The capital of Vietnam is home to a population of around 7. It is a thriving hub of cultural entertainment that ranges from jazz and traditional water puppetry to busy restaurants serving hallmark Vietnamese food. Hanoi is also a great city for a night out and there are a lot of popular clubs and bars that attract locals, backpackers and tourists. In this guide, we take a look at the venues around Hanoi where adult thrills can be found in abundance — as well as the prevailing laws surrounding them.
Prostitution is illegal in Hanoi and most activities around buying and selling sex are prohibited, including running a brothel, soliciting, pimping, pandering and profiting from another person selling sexual services. Despite being against the law, it is still possible to pay for sex in Hanoi with prostitutes being available from massage parlours and barbershops as well as in the form of escorts and street hookers. Some girls work as independent prostitutes in hostess bars and KTVs.
Mopeds are a popular way for street hookers to cover the city looking for business. Image via Flickr. There is a high demand for prostitution in Hanoi and policing is not strict, particularly when it comes to tourists, as long as activities are discreet, do not contravene any other laws such as drug use, indecent public behaviour and occur between consenting adults.
Vietnam has a growing reputation for its sex industry and, though it does not compare to Thailand in terms of volume and variety, it has become a hot spot for sex tourism. There are an estimated 20, prostitutes in the country though some studies suggest that this figure could be as high as , Most prostitutes working in Hanoi are Vietnamese but the industry also attracts women from neighbouring China, Laos and Cambodia.
Prized for their fair skin and light eyes, women from Eastern Europe are in high demand with Asian tourists and Russian escorts are also popular. Unlike some areas of Asia, Vietnamese girls are more inclined to have sex with foreigners. Hanoi is a bustling city with plenty of opportunities for sex. Not all agencies are foreigner friendly or speak good English. The girls on the books of the top agencies are high-class call girls and are able to pass discreetly in most major hotels.
