Hoi An is a tourists dream, as it offers the picturesque Ancient City where every street is strung with colorful lanterns, as well as beautiful An Bang Beach only a 25 minute bike ride away. I really enjoyed my two days in Hoi An, but was a bit surprised to find it as touristy as it was. Either way, it really is beautiful, and is worth a visit. Just don’t expect too much of a cultural experience while you’re here!

Top 5 Things to Do in Hoi An

1. Wander the Streets of the Ancient City:

From souvenir and clothes shopping, to street food vendors, and fresh fruit markets it’s the perfect place to take a stroll and snap some beautiful photos. Along the Thu Bon River you’ll find more shopping, and more photo opportunities, with wooden boats bobbing about in the glistening water and lanterns hanging from the tree lined shore.

Cross the Cau An Hoi Bridge to get to the little island across the way where you will find loads of bars and restaurants. At night, the Ancient City comes alive with the night market, just another opportunity to shop and eat everything in sight, but the atmosphere is extremely romantic.

The glowing lanterns create the most beautiful ambiance among the winding streets of the Ancient City. One thing to note, is that in order to see some of the major sites in the Ancient City, you will need to buy a ticket near the Japanese Flower Bridge.

The ticket is $6 and allows you entrance into 5 of the cities sights. I viewed The Japanese Flower Bridge, the Phuoc Kien Assembly Hall, the Hainan Assembly Hall and a few other temples. They were all very nice, but truthfully it’s not imperative in order to get a feel for the city!

2. Spend an Afternoon on An Bang Beach:

An Bang Beach, like the Ancient City, is quite touristy, with cafes and bars lining the shore, but it still is a really nice place to spend an afternoon.

The water is super clear, the sand is soft, and the surrounding landscape is very beautiful. If you eat food at one of the many restaurants lining the beach, you can lay in their beach lounge chairs free of charge. I am too cheap for that, so I did the old fashioned lay on a towel in the sand route, and was quite content.

At around 6pm, all of the locals swarmed the beach for an evening swim as the sun went down. I highly recommend sticking around for this! It’s just about the only time you will see locals in this over-touristy town!

3. Walk or Bike Through the Rice Fields:

On the way to the beach, there are some beautiful rice fields that are worth checking out. I decided to get some exercise, so I opted for an hour walk from the Ancient City to the beach, and was wowed by the beautiful scenery along the way.

Next time, I would probably rent a bike for better mobility amongst the rice fields!

4. Treat Yourself to Custom Tailored Clothes:

Hoi An is known for their custom made clothing at a really affordable price, so why not feel like a celebrity for a day and get some custom clothing for yourself? It was quite a fun experience sitting down with the tailors and picking out some designs and fabrics for my custom made dresses. In the end, they made me a romper made from a beautiful red and purple floral print and a flowy boho-style dress made from a tie-dye pattern that I really liked. I paid $38 for both dresses, and it only took 6 hours to make both! I bargained this down from $70, but I’m sure there was room to bargain down more.

Either way, it was a really fun experience, and I will always smile wearing my custom made dresses from Vietnam! I recommend going to the Cloth Market and shopping around at different stalls. Just be warned, the women here are VERY aggressive! They will physically pull you into their stall to talk about patterns and design, so mentally prepare! There is so much competition, that they are willing to do just about anything to get your business.

5. Try Cao Lau at a Local Restaurant:

Cao Lau is a Hoi An specialty and MUST be sampled when visiting this city! It is a dish made with fat rice noodles, slices of pork, pork crackling, bean sprouts, lettuce and herbs, finished with the tiniest bit of stock. Add a little chili and you are on your way to a magnificent culinary experience! Since Hoi An is quite touristy, I really wanted to get off of the beaten track to try this local specialty. I crossed the Cau An Hoi Bridge and took a side street off of the main strip to get away from all of the touristy restaurants. I ended up at a little family owned place, with a food cart parked on their front porch. I was basically in their home when I ordered my Cao Lau! Basic rule of thumb, you know you’ve found an authentic spot when you are sitting on children sized plastic picnic furniture.

How to Get There

The overnight bus from Da Lat to Da Nang is approximately 14 hours and costs $12. I booked my ticket here and called to confirm my pickup location. The great thing about overnight buses in Vietnam is that they often pick you up from your hotel! This of course reduces the stress of making it to the bus station by a certain time. The bus picked me up from my hotel in Da Lat at 4pm and I arrived in Da Nang at 6am. Hoi An is only a 40 min bus ride from the Da Nang bus station, and is easily accessible by the local bus. Taxis and motorcycle drivers will try to get you to ride with them, but the local bus only costs 30,000vdn ($1.50) and drops you off only about a fifteen minute walk to the Ancient City, which is where you will most likely be staying. When you get off the sleeper bus at the Da Nang bus station, just ask a bus operator for the local bus to Hoi An. It will be a yellow bus with the writing “Hoi An-Da Nang” on the front of it. You can pay for the bus on board; just make sure to have small bills on you. If everyone on the bus is Vietnamese, you have found the correct bus!