Hoi An Travel Guide: Old Town, Day Trips and How to Plan 3 Days

This Hoi An travel guide fits the town into two or three days: the Old Town early and late, the beach or a village in the heat of the day, and one trip out to My Son or the Cham Islands. From our Vietnam travel blog, it covers the ticket, things to do, the best months, getting there from Da Nang and a three-day plan.

Hoi An has no airport of its own; international visitors land in Da Nang, about 45 minutes away by car. If you need a visa for that flight, apply for a Vietnam e-visa online and choose Da Nang airport as your entry point.

Hoi An at a glance:

Topic	What to know
Old Town ticket	120,000 VND for international visitors, as of January 2026
Best months	February to April, before the summer heat
Months to watch	October to December, when the river can flood
Nearest airport	Da Nang International Airport (DAD)
Time needed	2 to 3 days, plus a day trip

Hoi An Ancient Town ticket and what it covers

The Hoi An Ancient Town ticket costs 120,000 VND for international visitors, according to Da Nang's tourism department in January 2026. It gives entry to a set number of heritage sites, such as old houses and assembly halls.

Ticket booths stand at the main entrances to the Old Town. Keep the ticket with you: staff at the sites tear off a coupon at each visit, and checkpoints sometimes ask to see it. Choose the Japanese Covered Bridge area plus two or three buildings you find interesting rather than rushing all of them.

Things to do in Hoi An Old Town

The Old Town is a UNESCO-listed trading port of the 15th to 19th centuries, with Chinese assembly halls, Japanese and Vietnamese merchant houses and the Japanese Covered Bridge. UNESCO describes it as an exceptionally well-preserved Southeast Asian trading port.

The best things to do in Hoi An depend on the time of day: walk and visit buildings in the cool morning, rest at midday, and return for the lanterns after dark.

Mornings in the Old Town

Arrive before 8:00, when the lanes are empty and the light on the yellow walls is soft. Visit an assembly hall such as Phuc Kien, one old merchant house and the Covered Bridge, then have coffee by the river before the tour buses arrive.

Lantern evenings on the Thu Bon

After sunset the Old Town glows with silk lanterns, and small boats on the Thu Bon River sell paper lanterns to float. The night market across the An Hoi bridge runs every evening. The busiest nights fall around the full moon each lunar month, when many shops dim their electric lights.

Beyond the Old Town

Hoi An's countryside and coast fill the hot middle of the day, and two UNESCO sites lie within a day trip. Choose one beach afternoon and one longer trip.

An Bang and Tra Que

An Bang beach is about 15 minutes north of the Old Town by bicycle or taxi, with beach bars and loungers. On the way, Tra Que vegetable village offers cooking classes that start with picking herbs in the gardens. Cam Thanh's coconut forest, with its round basket boats, is a short ride east.

My Son Sanctuary

My Son Sanctuary is a valley of Hindu temple towers built by the Champa kingdom between the 4th and 13th centuries, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is about an hour inland from Hoi An.

Go at opening time to avoid heat and groups. Entry costs 150,000 VND for international visitors, per the same 2026 price list. Several towers were damaged during the war, so the site is part ruin; the small museum at the entrance explains what you see.

Cham Islands

The Cham Islands, Cu Lao Cham in Vietnamese, are a protected marine area about 30 minutes off the coast by speedboat. Day trips include snorkeling and a fishing village visit. Boats only run when the sea is calm, mostly from spring to late summer.

Best time to visit Hoi An

February to April is the best time to visit Hoi An, with dry, warm days that are not yet too hot. May to August is hotter but good for the beach.

From October to December, heavy rain on the central coast can flood the Old Town riverside, sometimes for days. If you travel then, book a hotel away from the river and keep a free day in your plan.

Getting from Da Nang to Hoi An

The trip from Da Nang to Hoi An takes about 45 minutes by car from the airport or city center. Grab, taxis and pre-booked cars all make the trip; there is no train to Hoi An.

Most visitors take a car straight from Da Nang airport. A pre-booked airport transfer waits at arrivals at a fixed price per car, which helps on late flights. Buses and shuttle vans also link Hoi An with Da Nang and Hue.

How many days in Hoi An

Three days is a comfortable stay: two for the Old Town and nearby countryside, one for My Son or the Cham Islands. Two days works if you skip the day trip.

Day	Morning	Afternoon	Evening
1	Old Town sites with your ticket	Rest, then Tra Que cooking class	Lanterns and night market
2	My Son at opening time	An Bang beach	Riverside dinner
3	Cam Thanh basket boats or Cham Islands	Tailor fitting, cafes	Old Town walk

Two parts of a Hoi An trip need their own planning: what to eat and whether to have clothes made, and how to get through Da Nang airport smoothly.

Hoi An travel guide extras: food, tailors and arrival

The details below cover food, tailors and arrival. Each links to a fuller guide.

Food and tailors

Hoi An has its own dishes, such as cao lau noodles and its famous banh mi; our guide to Hoi An street food lists where to try them. If you want a suit or dress made, order on day one so there is time for fittings; see our guide to Hoi An tailors.

Arriving at Da Nang airport

Da Nang International Airport accepts both the Vietnam e-visa and a visa on arrival with a pre-approved letter. Evening queues can be long when several flights land together, and airport fast track takes you through a priority lane.

VietnamVisa-Easy.com is a private visa service operated by H2 Global Travel JSC since 2012, not a government website, and you can apply directly at evisa.gov.vn for US$25. If you would like your details checked before submission, start your application with us.