Published:  11:50 Saturday - August 13, 2016

Hanoi night life attracts many foreign tourists because of different exciting activities. To develop Hanoi tourism and attract more tourists, Hanoi plans to lift its midnight curfew to let tourists have more fun at night, the city chairman said at a tourism promotion conference in Hoi An Tuesday.

Nguyen Duc Chung said many foreigners consider Hanoi’s night life a “specialty,” and so the city is going to give them more of it.

Entertainment spots would be allowed to remain open overnight soon, he revealed.

Now all restaurants, cafés, nightclubs and karaoke parlors in Hanoi have to close at midnight though bars and clubs at top-tier hotels and resorts are allowed to stay open until 2 a.m.

Many tourists in the capital, as well as Ho Chi Minh City, have complained about the lack of night activities, with some saying they have nothing to do other than drink beer on sidewalks.

Officials at the meeting said the change needs better management, like age limit, or the plan could backfire.

Hanoi, a 1,000-year-old city, has become a popular travel destination, including being named the best value destination in the TripIndex report by TripAdvisor for the last three years.

The city received around 3.3 million foreign visitors last year and hopes to get 5.7 million by 2020.