Start with the old town at dusk
The Hoi An old town is the reason most people come, and it is at its best in the last hour of daylight when the silk lanterns switch on and the heat drops. Walk the Japanese Covered Bridge, the assembly halls and the riverfront, then cross to the night market. A guided food and culture walking tour from $45 is the easiest way to understand what you are looking at, but the old town is also free to wander on your own.
Take a cooking class
Cooking classes are the standout activity in Hoi An, and the top-rated class from $27 has thousands of perfect reviews. Most start with a morning market tour, add a short basket boat ride through the palms, then a hands-on kitchen session. See our full cooking class guide to pick between market, farm and riverside versions.
Spin a basket boat
In the water coconut forest of Cam Thanh, round bamboo basket boats twirl through the palms. It is touristy and brief but genuinely fun, and at $5 to $12 a ride it is the cheapest memorable thing you can do here. Many cooking classes include it.
Do one big day trip
Two day trips dominate. The Golden Bridge at Ba Na Hills is the photogenic one, reached by a long cable car about 90 minutes away, from $21 on a small-group deluxe tour. The My Son Sanctuary is the quiet one, a set of Cham temple ruins best visited early in the morning from $19. The Marble Mountains sit between Hoi An and Da Nang and pair well with Lady Buddha.
Get out into the countryside
Rice paddies start a few minutes from the old town. A Vespa countryside tour from $68 or a morning bike tour from $30 gets you into the villages, and the An Bang beach is a short ride away for an afternoon swim.
Plan your days
Compare every Hoi An experience we track, with live prices and free cancellation.
Questions fréquentes
Two to three days is the sweet spot. One day for the old town and a cooking class, a second for a day trip to Ba Na Hills or My Son, and an optional third for the beach, basket boats or a countryside bike ride.
Hoi An is famous for its lantern-lit UNESCO old town, tailor shops, Vietnamese food and cooking classes, and the round basket boats in the nearby coconut forest. It is also the base for the Golden Bridge at Ba Na Hills and the My Son Cham ruins.
Yes. The compact old town, the food, the river and the cluster of easy day trips make Hoi An one of the most rewarding stops in central Vietnam, especially for a slower two or three day visit.
