Hoi An travel guide

Hoi An is a small riverside town on central Vietnam's coast, about 30 km (19 miles) south of Da Nang's airport. From the 15th to the 19th century it was one of Southeast Asia's busiest trading ports, where Vietnamese, Chinese and Japanese merchants built shophouses, assembly halls and temples side by side. When the river silted up and trade moved to Da Nang, the town was left largely as it was. That is why its old center is still standing today.

UNESCO added Hoi An Ancient Town to the World Heritage List in 1999, describing it as an exceptionally well-preserved example of a Southeast Asian trading port. The same year, UNESCO also listed My Son Sanctuary, the Cham temple ruins an hour inland. Since July 2025, after an administrative reform, Hoi An has officially been a ward of the enlarged city of Da Nang; for visitors it remains its own destination, with its own pace.

The town has three sides worth your time:

• The old town: lantern-lit streets, wooden shophouses, assembly halls and the Japanese Covered Bridge, best in the early morning and after dark.
• The beaches: An Bang and Cua Dai, a short bike ride east of the center.
• The countryside: rice fields, vegetable villages and coconut palm waterways that start a few minutes from the old town.

Two or three nights is the right length for most people. A day trip from [Da Nang](/en/da-nang) works, but you miss the quiet morning streets, which is when Hoi An is at its best.

The protected old town is compact: a grid of a few streets between Tran Phu Street and the Thu Bon River, which you can cross on foot in 15 minutes. What makes it special is not one monument but the whole ensemble: low yellow shophouses with tiled roofs, family chapels, Chinese assembly halls, and a waterfront market.

The ticket. As of September 2026, the old town ticket for foreign adults costs 120,000 VND (about $4.60). It comes as a strip of five tear-off coupons; each coupon admits you to one of the ticketed heritage sites (more than 20 in total), such as old houses, assembly halls, small museums and the Japanese Covered Bridge. Officially, visitors need the ticket to enter the old town core, and booths sit at the main entry streets. Buy it from an official booth, keep it with you, and pick your five sites carefully. The money goes into the upkeep of the town.

Sites worth a coupon:

• The Japanese Covered Bridge (Chua Cau). The town's symbol, a small roofed bridge with a shrine inside. It reopened in August 2024 after a two-year restoration.
• The Fujian Assembly Hall (Phuc Kien). The largest and most ornate of the Chinese assembly halls, with a courtyard, incense coils and carved altars.
• An old merchant house, such as Tan Ky or Duc An, where descendants of the original families still live and show how the front shop, the courtyard and the river-side warehouse worked together.
• One of the small museums, for example the Museum of Trade Ceramics, which explains the port's history through what was shipped and found there.

Timing. The old town is busiest from late afternoon into the evening, when day-trippers and tour groups arrive. Walk it between 6 and 9 a.m. for empty streets, soft light and locals opening their shops. The ticketed sites generally open in the morning and close in the early evening. The core is closed to motorbikes at set hours, including evenings, which makes it one of the few places in Vietnam where you can walk without watching for scooters.

Etiquette. Many houses are private homes and family temples. Dress modestly inside the assembly halls and temples, ask before photographing people, and do not climb on the historic structures for a picture.

Lanterns are what most people picture when they think of Hoi An, and the town looks its best once they are lit around sunset.

The riverfront. Silk lanterns hang across the streets along the Hoai River, the arm of the Thu Bon that runs past the old town. Small wooden boats take visitors along a short stretch of the river, and vendors sell paper lanterns with a candle inside that you can set on the water. Boat prices are set per boat, not per person, and are usually posted at the landing; agree on the price before you step in.

The night market. Across the An Hoi footbridge, on the islet opposite the old town, the night market sells lanterns, souvenirs and street snacks. It is crowded and lively; come for the atmosphere and the snacks more than for shopping.

Full moon nights. Each lunar month around the full moon, Hoi An holds a lantern evening when shops dim their electric lights and the town relies on lanterns. The dates follow the lunar calendar, so check them before you plan.

Buying a lantern. Several workshops in and around the old town sell silk lanterns that fold flat for travel, and some offer short lantern-making classes where you build your own frame and stretch the silk over it.

How to enjoy the evening without the crowds. The riverbank between the Japanese Covered Bridge and the market gets very busy between about 6 and 9 p.m. The side streets a block back from the river are calmer and just as pretty, and the old town is quiet again by about 10 p.m. If you are staying in town, a late walk is the best way to see the lanterns with few people around.

Hoi An has a few dishes of its own that you will not find in the same form elsewhere in Vietnam.

• Cao lau. The town's signature dish: thick, chewy noodles with slices of pork, fresh greens and crispy croutons, with only a little sauce at the bottom of the bowl. Tradition says the noodles need water from local wells.
• White rose dumplings (banh bao banh vac). Delicate shrimp dumplings folded to look like a flower and topped with fried shallots.
• Com ga (chicken rice). Rice cooked with turmeric and chicken broth, served with shredded chicken, herbs and pickled onions.
• Banh mi. Hoi An's banh mi is famous in Vietnam; stalls in the old town make it with pate, several kinds of pork and a local chili sauce.
• Mi Quang. The regional turmeric noodle dish, as in Da Nang.

Where to eat. The central market by the river has a food hall where local cooks serve most of these dishes at simple counters; it is the easiest place to try several in one meal. The riverside restaurants in the old town charge more for the view. A few streets outside the ticketed area, prices drop and you eat alongside residents.

Cooking classes are popular here, and many include a market visit in the morning and a boat ride to a cooking school in the countryside. They are a good plan for a rainy day.

Coffee. Try a ca phe sua da (iced coffee with condensed milk), or the coconut coffee that many cafes in town serve. Drink bottled water; ice in restaurants is made from treated water and is fine.

Hoi An's beaches are one of the reasons to stay a few nights instead of coming on a day trip.

An Bang Beach. An Bang is about 4 km (2.5 miles) northeast of the old town, a 10- to 15-minute ride by bicycle or scooter along roads lined with rice fields. It is a wide stretch of sand with a village behind it and a row of beach restaurants and bars that rent loungers if you order food or drinks. The sea is generally calm and good for swimming from spring through summer. Arrive in the morning for space and a clear sky; the afternoon light is softer but the sun sits behind you when you face the sea. Parking lots near the beach charge a small fee for bicycles and scooters.

Cua Dai Beach. Cua Dai, where the Thu Bon River meets the sea, used to be Hoi An's main beach. Coastal erosion has eaten away large parts of it over the past decade, and in March 2025 the local authorities began a project to protect and restore the shoreline. Some stretches have come back and the resort hotels along it remain open, but it is less reliable than An Bang. If you are booking a beach hotel here, look at recent photos of the sand in front of it.

Between the two. Small beaches such as Ha My and Tan Thanh lie along the same coast, with fewer facilities and fewer people. The coast continues north all the way to Da Nang.

Beach seasons. From about September to early spring, the sea is rougher, red flags are frequent and storms can reshape the beach overnight. From spring through summer, the water is calmer and warmer. Swim where others are swimming, in front of the lifeguard stations where they exist, and follow the flags.

Hoi An is known for its tailor shops, and many visitors leave with a suit, a dress, a coat or copies of a favorite shirt. The quality ranges from excellent to disappointing, and the difference usually comes down to preparation.

Before you order:

• Arrive early in your trip. Good work needs at least two fittings. Order on your first day so there is time to adjust before you leave.
• Bring a reference. A garment you already own that fits well, or clear photos from several angles, works better than a description.
• Look at the fabric in daylight. Ask what it is made of, and do a quick crumple test in your hand to see how it wrinkles.
• Agree on the price and what it includes, such as lining and alterations, before you pay a deposit, and get it on a receipt.

Choosing a shop. Hoi An has many tailors, from large shops with showrooms to small family workshops. Recommendations from your hotel and recent reviews help, but the real test is the first fitting: a good tailor will measure carefully, ask questions and pin adjustments on you rather than telling you it looks fine.

Shoes and leather. Some workshops also make shoes, bags and belts to measure. The same rule applies: leave time for a fitting.

Getting it home. If you are short on luggage space, shops can ship orders abroad; ask for the shipping cost and tracking up front. A garment you try on before leaving is always safer than one that arrives by post.

The countryside begins a few minutes from the old town, and a bicycle is the best way to see it. Most hotels lend or rent bikes, and the land is flat.

Rice fields. Ride out northeast of the old town, toward An Bang Beach, and you pass through green rice fields with water buffalo and egrets. The fields look their best in the weeks before harvest, and early morning is the coolest time to ride.

Tra Que vegetable village. A village of market gardens between the old town and the beach, where families grow herbs and vegetables for Hoi An's kitchens using seaweed from the river as fertilizer. Some farms offer short visits and cooking sessions.

Cam Thanh coconut forest. Southeast of town, waterways run through groves of water coconut palms. Local operators paddle visitors around in round bamboo basket boats. It is busy with tour groups; go in the morning or late afternoon for a calmer ride.

Thanh Ha pottery village and Kim Bong carpentry village. Craft villages near the old town where families still work clay and wood; both are easy to reach by bike or a short boat ride.

My Son Sanctuary. The temple ruins of the Champa kingdom stand in a jungle valley inland, about 40 to 55 km (25 to 35 miles) from Hoi An, roughly an hour or a bit more by road. The towers were built between the 4th and 13th centuries, mostly for the Hindu god Shiva, and UNESCO listed the site in 1999. Part of the site was damaged by bombing during the Vietnam War, so some groups are ruins while others are well restored. As of September 2026, the entrance fee for foreign visitors is 150,000 VND (about $5.80), and a shuttle takes you from the ticket office to the temples. Go at opening time: the valley gets very hot by late morning. Some tours return by boat down the Thu Bon River.

Da Nang day trips from Hoi An. Hoi An also works as a base for the Marble Mountains, Ba Na Hills and the Hai Van Pass. See our [Da Nang guide](/en/da-nang) for those.

Getting to Hoi An. Hoi An has no airport and no train station. The nearest airport is Da Nang International (DAD), about 30 km (19 miles) north, a 40- to 55-minute drive depending on traffic. As of September 2026, a Grab car from the airport costs about 250,000 to 350,000 VND ($10 to $13) depending on demand, and many hotels arrange a pickup. Travelers coming by train get off at Da Nang station and take a car from there. Buses and shuttles between Da Nang and Hoi An also run, but they are slower and less flexible than a car.

Getting around in town. On foot in the old town, by bicycle to the beach and the villages, and by Grab for anything farther. If you rent a scooter, the same rules apply as anywhere in Vietnam: you need a valid license that covers motorbikes, a helmet, and some experience.

Where to stay:

• In or next to the old town. Walking distance to everything, which means you can see the streets at 6 a.m. and after 10 p.m. when they are empty. Rooms facing the busiest streets can be noisy in the evening.
• An Hoi islet and the river edges. Across the footbridge from the old town, close to the night market, often with river views.
• Among the rice fields (Cam Chau, Cam Thanh, Tra Que area). Homestays and small hotels with pools, a short bike ride to both the old town and the beach. The best balance for many people.
• An Bang Beach. Guesthouses and villas right by the sand, about 10 to 15 minutes by bike from the old town. Good if the beach is your priority.
• The resort coast (Cua Dai and farther north). Large resorts with private beaches and shuttles to the old town. Comfortable, but further from the town life.

Book well ahead for the full moon lantern nights and Vietnamese holidays, and check your hotel's flood history if you are traveling in October or November.

Seasons. Hoi An follows central Vietnam's pattern. February to April is the most comfortable period: warm, mostly dry and not too hot. May to August is hot and humid, with calm seas and busy beaches. September to December is the rainy and typhoon season, with the heaviest rain usually in October and November.

Floods. Hoi An sits on the low delta of the Thu Bon River, and the old town floods in most rainy seasons. Water can enter the streets along the river for a day or more, shops raise their goods, and boats replace bicycles in some streets. In late October 2025, the Thu Bon River reached its highest level in about 60 years and much of the old town was under water. If you are traveling in October or November:

• Book refundable rooms, ideally away from the riverfront.
• Keep a flexible day in your plan and a buffer before your flight from Da Nang.
• Follow the official forecasts from Vietnam's National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting (nchmf.gov.vn) and your hotel's advice.
• If the old town is flooded, do not wade through the water: it can hide debris and open drains.

December to January is cooler, often gray, with rough seas: fine for the old town and food, less so for the beach.

Before you go:

• Visa. Travelers from the United States, Australia, India and Canada need a visa for Vietnam. The e-visa, valid for up to 90 days, is issued on the official portal, evisa.gov.vn. To hand off the paperwork instead, [visa-vietnam.app](https://visa-vietnam.app) is run by the same publisher as this site.
• Cash. Carry Vietnamese dong for the old town ticket, markets, boats and street food. Many hotels and restaurants take cards.
• Sun and heat. Plan walks and bike rides for the morning and late afternoon.
• Dress. Cover shoulders and knees in temples, assembly halls and at My Son.