Budget Scale
Editor Rating: 2-Hanoi is one of the cheaper places in the world to visit, with $5US beds and $1US steaming bowls of pho available around seemingly every turn. It doesn't get much cheaper than this, folks.
Indie Travel Scale
Editor Rating: 8-You will truly feel lost upon entering Hanoi for the first time. The traffic, the people, the noise, the smells - everything about it just seems bonkers. There will be culture shock, there will be cursing, there will be madness, but if you can muster up some patience, there aren't many better cities to have a truly indie experience.