Unlike Phu Quoc, Hoi An is a town that has figured out their tourism industry -- to the max. The golden-hued UNESCO city is atmospheric, and charming, and in ways reminded me of Italy; particularly the towns on the Amalfi Coast. There's a tacit understanding that as a visitor you will stroll the streets (maybe…
Continue reading: Visiting Hoi An, Vietnam: Delightfully Touristy (No, Really!)
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Loved this report. Brought back fantastic *sense* memories of our time in Hoi An. Totally forgot about Morning Glory (we visited several times) until reading your post. Thanks!
I had a great visit there before, but I don't know whether I would go back on a future trip to Vietnam. I think for someone's first time in Vietnam it's worth going.
It was roughly a billion degrees outside (okay, the heat index was126) when my wife and I visited Hoi An, but we still loved it. My only regret was only buying two custom suits instead of ten.
I think calling the city "Saigon" is not correct, even though it's still very much widely used.
It's like calling Saint Petersburg "Leningrad" - people still use it, but it is just wrong.
@PE - So true. Even standing directly in front of an AC unit, it felt like death. Incredibly stylish and high quality, yet affordable death.
Going back to Vietnam in June and I intend to make a stop here, just is not looking forward to the heat. Just saw a report earlier today it was 110 in Hanoi couple days ago. Yikes. Any tips or tricks to stay cool lol.
"It’s like calling Saint Petersburg “Leningrad”
Au contraire. Calling Sai Gon "Ho Chi Minh City" is in fact like calling Saint Petersburg "Leningrad". Both names were imposed by force to honor Communist dictators responsible for the deaths of millions. Sai Gon is the traditional name, unless you want to go back to the 11th Century, when it was called Baigaur. 😉
According to Wikipedia:
"Even today, however, the informal name of Sài Gòn/Saigon remains in daily speech both domestically and internationally'.
But then I'm old fashioned, and still say Burma, rather than "Myanmar". Names changed by military juntas somehow don't appeal to me.
@Vanya: There's no right or wrong here. From the true Vietnamese who grew up in Saigon, that name carries a lot of love. We use Ho Chi Minh city on paperwork and other formal speech, not when we talk about our hometown. We also refer Saigon as the main central districts of Ho Chi Minh city.
I wanted to see if I could get your 2 cents on a trip my wife and I have planned. All we have booked is the long haul segments to and from SE Asia.
We arrive in Phuket Friday Nov 8 at 1 AM.
We depart Hanoi Wed 20th very late that night.
We want to spend some time in Phuket, fly to BKK and explore a bit, maybe a day trip to the elephant place you reviewed a while back, then fly to Siem Riep on Bangkok Air (are they alright?) Explore Siem Riep and go to Hanoi where we would like to do a multi-night cruise in Ha Long Bay and explore Hanoi before returning. How would you advise we split our time. We are young and can travel at a quick pace. Appreciate any insight you can provide and look forward to the rest of your reviews in this series!
@ Vanya -- @ Robert Hanson and @ Suzino have it right, I think. The river through town is still the Sai Gon River, and anyone from the south (especially, it seems, the South Vietnamese community in the U.S.) refers to it as Saigon. Only in the north did we hear it referred to as HCMC.
Banh Mi Phuong is definitely worth all the hype.
I had an amazing street food tour with Phuoc from Eat Hoi An Culinary Tours. One of the best I've had globally. Super highly recommended.
@ tda @ PW -- Yeah, it was hot AF. To the point where I decided against getting shoes made, because it was just.too.hot.
Hoi An tour is one of our favorite places - so much that we’ve returned the past three winters for a total of almost 4 months. Glad to hear the tourism didn’t bother you! Highly recommend Leaf Homestay for friendly, affordable private suite accommodations outside the touristy area. We actually started hosting in-tours there for folks who want a cultural orientation and off the beaten path experience.
@DB re Phuket, we were just there Dec/January. Even the "pretty beach areas" like Nai Harn are kind of a zoo with thousands of (Russian) tourists on cheap holidays. However, Phuket Town was charming. Or, if you're a plane nerd like Lucky and many others here, you could spend a night near the airport and watch some of these planes fly in from the beach at the very head of the runway. Best viewing for us was around 10am to noon. The town by the airport's not all that great but you can walk to that beach.
Tiffany those pictures were amazing again. The food as well looked spectacular.
Loving the Instagram hashtags also #window 🙂
Yes, Hoi An is very touristy and usually that is the sort of thing I run from, but I absolutely loved it. Just a really beautiful town with lovely people, great food, and a lot to see just walking around.
I've been to Nam three times and never made it to Faifoo. Now I really want to go.
Any hotel recommendations? Don't mind spending more for something great on the beach that isn't filled with degenerate partiers. I'd like to see that plane beach but I heard they want to murder tourists that get on that beach to watch the planes land.
@DB no the beach is fine, normal number of tourists either hanging out on the beach or taking pictures or video of planes. No hotels on that beach that I'm aware of.
We stayed in an AirBnB in Nai Harn. The place was huge and fine (slept 14; we originally had a big party). When we left there we waited out a tropical storm in Phuket Town at the Besavana Hotel. Right on the edge of the main part of town, lovely mid-range hotel, nothing fancy, but just clean and pleasant. Around $50/room/night. Also, get a cab to the restaurant on top of the hill near town for a nice meal and sunset view. And monkeys.
@ DB -- Sounds super fun! I haven't been to Ha Long Bay yet, but definitely check out the comments in the first post of this series for recommendations from other people on boats and such.
Bangkok Air is great, no concerns there. The amount of time you spend in Siem Reap really depends on how much you like ruins (and whether you're going to have a guide or just a book). Some people can spend a week at a time there, I'm personally good after a day or two, but it's a highly personalized decision.
And I'll explain more when we get to this part of the report, but if you like seeing cities on the cusp, I'd try and add in Phnom Penh, even if only for a night or two.
Thanks for the tips! Will definitely look into the restaurant if/when we visit Phuket town!
There is a wealth of knowledge in that first post, I have already taken some notes on the Junket boats from what I learned in that thread.
Would you make the swing to PP over say Luang Prabang?
Glad you enjoyed! We live in Melbourne and this July will be our 10th trip to Hoi An, seen a lot of changes over the last 15 years but still love it.
@ DB -- Hah, give me a week or so to get my thoughts on both published, and then you can decide!
I just returned from a month-long tour of Vietnam and Siem Reap, Cambodia. Hoi An was one of my favorite stops along the way. Highly recommend the Hoi An Silk Village Resort! Beautiful grounds, comfortable view villas, great shops, restaurants and services, and outstanding customer service. Though not as close to the old and new riverfront shopping area, the resort does provide s convenient shuttle service.
Don’t leave Hoi An without custom made clothing! Visit Blue Chic Tailors in the old town for an amazing selection of fabrics and clothing designs. Custom shirts, dresses, shirts, pants or a traditional ao dai can be yours at a reasonable price within a day or less. Customer service is the best!
It’s always interesting reading about people’s opinions about a certain place. I was in Hoi An probably 13 years ago and it was by far my least favorite place I visited in the country. Two of my friends took off early for Hoi An and I spent an extra day in Hue. I was glad I did. But, I did manage to get a lot of poorly made clothes. Except I got a jacket I’ll probably wear forever. Weather could’ve been a factor too. I always remember the tailors always gave us sour cream Pringle’s
I am returning to Hoi An in September, so your report is timely. The last time we were there my sons got a lot of clothes made (suits for first jobs etc). This time it's my turn. We also enjoyed Morning Glory. In fact, pretty much everything we ate in Vietnam was great. We stayed at the Hyatt in Da Nang and it was easy by shuttle to Hoi An (and free if you are a globalist). At New Year's when were there it was only 19-22C, so we didn't do the boats, but this time I will try.
@Tiffany -- Wow, I've never seen someone recommend an improvement to a cooking class (your beef-broth suggestion makes perfect sense). Such is the quality of this blog!
Was there in November, suprised to see how many koreans were there. First time I've seen chinese tourists be a minority in a SEA country.
Hoi An is pretty beautiful and there aren't enough words to describe to feeling of wonder when you turn the corner and arrive infront of the lantern lit river with the bridge and all.
I was there in May 2005 and had a great time, it was quite similar to what it is now but in a much lower scale. I agree with another reader that Hue is much better than Hoi An and a much (at least back then) more authentic experience. We went on a cruise on the perfume river by renting a boat of a small family that spent some time with us. Beautiful memories.
@ Malc -- Hah, well. I'm far from an expert chef, but I do make bone broth every week that I'm home.
Tiffany - Superfantabulous review and thanks for sharing this. I'm sold (except will find a time to go when it isn't sweltering) and while Vietnam was high on our list already, it just moved up a few notches!
And, can appreciate finding a good Asian market in Spokane. Grew up there and my Dad still lives there. Not a cultural culinary hotbed, though its still good to see you could make some of those dishes at home!
Nice review! Just wondering if you ask people their permission before taking photos? I will usually avoid poking a camera into a stranger's face (like in a market) because it seems intrusive and somewhat dehumanizing.
@ James H -- If I'm taking a portrait I do, but never get close regardless. That's what the crop and zoom features are for!
Enjoying this WONDERFUL Vietnam series of reviews, definitely want to visit with my wife, we just loved the activities highlighted in this review. And also found your gem of IG account, now following you there too!.
Vietnam place arrangement are amazing and high on our rundown as of now. Hoi An is quite delightful and there aren't sufficient words to portray to feeling of miracle pictures .its paint cap and potrate is incredible and it look extraordinary
Just back from Vietnam. It really is full of American tourists. I do agree however that Hoi An is a nice place to visit. Super-touristy as you say. Didn't particularly rate "Morning Glory" although everyone recommended it to us.
@DB Don't worry about Phuket there are still beautiful places - just be prepared to spend a decent amount to avoid the hoards. Look at The Surin which has access to a "private" beach next door to the Aman.
Going in July. Thank you for sharing such detail - need to start planning our activities soon. Did you consider day tripping to Hue, mountains, or such? Or just not enough time on this itinerary.
We should really mention the fact that in between every restaurant and gift shop were foot massage stands, outside, along the river, in front of everyone. Complete with recliners, cozy pillows and really friendly people, the experience is a "must"! I've lost count of how many times we partook, but I think it was 3 times in 2 days. Since there were 4 of us the establishment might not have had the staff at the moment. But, not to be concerned, because the "manager" just called down the street, and a friend/family member from another stall would rush over to help out. It was a glorious little town...and I'm still craving the sauteed morning glory from (you guessed it), The Morning Glory restaurant.