We spend two nights at Emeralda and found the hotel very pleasing and nicely designed. The breakfast was good, and the other meals were okay. There were however a lot of Western choices, and the Vietnamese options were not as flavourful as what we have experienced elsewhere in Vietnam. Perhaps it was an attempt to adjust the cuisine to Western tastes, but it didn't work for us. The staff were generally friendly and helpful, however we did have a problem at checkout because our cash deposit was not returned to us. We had to retrieve it a day later in Hanoi, but in Vietnamese currency rather than the British Pounds we had deposited. It cost us an extra 30 minutes of our day in Hanoi to sort this out.
On a positive note, we had a great time overall, in particular on the day trip that we had booked through reception. Our guide was excellent, he took us on a 3 hour hike through the rain forest, into a pre-historic cave, and to a primate rescue center. We found him to be very friendly, knowledgeable, and great company.