sale windows (checked July 2026). Delhi now has a nonstop, which usually prices at the middle of that band. The e-visa. Indian passports need a Vietnam e-visa applied for online at the official portal - about ₹2,408 (US$25) per person - and there is no visa on arrival for Indians. Apply before you buy peak-season fares; approval is not instant. A SIM. A 14-day tourist SIM with about 6 GB costs roughly ₹480 at the airport or in town - cheap enough to be a non-decision.
What a day costs, per person (flights excluded)
| Tier | Per person per day | What it buys |
|---|---|---|
| Shoestring | ~₹1,680 | Guesthouse or dorm private room, street food, city buses and walking |
| Mid-range | ~₹5,160 | 3-star hotel (~₹2,560/night for the room), restaurant meals, a couple of taxis, one paid sight or tour |
| Comfort | ~₹11,200 | 4-star hotel, proper restaurants, a day tour (Ha Long or Ninh Binh), massages and coffees at will |
Individual prices, October 2026: a local meal ₫70,000 (₹224), a street-food bowl around ₫40,000-50,000 (₹150-160), a restaurant dinner ₫280,000 (₹894), coffee ₫45,000 (₹144), a 5 km Grab or taxi ₫75,000 (₹240), a beer ₫25,000 (₹80). The pattern to notice: hotels and sit-down food are much cheaper than India, while tiny conveniences - bottled water, snacks, SIM data - cost the same or more. Budget by the big lines, not the coffee.
Transport and activities, honestly
In-town transport is a rounding error: Grab cars of a few kilometres run ₹100-250, and the airport-to-Old-Quarter transfer is 40-60 minutes by taxi (₫300,000-400,000, roughly ₹950-1,300) or Bus 86 at ₫35,000 (~₹110). The money in a Hanoi trip goes on the out-of-town days: a Ha Long Bay day cruise or a Ninh Binh day trip typically runs ₹2,000-4,500 per person booked locally (half-day tours around ₹2,080), and an overnight Ha Long cruise is the single big splurge if you take one - prices vary sharply by boat class, so treat any fixed figure with suspicion and get the inclusions in writing. Museum and temple entries in the city are small change: most run ₹100-250 a head.
The totals: 5 days, 4 nights, per couple
| Shoestring | Mid-range | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flights (2 returns) | ₹36,000 | ₹44,000 | ₹56,000 |
| E-visa (2) | ₹4,816 | ₹4,816 | ₹4,816 |
| Hotels (4 nights) | ₹5,500 | ₹10,300 | ₹22,000 |
| Food + local transport (5 days) | ₹8,000 | ₹20,000 | ₹36,000 |
| Activities + one day trip | ₹3,000 | ₹7,000 | ₹16,000 |
| SIM, tips, buffer | ₹2,000 | ₹3,500 | ₹5,000 |
| Total per couple | ~₹59,000 | ~₹90,000 | ~₹1,40,000 |
Read the totals as bands, not promises: a sale fare pulls any tier down ₹8,000-10,000, and a peak-week Tet or late-December fare pushes it up by more. The mid-range line - about ₹90,000 all-in for two - is the sweet spot most Indian couples report: a good 3-star by the lake, proper restaurants, one out-of-town day, and nothing to think about.
Where couples overspend (and where not to cut)
Overspend happens on: airport taxis without a meter or app price (use Grab), Old Quarter restaurants aimed at tourists (walk one street back), and last-minute Ha Long cruises bought off a street agent (inclusions drift). Do not cut: the e-visa timeline, the hotel location - a lake-adjacent 3-star saves its premium in taxis and time - and travel insurance, which at a few hundred rupees a day is the cheapest line in the whole table.
A Miranda House graduate and lawyer who traded courtrooms for slow travel. Cheshta travels with the batches we host ourselves, with a soft spot for travelling alongside elders.
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