Despite the abundance of activities in the area and the lantern festival, the historic centre of Hoi An is often forgotten, but should definitely not escape your attention.

There are a number of temples and historic buildings to visit in the city.

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Set aside at least a day to explore the city centre. In case you are not interested in sightseeing, you can only see Hoi An during an evening trip to the promenade, but you will miss out on a lot of attractions.

The spirit of old Vietnam

If you are looking in vain for the spirit of old Vietnam, you will fall in love with Hoi An. The city was at its most glorious in the 16th and 17th centuries, when traders from all over the world flocked here, but especially from China, Japan and Portugal.

A thriving port town with traditional merchant houses and plenty of monuments, it fell into oblivion after the local harbour stopped being so used due to the silt. However, the spirit of the place has been preserved to this day and Hoi An was one of the few Vietnamese cities not to be damaged during the Vietnam War.

Admission to the historic centre of Hoi An

Nowadays, there is a fee to enter the Hoi An historical centre. However, in practice, no one checks the ticket, so you can get into the center freely.

The ticket costs 120 000 vnd and in addition to entering the city, it also includes a visit to 5 of the 21 historical sites on offer.

These sights include the Japanese Covered Bridge, the Quan Cong Temple and the Hoi An Museum. Once you pay for your ticket, it is only valid on that day.

What to see in Hoi An?

In the centre of Hoi An, we can find over a thousand protected monuments. You can visit many of them, most of which you can see on a shared ticket (see above). Some of the main sights include:

Japanese Covered Bridge - Hoi An's most famous monument, also one of the oldest. It was built to allow passage between the Japanese and Chinese parts of the city.
The Old House of Tan Ky - A wooden merchant's house with stone floors on the riverfront.
Quan Cong Temple - A historic Chinese temple with an adjacent pagoda and a beautiful carved roof.
Minh Huong Communal House - A historic house that was used as a meeting place and venue for important events by local Vietnamese.
Fujian Assembly Hall - A beautiful 17th-century building that was built to allow Chinese merchants to worship their goddess of the seas.
The Old House of Phung Hung - A local merchant's house that has been held for 8 generations by the same local family.
Hoi An Museum - Hoi An's largest and most important museum, showcasing local culture and history.

But there are many more interesting places to visit in the centre, with as many as 21 buildings accessible in total.

Transport in the historic centre of Hoi An

It is best to get around the historic centre on foot. For part of the day, local roads are even closed to motor vehicles (from 11:00 to 13:30 and from 16:00 to 21:00).

To get around the city, you can use the very cheap taxi service of the Grab app. There is no public transport in the centre. Renting your own scooter or bike is also a very popular option.

Accommodation in the historic centre of Hoi An

You may be surprised, but there are basically no hotels or other accommodation in the historic centre of Hoi An (except for one homestay). Fortunately, the centre is not large and it is not a problem to walk here from other parts of Hoi An.

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