Hoi An is Vietnam's most beautiful town: a UNESCO-listed ancient port lit by silk lanterns every night. This guide covers the Ancient Town, the best tailors, beaches, food, and how to make the most of three days.
Night falls on Hoi An and the ancient town transforms. Paper lanterns, hundreds of them, glow above the river and hang from shopfronts in yellow, red, and amber, until the whole district looks like something from a story you half-remember. Motorbikes are kept out of the old streets during pedestrian hours, and the sound they leave behind is footsteps, conversation, and the creak of wooden doors. You slow down without meaning to. Hoi An does that to people.
This hoi an travel guide covers everything you need to plan your visit. The UNESCO World Heritage Site on Vietnam’s central coast was one of Southeast Asia’s great trading ports from the 15th to the 19th centuries. Things to do in hoi an range from ancient town walks and tailor fittings to cooking classes and beach days, all within one compact, beautiful area. Chinese, Japanese, and European traders all left their mark on its architecture and food, creating a mix found nowhere else in Vietnam. Nowhere else combines this heritage, world-class street food, excellent tailoring, and a beach close enough to cycle to.
Most heritage towns feel preserved rather than lived in. Hoi An is neither a museum nor a tourist trap. It is a working community that happens to occupy one of Asia’s finest collections of 15th to 19th-century merchant architecture. Tailors work late into the evening, the market still sells fish and vegetables alongside fabric and ceramics, and locals still cross the Japanese Covered Bridge. (Since Vietnam’s 2025 administrative reforms, Hoi An has officially been part of Da Nang city, but the old town is as distinct as ever.)
The appeal for first-time visitors is density. You can eat cao lau, white rose dumplings, and banh mi within a 10-minute walk of each other, take a cooking class, order a custom dress, and watch the lanterns come on over the river, all in a single day.
The Ancient Town is compact enough to walk in a morning. Foreign visitors need an Ancient Town ticket (120,000 VND, about $4.60, at last check), sold at booths around the old streets and checked at entry points. It includes entry to five heritage sites of your choice, such as the Japanese Covered Bridge temple, the Chinese assembly halls, Tan Ky Old House, the Museum of Trade Ceramics, and the Museum of Folk Culture.
Key sites:
Japanese Covered Bridge (Chua Cau): The town’s most photographed landmark, begun by Japanese merchants in 1593, with a small temple added in 1653. It reopened in 2024 after a major restoration. Cross at dawn before the tour groups arrive.
Phuc Kien (Fujian) Assembly Hall: The most ornate of Hoi An’s five Chinese assembly halls, built by Fujian traders and dedicated to Thien Hau, Goddess of the Sea. The dragon-decorated gate and incense-filled interior are best at dusk.
Tan Ky Old House: A merchant house around two centuries old, still lived in by descendants of the original family. Its architecture blends Chinese, Japanese, and Vietnamese elements, and family members often show visitors around.
The Thu Bon Riverside: Cross to An Hoi on the opposite bank for Hoi An’s best view back over the old town, especially at golden hour.
Hoi An’s reputation for custom tailoring is deserved. The town has hundreds of tailors, from large showrooms to small family workshops.
A made-to-measure garment usually takes 24 to 48 hours and needs at least two fittings. Allow two full days or more for anything complex, such as a suit, a structured dress, or a coat. Rough prices: a simple dress $30 to $60; a quality suit $120 to $220 depending on fabric; shirts and blouses $25 to $45.
How to choose a tailor: Avoid any shop that promises same-day delivery or skips a fitting. Ask to see finished garments before ordering, bring a photo of exactly what you want, and read reviews from travellers who had similar items made.
Reliable shops: Yaly Couture (several locations, including Nguyen Thai Hoc Street; handles complex orders well) and A Dong Silk (Le Loi Street, consistently praised for suits).
A cooking class here is one of Southeast Asia’s best half-day activities. Most include a guided market visit, sometimes a boat ride to an herb garden, and two to three hours cooking four or five dishes with a local chef. You eat everything you make.
Menus typically include white rose dumplings, fresh spring rolls, banh xeo, and a main course. Group classes cost about $25 to $35 per person.
Well-regarded options: Morning Glory Cooking School (run by Trinh Diem Vy, Hoi An’s best-known restaurateur) and Red Bridge Cooking School (riverside gardens outside town, reached by boat).
An Bang Beach is about 4 kilometres from the Ancient Town, an easy bicycle ride through rice-paddy lanes. It is wide, relaxed, and lined with good beach bars and seafood restaurants. The sea is calmest from about March to August.
Rent a bicycle from your hotel (often free or a couple of dollars a day), park at a beach bar, and stay until the afternoon heat eases. For more space, walk or cycle north to quieter Ha My Beach. Nearby Cua Dai Beach has suffered severe erosion and is no longer the better choice. From roughly October to February, strong waves and currents can make swimming dangerous.
My Son is a cluster of Cham Hindu temples in a jungle valley about 40 kilometres (roughly an hour’s drive) from Hoi An, built between the 4th and 13th centuries. It is one of Southeast Asia’s most significant ancient sites and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, yet many visitors never leave the Ancient Town to see it.
The drive through rice fields is beautiful, and the red-brick towers, in various stages of ruin and restoration, are genuinely impressive. US bombing in 1969 destroyed much of the site, and craters are still visible. Allow half a day. Entry is about 150,000 VND; hire a scooter or join a group tour from Hoi An.
Arrive at opening to beat the tour coaches and catch the best light on the brick towers.
On the 14th day of each lunar month, the evening before the full moon, the Ancient Town dims its electric lights and lets lanterns take over. Candles float on the river in paper lanterns, street vendors grill corn and rice paper snacks, and shops stay open late. Plan your trip around it if you can.
Cao lau: Hoi An’s signature dish. Thick, chewy noodles, traditionally made with water from the Ba Le well and lye from local wood ash, served with five-spice pork, herbs, bean sprouts, and crispy crackers. Try Thanh Cao Lau on Thai Phien Street, a no-frills local institution. About $2 to $3.
White rose dumplings (banh bao banh vac): Translucent dumplings shaped like flowers, filled with minced shrimp and topped with fried shallots. One family recipe supplies most of the town’s restaurants; eat them at the source, White Rose Restaurant on Hai Ba Trung Street. $3 to $5 a plate.
Banh mi: Banh Mi Phuong on Phan Chau Trinh Street, made famous by Anthony Bourdain, is still the town’s most famous sandwich. Expect a queue and to pay under $2.
The Cargo Club (Nguyen Thai Hoc Street): Trinh Diem Vy’s riverside restaurant and bakery with an upstairs terrace. Pricier than street food, but the dusk setting is exceptional.
Banh xeo: Crispy rice crepes stuffed with shrimp, pork, and bean sprouts, wrapped in rice paper with herbs. Bale Well, in a lane off Tran Hung Dao Street, serves them as part of a hands-on set meal.
Budget ($30 to $60/night): Hoi An Chic Hotel, in the rice paddies a couple of kilometres from the Ancient Town, has a pool, good breakfast, helpful staff, and a free shuttle into town.
Ha An Hotel, a garden boutique hotel on Phan Boi Chau Street, a short walk from the old streets, is a long-time favourite for its setting and personal service.
Mid-range to upscale: Anantara Hoi An Resort sits on the Thu Bon River within walking distance of the Ancient Town, with colonial-style architecture, gardens, and a riverside pool.
Victoria Hoi An Beach Resort, on Cua Dai Beach, suits travellers who want sea views and a regular shuttle to town.
Splurge: Four Seasons Resort The Nam Hai, on Ha My Beach about 20 minutes’ drive north of the Ancient Town. A destination in itself, with around 100 villas, a long private beach, and three pools.
February to April is the sweet spot: dry, warm, and good for both the Ancient Town and the beach.
May to August is hot and humid, with calm seas and busy domestic holiday crowds.
September to December is the rainy season, with typhoon risk. October and November are the wettest months, and floods can close Ancient Town streets for days. If you visit then, stay on an upper floor and watch forecasts.
January is cooler and drying out, with pleasant daytime temperatures in the low to mid 20s°C and fewer crowds.
Hoi An has no airport. The nearest is Da Nang International (DAD), about 30 kilometres north.
From Da Nang Airport: a Grab or taxi takes about 45 minutes and costs roughly 300,000 to 400,000 VND, or prebook a hotel transfer. Ignore unofficial drivers inside the terminal.
From Hanoi: fly to Da Nang (about 1 hour 20 minutes, typically $25 to $60 on Vietnam Airlines or Vietjet), or take the overnight train (15 to 16 hours, soft sleeper from about $40).
From Ho Chi Minh City: fly to Da Nang (about 1 hour 20 minutes, similar fares).
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🍜 Book Hoi An tours and experiences: Hoi An cooking class with market visit on GetYourGuide My Son Sanctuary half-day tour on GetYourGuide Hoi An lantern making class on Viator Hoi An experiences on Klook
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Hoi An will slow you down. That is not a warning; it is the point. You arrive with a list and leave with the memory of an evening beside a glowing river, a bowl of cao lau at a plastic table, and a dress that fits better than anything you own at home. Some places are beautiful. Hoi An is the kind of beautiful that stays with you.
