On your pub crawl, you may include some more proper bars and clubs, for instance:
Bars:
Factory 47: A foreign-owned, hipster bar. Better music than elsewhere but also more expensive. Open from 10AM to 3AM.
RockStore: Same owner as above. Unlike its name would suggest, the DJs and live bands play rather eclectic styles of music, from reggae to pop. Western food.
Local, next to Beer Corner, it has a DJ playing Top 40/EDM and a dance floor (there is also a second branch here). Backpacker crowd. Prague Pub is very similar.
Dragonfly: Tiny bar with an outdoor and indoor area serving food, shisha, balloons and alcohol. They have a DJ and occasionally sexy dancers. Mainstream music.
Craft Beer Pub: A rustic pub serving craft beer and Western food. Popular with young and older foreigners. Live sports on screens.
Clubs:
1900 Le Theatre: My favorite club in the Old Quarter. A modern venue with live music (usually in Vietnamese) and DJs playing commercial EDM and Hip Hop. Mixed crowd. Recommended for meeting girls. Closes at 1AM.
Ball Bars: I counted at least 3 of them (Ball Bar 4, Ball Bar 6, Ball Bar 19). They are crowded with 90% young Vietnamese. EDM and commercial music. They normally stay open until 2AM or 3AM. Recommended for meeting Viet girls.
Hair Of the Dog, a small club with commercial music opened until around 2AM/3AM. Mixed crowd: 1st floor with locals, 2nd floor with foreigners. It gets started at midnight.
馃憣 Food: A great way to explore the Old Quarter is to join the famous Hanoi Street Food Tour (#1 activity on TripAdvisor). In 3 hours, you'll have a chance to try about a dozen delicious Northern Vietnam dishes. More information on their Facebook.
