Hoi An is about 40 minutes south of Da Nang, and most travelers to the area visit both cities. While My Khe Beach is Da Nang’s biggest draw, the Ancient Town is Hoi An’s. There’s a lot more to Hoi An — like the rice fields and beaches, including An Bang Beach and Cua Dai — but the Ancient Town is the main attraction.
This guide is written from my years of experience living in Da Nang and dozens of visits to Hoi An. If you’re doing research for your Hoi An trip, you’ll see the Ancient Town referred to as Old Town — they’re the same. When I’m visiting Hoi An, I hear Old Town spoken far more often than Ancient Town.
Hoi An Ancient Town Map
Here’s a map of Hoi An Old Town and some attractions and hotels discussed below. You can view the full map here.
How to use this map: Ahoy! Click the arrow in the top left-hand corner to view the layers. I color-coded the map with an outline of Hoi An Old Town. The four hotels on the map are great locations for wandering Old Town.
Notes & Tips for Visiting Ancient Town
Hoi An Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and with that designation comes a high level of tourism. No matter when you visit Hoi An, expect the Old Town to be touristy. There are also a lot of locals selling items, tours, or other services on the streets. If you aren’t interested, prepare to wave off street sellers continuously.
The Old Town itself is free to visit. However, there is an entrance ticket that costs 120.000 VND (less than $5 USD), which gives you access to the heritage sites inside. The ticket also covers crossing the Japanese Covered Bridge. There are small booths around the Old Town and at the entrance to some of the streets where you can buy a ticket.
Note: The ticket is not required if you only want to walk around Old Town without going inside the sites or crossing the bridge. I’ve visited Hoi An to walk around Old Town and get coffee or lunch many times without needing a ticket. When I want to enter some of the sites or cross the bridge, I buy a ticket.
The Old Town area is very walkable (read about getting around Hoi An here). Before 3 PM, there will be some scooters zipping through the area. These are usually locals doing business/deliveries or the occasional tourist. But after 3 PM, the city closes Old Town to pedestrian-only traffic.
From about 2 PM onwards, the Old Town gets very busy with tourists and lasts until nighttime. If you prefer fewer crowds, visit earlier in the day. From 11 AM to 1 PM, it’s quieter, but this is because it’s usually pretty hot. If you don’t mind the heat, this is a better time to maneuver through Old Town.
Monthly event: The Hoi An Lantern Festival is a monthly event that happens on the 14th day of each lunar month (not calendar month). Restaurants and shops turn off their electric lights, and the lit lanterns light up the Old Town.
Other than this, it isn’t a typical “festival,” so don’t expect a ton of excitement. The event starts around 6 PM and lasts until around 10 PM. This is a popular lantern-making class in Hoi An.
Where to Stay in Ancient Town
There are only a few hotels directly inside the Old Town. But there are tons of choices all around it. The entire Old Town area and its surrounding streets are very walkable.
The Hoian Central Hotel (Agoda / Booking) is one of the few hotels directly inside Old Town. It’s not fancy, but the location is excellent. The Moire Hoi An (Agoda / Booking) is a 5-star hotel on Cam Nam Island across from Old Town. It’s in a great location on the Thu Bon River.
I would also look at the Allegro Hoi An (Agoda / Booking) and the Lion King (Agoda / Booking). All four of these hotels are in great locations for exploring Old Town on foot. I’ve added their locations to the map above.
Hoi An really has a lot of great boutique hotel options. These are just a few of my recommendations. You can see more in my guide to where to stay in Hoi An.
Visiting Hoi An Ancient Town
There are several heritage/cultural sites inside the Old Town which you can visit if you buy the 120.000 VND entrance ticket mentioned above.
The area is packed with a ton of eateries, cafes, souvenir shops, leather shops, and tailors. If you’re interested in getting tailored shirts, dresses, suits, or other clothes, this is the place to do it in Vietnam.
Here are some shots from my most recent trip to Old Town. I visited many of the cultural sites and the Japanese Covered Bridge (pictured above).
When I stumbled upon him, his shop was set up outside an unused tea shop on Nguyen Thai Hoc Street here.
If you’re in Vietnam, you should definitely try egg coffee. One of my favorite places is Little HaNoi Egg Coffee. They have locations in Ho Chi Minh City and Hoi An (here is their Hoi An location). I’ve visited all of them, and they’re all excellent. They serve food, too. Here’s my article on Little HaNoi Egg Coffee.
