Prices checked November 2026. If a price at the ticket counter differs from this guide, the counter price is the one that counts.
Hoi An is Vietnam's prettiest town — a riverside old port of yellow walls, wooden shophouses and hundreds of silk lanterns that glow every evening. By day it is a slow wander through tailor shops, coffee houses and craft villages; by night it becomes a lantern-lit postcard, with paper lanterns floating down the Hoai River. It is small, flat and made for walking, and it pairs perfectly with Da Nang (30 minutes away) or as a gentle stop on the way to Hue.
A note on the address: on 1 July 2026, Quang Nam province was merged into Da Nang, so Hoi An is now officially part of Da Nang City. Older listings still say "Quang Nam" — both refer to the same place.
Give Hoi An 2–3 days: one for the Ancient Town, one for the countryside and beaches, and a third if you want a slower pace or a tailor-made outfit. The best weather is February to August — dry, warm and sunny. September to December brings rain, and October–November can flood the old town. Hoi An suits couples (it is Vietnam's most romantic town), families (safe, walkable, beaches nearby), food lovers, and anyone who wants to slow down after the big cities. Prices checked November 2026.
By plane. Hoi An has no airport. Fly into Da Nang International Airport (DAD), about 30 km north — a 30-minute drive. From the airport, a Grab or taxi to Hoi An costs 300,000–400,000 VND (~$12–15). Many hotels arrange airport pick-up for a similar price; ask when you book.
By train. Hoi An has no train station. Take the train to Da Nang Railway Station (791 Hai Phong Street, Da Nang), then a taxi or Grab for the last 30 km (300,000–400,000 VND, ~30 minutes). The train from Hue to Da Nang takes 2.5–3 hours and costs 100,000–250,000 VND (~$4–10) — the coastal stretch over the Hai Van Pass is one of the prettiest rides in Asia.
By bus or car. Sleeper buses from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City stop in Da Nang; from there, take a taxi or a local shuttle to Hoi An. From Hue, a private car takes about 3 hours via Da Nang and costs roughly 1,000,000–1,500,000 VND (~$38–58).
The Ancient Town is best explored on foot. Cars are banned from the main streets (Tran Phu, Nguyen Thai Hoc, Bach Dang) during pedestrian hours, 09:00–11:00 and 15:00–21:30, so the old town is pleasantly quiet. Bicycles are the classic way to reach the beaches and villages — rentals are available everywhere in town; prices were not verified, so agree the rate before you ride. Grab works in Hoi An for cars and motorbikes, and the Da Nang taxi companies also serve the town:
No verified Hoi An-specific taxi number found — use Grab or one of the Da Nang companies above. A Grab to An Bang Beach (about 4 km) costs 50,000–80,000 VND (~$2–3). Motorbike rental costs about 150,000–200,000 VND (~$6–8) per day; you legally need an International Driving Permit with a motorbike endorsement, and a helmet is mandatory.
Tip: The 20,000 VND ticket covers one of 22 heritage sites — the assembly halls, old houses and museums. Buy tickets only at the official booths. On the full-moon lantern night each month, the electric lights go off around 18:00–22:00 and the town glows by lantern alone; remaining 2026 dates are 22 November and 22 December.
Open in Google MapsTip: The bridge is Hoi An's symbol — a 400-year-old covered bridge built by Japanese merchants, with a small temple inside. Come at dusk when the lanterns are lit, and look for the monkey and dog statues guarding each end.
Open in Google MapsTip: Go before 08:15 or after 15:30 to avoid the tour-bus crowds and the midday heat. The brick Hindu temples of the Champa kingdom, built between the 4th and 13th centuries, sit in a jungle valley — allow at least 2 hours.
Open in Google MapsTip: The round basket boats (thung chai) spin, the rowers sing, and you will get splashed — wear clothes you do not mind getting wet. Book through your hotel or a reputable operator rather than the touts at the car park.
Open in Google MapsTip: Hoi An's best beach — long, sandy and much quieter than the town. Come for sunset, when the fishing boats come in and the beach bars light up. The sea is calmest from February to August.
Open in Google MapsTip: A 400-year-old farming village that grows the herbs for Hoi An's kitchens. The hands-on experiences — planting, watering, and cooking with a local family — are the highlight, and a great morning out with kids.
Open in Google MapsTip: Hundreds of lantern stalls across the river from the Old Town. Lanterns make a lovely souvenir and pack flat — bargain politely, and check the wiring before you buy an electric one.
Open in Google MapsTip: The classic Hoi An photo: a wooden boat, a paper lantern, and the old town glowing behind you. Agree the price and the length of the ride before you step on board, and buy your floating lantern from the boat vendor, not from touts on the street.
Open in Google MapsHoi An has three dishes you will not find done the same way anywhere else: cao lau (thick noodles with pork and greens, made with water from a specific local well), banh mi (the town's version is famous worldwide), and com ga (chicken rice). Eat them in the Old Town, then walk it off along the river.
Tip: The banh mi shop Anthony Bourdain made famous. Expect a queue at lunch — it moves fast. Order the classic mixed (thap cam) and eat it standing on the street like everyone else.
Open in Google MapsTip: The locals' favourite, and the one most Hoi An residents will send you to first. The egg and pork version is excellent, and the queue is usually shorter than at Phuong.
Open in Google MapsTip: The best place to try cao lau and white rose dumplings in one sitting, in a beautiful old house. It is the most tourist-oriented restaurant on this list — and the food earns it.
Open in Google MapsTip: A small, local spot for cao lau away from the main tourist streets. Order cao lau and a fresh beer, and sit with the regulars.
Open in Google MapsTip: White rose dumplings — delicate shrimp dumplings shaped like roses — are a Hoi An invention, and this family-run restaurant is where they started.
Open in Google MapsTip: Chicken rice the Hoi An way: shredded chicken, turmeric rice, pickled onions and herbs. A proper lunch for very little money.
Open in Google MapsVegetarian and allergies: Hoi An is one of the easiest towns in Vietnam for vegetarians — several dedicated vegetarian restaurants serve cao lau and banh mi without meat, and most restaurants will make a vegetarian version if you ask ("khong thit" — no meat). Peanut and shellfish allergies need care: banh mi and cao lau often contain peanuts and shrimp paste. Say "Toi bi di ung" (I am allergic) and name the ingredient — see section L.
Stay inside or just outside the Ancient Town if you want to walk to dinner and the lanterns — the old town is small, and even a hotel 10 minutes away feels close. An Bang Beach is the better choice if you want the sea and a resort feel, with a short Grab ride into town.
Tip: High-end riverside resort on the edge of the Old Town — colonial-style rooms, a pool on the river, and a short walk to the lanterns.
Open in Google MapsTip: High-end, a 10-minute walk from the Old Town, with a spa and a rooftop pool. Good for couples who want quiet after the lanterns.
Open in Google MapsTip: Mid-range boutique hotel on the river, a few minutes' walk from the Old Town — good value for the location.
Open in Google MapsTip: Mid-range, in the old town area with a spa and pool. Ask for a room away from the street if you are a light sleeper.
Open in Google MapsCompare prices on Agoda (https://www.agoda.com) and Booking.com (https://www.booking.com) — rates change by season, and the same room can differ by 20–30% between the two sites. Book early for February–April and for full-moon weekends, when the town fills up.
1 day — the old town. Morning: wander the Ancient Town, visit the Japanese Bridge and one or two heritage houses. Lunch: banh mi from Phuong or Madam Khanh. Afternoon: a tailor fitting or a coffee by the river. Evening: dinner at Morning Glory, then a lantern boat on the Hoai River and the night market.
2 days — add the countryside. Day 1 as above. Day 2: morning cycling to Tra Que Vegetable Village for a cooking class, afternoon at An Bang Beach, evening back in town for cao lau and the lanterns.
3 days — add My Son. Day 3: early start to My Son Sanctuary (before 08:15 to beat the crowds), back by lunch, then a slow afternoon — a basket boat in the Bay Mau Coconut Forest, or a beach afternoon and a final lantern-lit dinner.
Prices checked November 2026. 1 USD ≈ 26,000 VND.
ATMs are plentiful in the Old Town and along the main streets; most accept foreign cards and charge 20,000–50,000 VND (~$0.80–1.90) per withdrawal. Cards work in hotels and larger restaurants, but street food, markets, tailors and boat rides are cash-only. Bring small notes — a 500,000 VND bill is hard to break at a banh mi stall. Tailors usually take a deposit in cash and the balance on collection; agree the total price in writing before they start cutting.
Tip: Phone: 0236 3821 118. Hoi An has small local clinics for minor issues, but anything serious goes to Da Nang. Keep your travel insurance details on your phone.
Open in Google MapsScams to watch for: Tailors who pressure you into ordering more than you want — decide your budget before you walk in, and get the price in writing. Boat touts who quote one price and charge another — agree the price and the duration before boarding. The "free" lantern that turns out to cost 50,000 VND — nothing on the riverfront is free. Flooding in October–November can close the old town streets; check conditions with your hotel before you go out.
The Ancient Town floods in most years in October and November, when the Thu Bon River rises after sustained rain. Most floods are shallow and brief — knee-deep water on the lowest riverside streets for one to three days — but exceptional years have seen water approaching two metres (1964, 1999, 2007, 2017, 2020), and in October 2025 the river peaked 14 cm above its 1964 mark. October averages about 628 mm of rain, November about 448 mm. If you visit then, stay a little away from the river, keep your plans flexible, and check conditions with your hotel before you go out. The sea is rough from October to January — swim only where lifeguards are on duty. See the full picture on our Seasonal Hazards & Natural Dangers page.
Seasons: February to August is dry and sunny, 28–35°C. September to December is the rainy season; October–November can bring floods that close the old town for a day or two. January is cooler (20–25°C) and pleasant.
Culture and etiquette: Dress modestly at pagodas and temples. Remove shoes when entering a temple hall or someone's home. Bargain with a smile at markets and with tailors, never in restaurants or shops with price tags. The old town is a living neighbourhood, not a theme park — keep noise down in the residential lanes at night.
Tailors: Hoi An's tailors are famous, and a made-to-measure suit or dress in 24–48 hours is a real thing here. Get recommendations from your hotel, compare two shops, agree the fabric and price in writing, and leave time for at least one fitting. A rushed job is a bad job.
What to pack: Sunscreen, a hat, comfortable walking shoes, a rain jacket in the wet season, and clothes you can get wet in for the basket boats. Bring a small daypack for the beach — and leave room in your luggage for lanterns.
For day trips and tickets, check the official homepages of Klook (https://www.klook.com), GetYourGuide (https://www.getyourguide.com) and Viator (https://www.viator.com). Popular bookable options include My Son Sanctuary sunrise tours, basket-boat and cooking-class combos in Cam Thanh, a Hoi An street-food walking tour, and a day trip combining the Marble Mountains with Hoi An. Compare prices across the three sites — the same tour often appears on all of them at slightly different prices. No affiliate links are used on this site.
Hoi An is the best shopping town in Vietnam for handmade things — lanterns, silk and pottery made in the town itself, not imported. The rule here is simple: buy from the workshop that made it, and bargain kindly (start at about 50% of the asking price on souvenirs and settle around 30% off).
The silk lantern is Hoi An's signature buy: a bamboo frame wrapped in silk, with a wire mechanism that lets the whole lantern collapse flat to about 2-3 cm thick, so it slips into a suitcase. Small desk lanterns (about 20 cm) are the most practical gift; large ceiling pieces are beautiful but hard to carry. Real silk feels soft and almost translucent; the cheaper polyester copies feel stiff and fade within a year.
Hoi An is Vietnam's tailoring capital, and silk is the fabric to buy: scarves, fabric by the metre for a tailored ao dai or suit, and ready-made silk clothing. The silk shops on Tran Phu and Le Loi Streets compete hard, which keeps quality high and prices fair — but check the fabric before you commit, and get a written receipt with the agreed price and pickup time for anything tailored.
Tip: Real silk feels cool, smooth and slightly uneven, and wrinkles when you scrunch it. If you want a suit or dress made, allow at least 24 hours and one fitting.
Open in Google MapsHoi An's mung bean cake is a small, dense square of ground mung bean, sugar and fat, pressed into a mould — somewhere between fudge and shortbread, gently sweet, and once a dish reserved for kings. The meat-filled version is the local favourite for gifts. A box is cheap, light and keeps for days at room temperature.
Tip: Buy it with a box of the meat-filled version if you eat meat — it is the one locals recommend for gifts. Eat it with hot tea, the way it is meant to be eaten.
Open in Google MapsHoi An Central Market (19 Tran Phu Street, Place block in Section D) is the other place for all three: silk and fabric upstairs, spices and food gifts on the ground floor.
Thanh Ha, about 3 km west of the Ancient Town on the Thu Bon River, has made pottery for centuries — the village supplied bricks and tiles for Hoi An's old houses. Today its workshops make terracotta pots, vases, animal whistles and decorative ware, and the pottery museum and Terracotta Park sit alongside the working lanes. The highlight is sitting at a wheel with a local artisan and shaping your own piece: most workshops let you try for a small fee, and some include a small clay whistle souvenir with the ticket. Go in the morning, when the kilns are going and the lanes are full of pots drying in the sun.
Tip: The ticket includes a small gift (usually a clay animal whistle) and a voucher for the museum shop. If a workshop asks you to buy a 200,000-800,000 VND piece to take part, walk to the next one — the standard making fee is small.
Open in Google MapsIn about an hour, a local artisan teaches you to build your own 20 cm silk lantern: bending the bamboo frame, stretching the silk, and painting it if you like. You keep the lantern — it folds flat for the suitcase. It is the most Hoi An experience there is, and one of the cheapest: about $8-9 per person including all materials. Classes run by April Adventure Travel meet in the alley at 05 Tran Phu Street (05/2 Tran Phu, opposite Pho Hoi Hotel) in the Old Town; book on GetYourGuide (search "Lantern-Making Workshop in Hoi An Old Town") or walk in and ask. Longer versions (about 2 hours, about $17-18) add a lantern boat ride on the Hoai River at dusk.
Tip: Go for a late-afternoon session so you finish as the town's lanterns light up — then carry your own lantern down to the river.
Open in Google MapsTra Que is an organic vegetable village about 3 km north of the Old Town, where local farmers grow the herbs for Hoi An's kitchens using seaweed fertiliser and no chemicals. The tours are genuinely hands-on: you put on a conical hat, till soil, plant and water vegetables, harvest herbs with the farmers, and sometimes try making rice paper — then a local chef teaches you to cook four Vietnamese dishes with what you picked, and you eat them together. Most tours start with a local market visit and a bicycle ride through the rice paddies. Allow 3.5-5 hours depending on the operator; groups are small (up to 12 people). Book through your hotel or a Hoi An tour desk — several operators run the same route at different prices.
Tip: Wear shoes you can get muddy and bring sun protection — you will be in the fields, not watching from a path. Tell the operator in advance if you are vegetarian; the cooking class adapts easily.
Open in Google MapsCulture note: In Tra Que, the farmers are your teachers, not your staff. Ask questions, accept the conical hat they offer, and thank the family that cooks for you — a smile and "cam on" go further than a tip, though a tip is always welcome.
Useful apps for your Hoi An trip — download before you arrive:
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