There's always something to do in Hoi An and if you run out of ideas, you can always venture outside the city limits and enjoy the many interesting places in the area.
Lantern Festival
Hoi An is the city of lanterns, and you definitely shouldn't miss the one day a month when the lantern festival runs. The whole town will turn off the electrified lights and only lanterns, lanterns and the moon overhead will light your way.
The festival also includes various night markets, with lots of stalls selling delicious food and souvenirs popping up all over the city. The centrepiece of the whole event is the promenade around the river, where you can take one of the traditional boats to see the illuminated Hoi An from the water.
The Lantern Festival is held in the city every month during the full moon, and you can read more about it in this article.
Walking through the historic city centre
The historic centre is the heart of the city and the entire city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It mixes old Vietnamese style with the influence of foreign traders who headed to the city in the 16th century. Many of the unique colonial buildings have been held by the same families for hundreds of years.
There are a total of 21 sites to visit in the historic city centre, read more about them in this guide.
Traditional markets and souvenir shopping
If you're looking to shop in Vietnam, you'll be hard pressed to find a city with more souvenir offerings than Hoi An. The streets are filled with stalls selling traditional and less traditional clothing and other souvenirs at extremely low prices.
The most common souvenirs people bring back from Hoi An are:
- Hand-painted lanterns - Silk lanterns are the symbol of the town, and locals make them in countless designs, colours and sizes.
- Local silk - Silk is used not only to make lanterns, but also beautiful and decorated fabrics that you can have made into something.
- Decorative wood carvings - Beautiful wood carvings are most often decorated with Japanese and Chinese motifs brought with them by immigrants.
- Ceramics - Ceramics is one of the other industries that Hoi An is famous for. It's no wonder, then, that you can buy a lot of different vases and bowls here.
Various markets are also very popular in Hoi An, where you can try local food or choose from a variety of interesting products. Some of the most popular include:
- Night Market - You can find the night market on the island in Nguyen Hoang Street, it is held every day from 17:00 to 23:00, the night markets are the biggest especially during the Lantern Festival. It is an ideal place to buy souvenirs, but also to sample the unique street food.
- Morning Food Market - The morning market with fresh herbs, fruits, vegetables, meat and fish can be found at the intersection of Bach Dang and Tieu La streets. It opens every morning at 6:00am.
- Local street food market - Craving a taste of truly authentic local food? Head to the small food and juice market in the center of town. Stalls have varying hours, but some are always open.
- Textile market - A large covered market selling textiles, clothing and other souvenirs can be a great place in Hoi An to go shopping. The market is open all day.
- Thanh Ha Fish Market - A very early morning market with fresh fish and seafood that is very authentic. The market opens as early as 3:00am and is open until approximately 8:00am.
Beaches and swimming
Although Hoi An is not directly on the sea, the nearest beaches are only about three kilometres away. What's more, Hoi An's beaches are said to be among the most beautiful to be found in mainland Vietnam.
The beaches are typically wide with fine white sand, but swimming can be dangerous, especially for small children, due to the occasional large waves. The beaches are lined with a strip of bars and restaurants where you can sit down with a local beer and enjoy the great atmosphere.
The most famous beaches, which are not too far from Hoi An town, are Cua Dai and An Bang beaches.
The Cham Archipelago also offers beautiful swimming and especially nice underwater life, where you can go from Hoi An for a day trip or stay for a few days.
Cooking courses
Vietnamese cuisine is delicious and famous all over the world. If you want to bring home from Vietnam the knowledge of how to prepare delicious dishes, be sure to take a cooking course. And there is no place in all of Vietnam that offers a wider range of cooking courses than Hoi An, the city of fine dining.
Cooking courses are usually accompanied by a morning visit to the local market, during which Vietnamese chefs will introduce you to the ingredients. This is particularly useful for the hundreds of varieties of herbs, exotic fruits and unfamiliar vegetables.
Some courses also include a ride on a traditional bamboo boat and crabbing in the river delta in Hoi An. You can look for a course without this activity, it's not such a unique experience.
You can buy cooking courses in advance on the internet, or at any of the travel agencies in Hoi An. The cheapest we could find was a good half-day cooking course for 350 000 vnd at a tourist agency on Cua Dai Street next to Bom Restaurant.
Various workshops
Hoi An is a city of traditional handicrafts and even on the streets here you can find a large number of artisans demonstrating their skills. You can buy some of their products as souvenirs, but a more interesting option is to attend a workshop where you can even make a traditional Vietnamese souvenir yourself.
One of the most popular activities is making and painting hoian lanterns. You can get a workshop of several hours starting from 200 000 vnd. From our own experience, we recommend the Lantern Making Class Hoi An in Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai Street, make a reservation via Whatsapp.
Aside from lanterns, you can also go to a workshop with traditional pottery making, wood carving or Vietnamese coffee making.
Have your suit made
One of the many best things about Hoi An is that it's full of good quality and very cheap tailoring shops that can make you almost anything on the spot. So if you need a good quality suit, suit or even new leather shoes, you definitely won't be disappointed.
Many local tailors can make you a whole set of clothes within 24 hours and, if you want, they will send them to Europe straight away so you don't have to take them everywhere with you when you travel. For a three-piece tailored men's suit you will pay approximately 2 500 000 vnd.
Streetfood and delicious cuisine
If you're spending a few days in Hoi An, you can't avoid sampling the delicious local cuisine. Central Vietnam's gastronomy is very popular and Hoi An is literally packed with street food stalls.
When in Hoi An, you should definitely try the following dishes:
- Mi quang - A traditional dish straight out of Hoi An consisting of flat rice noodles, mild broth, sliced meat and quail egg.
- Cao Lau - Probably the most famous noodle dish of the area with slices of roasted pork, fresh vegetables, herbs and a special local sauce.
- Banh Bao Banh Vac - Translated as white rose dumplings, this dish is small rice dough dumplings filled with shrimp, minced pork and mushrooms.
- Com Ga Hoi An - A simple dish consisting of rice that is cooked in chicken broth and accompanied by jerked chicken, sprouts and fresh herbs.
You'll come across street food anywhere in Hoi An, with a large variety especially at the evening market or local food market.
Go on a day trip
As Hoi An has an excellent tourist infrastructure, it is a great base for many day trips to the surrounding area. You can head to the many beaches for swimming, or to the following places:
- My Son Archaeological Site - Remains of temple towers from the Hindu Cham Kingdom amidst the dense Vietnamese jungle.
- Cham Islands - For a pleasant sailing, snorkeling and swimming experience, take a day trip to this pristine archipelago.
- Da Nang - For a day trip you can head to the neighbouring big city of Da Nang, although we'd rather recommend spending more days in Da Nang itself. In Da Nang you'll find beautiful beaches, rock temples, modern architecture and interesting museums.
