Vietnam - Hội An
Taking some time to relax and take in the beautiful town of Hội An for 7 days as we hit the half way point through our Vietnam adventure.
Hội An
Andrew: 4.5/5 Beth: 4.5/5
Our travels down North Vietnam had been incredible, but we were starting to get that itch to unwind, decompress and have a little TLC in our lives. So, we decided to carve out a week in our plans to stay in Hội An. I (Beth) visited six years ago, but only briefly, and everybody on our travels mentioned how much they loved the ancient town. Hội An is renowned for its beautiful mix of French, Chinese & Japanese architecture, where there are more tailoring shops than people. The town comes alive at night with its bustling night market and beautifully lit lanterns that adorn the houses and float down the Thu Bon River, a unique tradition in Vietnam that originated from Chinese merchants in the 14th century. It is easy to see why it is considered the most beautiful place in the country.
Through a fantastic deal on ‘Agoda’, we booked in at the Little Oasis Hotel, a ‘boutique hotel’ between the old town and the beach, surrounded by rice paddy fields and boasting two swimming pools. More importantly to Andy, it had a fantastic breakfast buffet so he could enjoy himself like a six-year-old at Disney Land, and by that, I mean bacon and maple syrup waffles, chocolate croissants and endless Vietnamese coffees every morning. We would 100% recommend this hotel to anybody visiting Hội An. The staff were a pleasure to talk to and helped with anything you needed during your stay, and of course, the rooms were beautiful. There was also a gym with benches, machines, and free-weights (I (Andy) used this to justify going HAM at the buffet), great food and drink options with bars by the swimming pool and an hourly shuttle bus that takes you into the old town or the beach daily so you’re never feeling disconnected from where its all ‘happening’. There is not a single thing we can complain about; it was a true 5-star experience. Of course, mentioning that it was our honeymoon did get us a room upgrade and another cake!
You might expect that with seven days, we would have a bursting itinerary with everything to see and do in the town, but that was not the case; we stayed true to what our bodies were craving and used the week to recharge with a sprinkle of energic activity throughout our week. We had a lazy time roaming around the countless shops and stopping to have the ol’ favourite coconut coffee, try our first salt coffee (sounds awful, but it's quite delicious and tasted like salted caramel), and, of course, try to find the best western-style cappuccino in town.
The weather was HOT. It has been hot everywhere in Vietnam the entire trip, so that’s nothing new, but this is all-caps hot, bring-a-sweat-towel-out-with-you style hot. So, our day was often broken up by coming back to the hotel to cool off in the pool or to catch a breeze by cycling around to an air-conditioned lunch spot. No air-con, no deal. We had some great Vietnamese food, bakery bites, and comfort eats, both unhealthy and healthy, around the old town and beach; we’ve listed the ones that were memorable in our recommendations at the end. In the drinks department, unsurprisingly, good beers were easy to come by, with Huda & Saigon being our personal go-to’s, but more notably, we found a hidden gem of a wine bar that has a happy hour and does very nice, international wine called The Hill Station (personally would not recommend Vietnamese wine, sorry Vietnam). A trip to Hội An wouldn’t be complete without embracing the night market scene either, so outside of the restaurant and cafe experience, we did spend one night trying out all of the local food, indulging in chocolate banana pancakes, Banh mis, ice cream rolls, sugar cake, bean cake (disgusting) and copious amounts of beer and wine whilst watching the lantern-lit boats float down the river. Beautiful scenes.
The question everyone asks when you say that you have been to Hội An is if you got any clothes made during your stay. The town is famous for it, so naturally, we had a little FOMO to follow suit. We both decided to have a piece of clothing made for ourselves at local tailors, Andy opting for some linen trousers and myself going for a linen dress. This was a fantastic experience. We ended up going to separate places as the dress was quoted a much higher price in Andy’s tailors, but for half the price, the dress came out just as good. In total, it took around three days to make our items, and we stopped a few times to check on the progress and make the adjustments we wanted. Overall, we were both happy customers and enjoyed our new looks! I recommend going with pictures and a strong idea of what style you want; copying from a designer/ website is even easier! I think this made my dress-making process a little easier than that of Andy. If you have more items made, then definitely shop around for the best price, but consider the quality of the material they will be using. In every shop we went into, the women working there were very polite, and we never felt pressured to make a quick decision with them. Finally, if you get clothes made, do so at the start of your stay so you give yourself enough time for the alterations; you don’t want to rush what they are creating for you.
A MUST when you are in Hội An is the Secret Cocktail Experience. We booked this as a little treat for our one-month wedding anniversary on our last night through Airbnb, where we were taken to four secret cocktail bars with a small group of around ten other tourists. We had not been to most of these bars, and you would struggle to stumble across them alone. The cocktails were very unique and delicious; they were not just whipping up a martini and calling it a day, but the highlight of the tour was undoubtedly the host. Tinh, a local Vietnamese man, spent the evening diving into the history of Vietnam during our different stops and shared some delicate, heartfelt stories about his family history, which we won’t spoil here, but it was very moving. We also won’t reveal the secret locations of the bars, so go, and you won’t regret it!
With special thanks to our friend as another wedding gift, we had a great experience at the eco-cooking class. We were picked up from our hotel and began the tour by meeting our guide and group and stopping off at some local stalls around the market to pick up some items and gain some insight into key Vietnamese cooking ingredients. We then spent the next few hours cooking and tasting some of Vietnam’s most popular dishes. Fresh spring rolls, fried spring rolls, fried pancakes and pho. The cooking class was easy to follow and lots of fun and we enjoyed that you got to sit down and eat throughout instead of waiting until the end. To round it off, you have the option of going on a coconut boat at a more secluded location than other tour groups. Despite being short, it was lots of fun, and Andy even got a chance at trying to catch a crab … not too successfully. We would definitely recommend booking this class or something similar when in Hội An if you have the time (link at the end).
Side Quest: Bà Nà Hills - Da Nang
Looking for a one-day excursion during our stay, we decided to do a day tour of Bà Nà Hills in Da Nang. This former historic French vacation spot high up in the hills is today connected via long cable cars that take you around this unique, medieval-looking town, now more of an amusement park, above the jungle canopy. This was all organised through the hotel, including transport, lunch, water, a tour guide, the lot, and a nice rest from the DIY approach we are used to. Instead, we just got ferried around the location to see the sights and soak it in, which we were more than happy with.
To get straight to it, it’s touristy AF. There’s no beating around the bush here. It’s packed full of people, so this is no spot off the beaten path. That said, despite us often avoiding this sort of experience, it is a very unique place in Vietnam. There’s nothing quite like it elsewhere. And whilst it’s not our favourite place by a long shot, it was worth seeing as we had the luxury of time during our stay. There are some great views to see whilst walking around and on the cable cars, but the town itself is more of a theme park, quite average and not really why you are in Vietnam; you can also see they are building much more to turn it their own Disneyland in the coming years.
The highlight of the trip? This may come as a surprise as these places usually have the worst tourist-trap food in existence, but no joke, the lunch buffet at this place we went to, I can’t remember the name, but it was gigantic and genuinely high quality. Kinda laughable that this was the best bit of Bà Nà Hills, but it is what it is; go if you have an abundance of time in Hội And as we did. Otherwise, you’re probably safe to skip.
Points of Interest
Secret Cocktail Experience in Hoi An - Airbnb
Hoi An Eco Cooking Tour - Website
Kimmy Tailor - Map
Milan Linen - Map
Dong Tay Barber Shop - Map
Bà Nà Hills (Nha Trang) - Map
Hội An Night Market - Map
Accommodation
Little Oasis | An Eco-Friendly Hotel & Spa - Map (£48 per room per night)
Food & Drink
The Deck House - Map
The Hill Station Deli & Boutique - Map
Hadi Coffee - Map
Morning Glory Original - Map
Red Dragon - Map
Good Eats Hoi An | Vegetarian Cafe - Map
Ellie's Cafe Hoi An - Map
Nourish Eatery - Map
The Espresso Station - Map
Next, as we head towards the capital, Ho Chi Minh City, we are doing a couple of stopovers to break the long journey up in Nha Trang and Da Lat, two nights in each with not too much planned; let’s see what we make of it!