I say the 2nd best only because we stayed at both this hotel and their sister hotel around the corner, Holiday Charming Hotel. Both were great hotels, ideally located to explore Hanoi and very friendly staff who gave great recommendations on where to eat and things to do.

Both hotels recommended Highway 4 restaurant which was extremely good but a bit more expensive than your standard vietnemese restuarant.

The rooms here are larger than the Charming Hotel but you do pay more for the room by about 5USD per night. Unlike the Charming hotel they did not have a computer in the room, but they do offer laptops free of charge to use in the room, so just ask.

We stayed in this hotel for 3 nights.
Stuff in the hotel is very friendly and helpful. Rooms are good size and spotless. Our stay was very enjoyable , location is perfect. We booked Halong bay through thus hotel , we got good deal.
Should we come back to Hanoi again we would stay in this hotel.

Stayed here for 3 nights and was very pleasantly surprised by the quality and value of this hotel.

The location is in the Old Quarters and is within walking distance to all of the major tourist sites in Hanoi. I had a standard room which ended-up being in the back of the building so it was dead quiet. No street noise at all. The room was big, clean and comfortable.

The staff is incredibly friendly and helpful. They can answer any questions you might have about the city and can recommend restaurants.

The included breakfast and the free airport pick-up (for 3 nights stay) really makes the Holiday Gold a great value for the price. I highly recommend staying here for your visit to Hanoi.

Nice staff and great location. We stayed here for 3 nights and everyone was helpful.