Where to go in Hoi An

Hoi An is a beautiful ancient town located in central Vietnam. It has a rich cultural heritage and is known for its beautiful architecture, historic landmarks, and culinary scene. Here are some suggestions on where to go in Hoi An:

USEFUL INFORMATION

HOW MANY DAYS TO STAY

Hoi An is no doubt a well-known tourist destination for both domestic and international visitors who are traveling around Vietnam. If you plan to travel to Hoi An but are unsure of how many days you should stay there. So, the best course of your stay is to depend on how long is your trip. While some tourists prefer to stay 3 days 2 nights in Hoi An, others are more free to take their time more.

Therefore, you must spend 4 days 3 nights in Hoi An to explore Hoi An and its surrouding areas. It will enable you to see Hoi An without having to spend a lot of time in the country’s central region. For other tourists, staying in Hoi An for a few days is a great chance to take in the distinctive architecture, fascinating history, and local culture of this tranquil beach town.

FESTIVALS IN HOI AN

• Mid-Autumn Festival: Hoi An holds traditional cultural events such a Mid-Autumn Party, a parade of lanterns, and music and singing competitions on the 14th and 15th days of the eight lunar months.

• Full Moon Festival: Held on the first of every month. The old town forbids the use of cars and motorcycles, and street shops selling food, souvenirs, and handicrafts all open up. There are also traditional plays and musical performances.

BEST TIME TO COME TO HOI AN?

The best time to travel to Hoi An is from February to April because of the beautiful weather and minimal humidity. However, your travel advice is taken if you come here between April through end of July as the temperature can reach up high to 38 ° C. In addition, Hoi An has its rainy season from September to January and the monsoon rain is from mid October till February. Hoi An has no really cold weather with the lowest highs between 18 and 20 °C.

10 BEST THINGS TO DO IN HOI AN

As you wonder where to go in Hoi An, hereinafter are the nicest things to do that you can consider for your reference.

Visit Hoi An Ancient Town

This is the main attraction in Hoi An, a UNESCO World Heritage Site filled with historic architecture and beautiful temples. Take a walk along the narrow streets, and soak up the atmosphere of the town. You can purchase an entrance ticket and select five different tourist atrractions from a free brochure. Our suggest will be a Museum, a Chinese Assembly Hall, an Old Merchant house, Japanese Bridge and traditional performance in the theater.

See lanterns at night

This is a must do thing or activity in Hoi An that you should not forget. As the sun goes down, Hoi An looks like a pretty girl wearing a pretty costume in the night time. All the lights and lanterns that are lit up bringing about an exciting atmosphere to be around the old town. Thus, you can grab some of the best pictures of Hoi An in the dark or can hire a wooden sampan cruising along the Hoi An river in about 20 minutes and glance at some of the best pictures of the town on both sides of the river.

Upon your wish, you can buy a small lantern with only 10.000 VND (50 U.S cents) and drop it down on the water to make your blessings.

Cycling through Hoi An’s countryside

Getting bore with the walking through the old town of Hoi An everyday and you are trying to find where to go in Hoi An for a change. Let’s hop on the bicycle to ride around the countryside of Hoi An. Because Hoi An is not only charming in the night with all lights and lanterns but Hoi An also attracts many visitors because of its hidden gems for some parts in the countryside. Thus, you can visit rice paddy fields or explore some of Japanese tombs or Buddist temples with your bicycles that you can borrow from the hotel or rent it in a shop with just 50.000 VND (25 U.S cents).

The benefit of taking bicycle is you can have more time to relax and stop where you want it and be confident in anytime of your visit. Besides, riding a bike in Hoi An enables you to have a healthy life and good fit for your body and lose some weight.

Take a boat cruise on the Thu Bon river

Probably, taking a boat trip on the river in Hoi An is the most relaxing way to release your stress after many hard working days and worth it what to do in Hoi An. As you sit on the boat leisurely cruising along the peaceful river and watch the scenery of the both sides of the Thu Bon river. Thus, there are some boat options for you to choose:

Take early boat to see sunrise in Hoi An

You can wake up early and watch the tranquil scenery of Hoi An in the morning. Hence, you can go to Duy Hai Fish Market or Thanh Ha Fish Market to see the fresh fishes caught from the sea and enjoy the bustling atmosphere of Vietnamese market in the morning.

Enjoy sunset boat trip

When the sun is going down in Hoi An. You can rent a boat, go paddling, or take a tour to observe life of the local fishermen on sunset. At this time, you can catch some of the best moments of Hoi An. Besides, you can take boat around the water to enjoy some of the city’s many river roadways.

Basket boat tour

If you think of a fun way by boat, taking basket boat tour is perhaps the funniest thing you can have in Hoi An. Book a basket boat tour Hoi An, you can go to Cam Thanh village and enjoy basket boat activity with crab fishing, paddling the boat, spinning the basket or simply watching fishermen casting the fishing net on the river.

Boat trip after My Son Sanctuary Tour

Another option with boat tour is to take the boat ride from Cau Lau Bridge upon finishing My Son Sanctuary Tour. Therefore, you will get on the boat at the Cau Lau Bridge and sail along the Thu Bon river back to Hoi An. On the way, you can visit Thanh Ha Pottery Village to witness the skillful hands of the local artisans.

Visit My Son Sanctuary

One of another best things to do in Hoi An is to drive out of the Hoi An old town and pay a visit to the former holy land of the Cham people – My Son Sanctuary. Located a short distance from Hoi An, My Son Sanctuary is a collection of ancient Hindu temples dating back to the 4th century. It’s a great place to learn about Vietnam’s rich cultural history. By the way, you can admire the talent of Cham’s skillful hands in building such a massive Hindu complex inside the dense jungle forest.

Do Hoi An to Hue Day Trip

As you stay in Hoi An long enough and want to find more history of central Vietnam in general and Hue in particular, Hue Day Trip from Hoi An is definitely worth a go.

So, the Hai Van Pass is the highlight of the journey from Hoi An to Hue, which is incredibly beautiful and is already an adventure for you to explore one of the best coastal roads in the world. This mountain pass has spectacular views of the ocean, mountains, and beaches and is famous for the TopG ear TV program. When reaching Hue city, you will visit Hue Ciatdel, Thien Mu Pagoda and the Emperors’ Royal Tomb. In addition, you can try some of Hue’s finest local foods.

Go to Cham Island

One of the least developed islands in Vietnam, this island is generally untouched and marine protected if you’re the kind of person who hates sharing your tropical paradise with others.

On weekends and holidays, day visitors throng there in droves, but if you go on a weekday, especially when it’s not busy, you can be all by yourself. The coral reefs off Cham Island draw both divers and snorkelers, and some businesses offer scuba diving, snorkeling, and trekking packages at fairly affordable rates.

Take a cooking class in Hoi An

As you prefer to know more about Vietnam Culinary culture, let’s think about joining a small cooking class in Hoi An. This is a wonderful opportunity to unwind while learning about and experiencing rural life in the Vietnamese countryside. The special thing about it is you will have cooking class right inside the water coconut jungle or have it inside the Tra Que vegetables village. Doing this course, you will learn how to make Spring rolls, Pancake, Beef or Chicken PHO Noodles and so on.

Jeep Tour to Marble Mountains and Monkey Mountain

Locals have long considered Da Nang city to be the best spot in Vietnam to call home. Therefore, an adventurous Jeep Tour to Marble Mountains and Monkey Mountain help you out explore some of the nicest caves in the region at Marble Mountains. While you can conquer the Monkey Mountain once served as the main base for the American. With well maintained Jeep Car by Premium Travel Vietnam, you are allowed to visit the former U.S helicopter base, Ban Co Peak, the old trail and pay a visit to the highest Lady Buddha statue in Vietnam. Moreover, it is a chance for you to sightseeing some of Vietnam’s most beautiful beaches including Non Nuoc Beach, My Khe Beach.

Hoi An Street food tour by bicycle

Hoi An used to be the primary trading port for Vietnam and a hub for international business. Hoi An is now a true paradise for those who love street food because to the adaptation of a diversified cuisine with French, Japanese, and Chinese influences.

Hoi An Food Tour by Bicycle is to assist you in discovering Hoi An’s food by bicycle. In order to give you the chance to enjoy some of Hoi An’s best delectable street foods such as Banh My, Cao Lau, Pancake, Grilled pork, Wonton…Thus, you will have fun going around the city’s back streets by bikes.

WHERE TO GO IN HOI AN BESIDE THE TOWN?

Da Nang

Da Nang is the 3rd largest city in Vietnam and it owns beautiful beaches and awesome landscapes. So, you can travel here and pay a visit to Marble Mountains, Linh Ung Pagoda, Cham Museum, Ba Na Hills Golden Bridge, Hai Van Pass…

Hue

Roughly 3.5 hours by car north of Hoi An, tourists can reach Hue Ancient capital to visit some of the Hue’s main tourist attractions such as Hue Citadel, Thien Mu Pagoda, Royal Tombs and some of traditonal villages and some royal garden houses…

Phong Nha National Park

As you want to be more adventurous then Phong Nha National Park is for you. Upon coming here, you can visit three caves: Phong Nha cave tour, Dark cave and Paradise cave tour. They are all beautiful and worth visiting from either Hue, Dong Hoi or even Hoi An city.

WHERE TO STAY IN HOI AN

Train to Hoi An

Buses to Hoi An

WHERE TO GO IN HOI AN: AVOID SCAMS

Be careful with the local currency

Try not to interact with local strangers

Consider street vendors

WHAT TO DO IN HOI AN: FIND PREMIUM TRAVEL VIETNAM?

These are just a few suggestions of where to go in Hoi An. There are many other sights and activities to explore in and around this beautiful town.