Joshua Zukas

Tripadvisor • 20th March 2024

Navigating Hanoi’s Temples and Pagodas Like A Pro

Hanoi is a perplexing and electrifying place—a city where sidewalk cafes wrap around temples and motorbikes roar past ancient watchtowers. For years, pundits have agonized that Vietnam’s ballooning economy will crush the capital’s distinct charms. And has it? Far from it.

Tripadvisor • 8th March 2024

2 Days in Hanoi: The Perfect Itinerary

Hanoi may be more than 1,000 years old, but it has a buzz that you’ll pick up on right away. From the crack of dawn, locals are out practicing tai chi and laughter yoga (yes, it's really a thing) around the lakes. Throughout the day they chat over iced coffee with milk at sidewalk cafes, and after the sun goes down they drink locally brewed beer at their favorite watering holes. Hanoians take pride in their legendary food scene, so they devote a great deal of time to slurping noodles in street k

Vietnam Coracle • 2nd February 2024

Sky Path Hike | Ha Giang

Who might have thought that the highlight of Ha Giang would have nothing to do with motorbikes? Take on the Sky Path Hike with this how-to guide.

Horizon Guides • 16th January 2024

An Expert Guide to The Best Treks & Hikes in Vietnam

I’ve been living in Vietnam on and off for 15 years, and I’ve spent most of that time writing travel stories, authoring guidebooks and working as a fixer for other visitors. So vast are the outdoors here that it seems I’m always writing about adventure travel in some form or another. Vietnam’s dramatic landscapes make hiking a worthwhile activity on its own, but unlike mainstream trekking destinations, it’s rarely the sole focus. For me, motorbike touring, caving, abseiling and swimming have all

Insider • 30th December 2023

One family has been running Hanoi's best fish noodle shop for 20 years. They swear the secret to their success lives in the tree next door.

"It's a goddess. Her name is Bà Đông Cuông."

Insider • 11th December 2023

I think the Michelin Guide missed Hanoi's 5 best street food spots

When the Michelin Guide to dropped earlier this year, they really stirred the pot. Exasperated netizens took to social media and ruthlessly criticized the list, with a lot of anger targeted at the street food recommendations. "It'

MICHELIN Guide • 17th November 2023

Where to Eat and Stay in Hanoi's French Quarter

The French designed the French Quarter’s street plan over a century ago, but the Vietnamese have since made it their own. Motorbikes course through the streets, coffee shops spill onto the pavements, and parasite architecture abounds, adding a textured aesthetic to the orderly European blueprint. The French Quarter is also a culinary hub. Of the 48 restaurants listed in the MICHELIN Guide Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City 2023, around a third in Hanoi are in this part of the city. In recent years, t

Cathay (Cathay Pacific) • 11th September 2023

Shop the City: Hanoi

Hanoi's humming Old Quarter has been a hotbed of trade for centuries. Its streets and alleyways have long been where traditional medicine doctors, metal workers, bamboo artisans and silversmiths are found.

Going Places (Malaysia Airlines) • 2nd August 2023

Old Flames Die Hard

In a village outside of Hanoi, a new pottery museum offers a contemporary reimagining of Vietnam’s artisanal heritage.

Vietnam Coracle • 14th October 2014

Ha Giang Loop | A Guide for Motorbikers

Hà Giang is Vietnam’s northernmost province. Once considered the final frontier for adventurous travel in Vietnam, this borderland has since gained legendary status among independent travellers, principally for a motorbiking itinerary through otherworldly landscapes, known as the Hà Giang Loop. Main roads meander past rippling rice terraces, mountain passes cut cliff faces above turquoise rivers and countryside

Smile (Cebu Pacific) • 1st May 2023

24 Hours in Truc Bach

Hanoi-based travel writer Joshua Zukas takes a stroll through Truc Bach, a neighbourhood that, despite being encroached by the Old Quarter and West Lake, still maintains a unique identity

Sawasdee (Thai Airways) • 1st May 2023

Hanoi & Ho Chi Minh City Pocket Guide

There’s a spirited sibling rivalry between Vietnam’s two major metropolises. Hanoi basks in its 1,000-year-old history, boasting grand architectural heritage and legendary food culture. By contrast, Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), Hanoi’s younger and

Morning Calm (Korean Air) • 5th November 2022

Where East and West Collide

Central Hanoi is a patchwork of historic neighborhoods, each with its own personality. Quaint charm is on full display in the Old Quarter and around Hoan Kiem Lake, where much of the city’s accommodation is located. Ba Dinh is home to a thriving diplomatic quarter, grand museums and Ho Chi Minh’s iconic mausoleum. West Lake, once a col- lection of rural villages, is now a hub for Hanoi’s burgeon- ing cosmopolitan community, with sky-high apartment buildings that sit next to lakeside temples and pagodas. But the French Quarter, which stretches east from the banks of Hoán Kiem Lake, is different.

DestinAsian • 6th December 2021

Natural Order

With its rippling rice terraces, stilt-house villages, and soaring limestone peaks, the Pu Luong Nature Reserve is poised to become one of northern Vietnam’s most appealing destinations. But can it do so without losing its unspoiled appeal?

Chao Hanoi • 18th September 2020

Heritage Repurposed

A blast of thunder detonates over the Hanoi Old Quarter, declaring the imminent arrival of an autumn shower. Specks of water fall like pin pricks as I squeeze through Trung Yen Alley, a narrow ribbon of road linking Hang Be Market with Dinh Liet Street.

Mabuhay (Philippine Airlines) • 2nd December 2019

Brewing Up a Wave: Quality Coffee at Street Level

Third-wave coffee is taking over the sidewalks of Vietnam’s capital, with newcomers and veterans jostling to offer discerning taste buds quality, affordable fuel made from beans sourced locally and beyond

Silkwinds (SilkAir) • 2nd March 2019

Off the High Street: Hanoi's Boutique Charm

Inspired Hanoians are blending creativity with entrepreneurial zeal, turning the city into a unique destination for boutique shoppers. Even as multinational high street chain stores sweep through other Asian cities...

+852 (Hong Kong Airlines) • 1st July 2019

Behind Hanoi's Secret Doorways

It’s early evening and camera-wielding sightseers cluster around St Joseph’s Cathedral, the faded but iconic neo-Gothic edifice in Hanoi’s ancient Old Quarter. Overshadowed by the lofty cathedral spires is a crack between the buildings, a barely visible alley leading to a sign- less rusty door. I slip down the alley, ring a buzzer, give my name and pass through the crimson portal.

The Independent • 24th May 2019

9 of the Best Hotels in Hanoi

Hanoi’s chequered history has created a beautiful mess of contrasting neighbourhoods. There's the labyrinthine Old Quarter; tree-studded French Quarter; lake-filled Tay Ho District; and the glistening modernity of the rapidly developing Westside precincts. Fortunately, accommodation options are spread throughout the city so you can pair your personality with the neighbourhood. From boutique charm squeezed into the Old City, to spacious modern creations from award-winning architects, there’s an

Vietnam Tourism Board • 3rd February 2019

Unearthing Hanoi's Architecture through Cafes

Hanoi’s architecture mirrors the city’s – and the country’s – checkered history. Chinese influence, French inspiration, subsidy phase austerity and modern practicalities have resulted in a compelling jumble of mismatched dwellings. One compelling way to absorb the capital’s architecture is through its lovingly converted cafes. Here are five you simply can’t miss.

AFAR • 1st December 2021

Where to Go in 2022: Phong Nha

Phong Nha–Ke Bang National Park, a geologically notable site in central Vietnam, has tempted daredevils since 2013, when Son Doong, the biggest cave on the planet (large enough to hold a Boeing 747), opened for multiday tours. The Phong Nha–based company Oxalis Adventure is hoping to launch a fresh adventure in 2022 that’s set to rival the Son Doong Expedition, its flagship experience.

The Toronto Star • 12th April 2021

Hidden Depths in Vietnam

The discovery of the world's biggest cave is a tourist draw -- and a route to sustainable travel.

The Red Bulletin (Red Bull) • 2nd April 2020

Venture Travel: Son Doong

"What a view,” quips my guide, Hieu, as I gingerly traverse along a 50m-long razor-sharp ridge jutting up from a gaping crater carved into the depths of the Earth. I assume he’s joking, because when I peer down, there’s nothing but pitch blackness in the cosmic abyss.

Vietnam Tourism Board • 3rd February 2019

A Complete Guide to Phong Nha

Phong Nha is an adventurer’s paradise. Millions of years of flooding have chiseled out the world’s largest caves, meandering rivers entwine ancient karsts, and jungle-clad mountains lend an otherworldly atmosphere.

Silkwinds (SilkAir) • 1st July 2019

COVER STORY: Journey to the Underworld

"Don't step there," our guide says, pointing to a dubious area of brown sludge. "We might lose you." He's grinning but only half-joking: A previous wrong step pulled me deep into the gunk

Vietnam Tourism Board • 24th August 2019

In Phong Nha, the Adventure of a Lifetime

What do drooping dragon claws and bulging broccoli sprigs have in common? You’ll find formations resembling both in the Tu Lan cave system, one of Vietnam’s most diverse subterranean kingdoms. Son Doong, crowned the biggest cave on the planet in 2009, continues to steal headlines. But that doesn’t mean it deserves all the attention. Phong Nha offers every caving experience imaginable. The Tu Lan cave system is woven together by a network of streams that carve up the countryside. This took place

Mabuhay (Philippine Airlines) • 1st October 2019

Towering Heights

With underground chambers wide enough to fit a soccer field, the caves of Vietnam are among the world's largest. And with an increasing number of them opening to the public – all a few million years old – the country is becoming a hot spot for adventure tourism.

SilverKris (Singapore Airlines) • 8th November 2019

Going Underground

As the world’s largest and third-largest caves respectively, Hang Son Doong and Hang En loom large on Asia’s adventure tourism circuit. But don’t let them overshadow central Vietnam’s other underground dominions. Here are six other caves worth discovering, all of which you can only visit with a licensed company that provides guides, food, water, safety equipment and headtorches. For multi-day expeditions you’ll stay in outdoor campsites in paradisal surroundings. Some are perched on riverbends

Silkwinds (SilkAir) • 1st February 2020

COVER STORY: Keys to the Kingdom

It’s early evening and the gentle waters of Hue’s tree-fringed Perfume River reflect a clear half-moon. Resting on the pristine riverbank is Ben Xuan Garden House Theatre, flaunting imperial architecture emblematic of the city’s history as Vietnam’s last royal capital.

Vietnam Tourism Board • 3rd February 2019

3 Days in Hue for Culture Seekers

Enchanting Hue is one of Vietnam’s most overlooked destinations. Imperial opulence, colonial relics, and picturesque landscapes set the scene for a sensory-rich getaway. Hue residents are proud but warm, eager to share their exceptional cuisine and the city’s monumental history with visitors.

Vietnam Tourism Board • 3rd February 2019

An Inside Guide to the Hue Tombs

From moss-covered towers hidden in the hills to faded stone warriors proudly protecting the dead, the Hue tombs evoke the feeling of a forgotten, almost mythological world. The kings of the Nguyen Dynasty designed their own tombs, reflecting their varying temperaments, philosophies, and priorities.

Vietnam Tourism Board • 3rd February 2019

Motorbiking Hoi An to Hue Over Hai Van Pass

Hoi An to Hue is one of Southeast Asia’s most spectacular coastal journeys, and the best way to see it is by motorbike. The windy climb over world-famous Hai Van Pass is a definite highlight, but there’s much more to see. Follow this full-day itinerary — about 150km without detours — to discover striking temples, placid lagoons, and ancient ruins, and finish on the beach in Hue.

Silkwinds (SilkAir) • 2nd December 2019

City by the Sea: Danang's An Thuong Neighbourhood

Danang is a city of bright lights and glinting bridges hemmed in by sweeping bays and jungle-topped mountains. It is regularly referred to as Vietnam’s most liveable city, and it’s easy to see why. The food scene is booming, the energy is youthful and a dip in the ocean is never more than a few minutes away.