$0.00
To begin the series of tips for your Hoi An trip, Blue Lotus is happy to share with you guys the top 10 fun and cool things to do when visiting this vibrant City of Lantern
A few years back, Hoi An or Faifo is no longer a strange name for domestic and foreign tourists. Furthermore, this beautiful little city is growing to become one of the best attractive destinations for tourists all around the globe.
It’s no wonder for Hoi An is one of many tourists’ favourite destination. It’s hard not to like the town, and it’s even harder to run out of things to see in Hoi An. From the beach to the lanterns, from the shopping to the boat trips. The biggest question that everyone is wondering is: “Where to stay, what to eat, what to do in Hoi An?”. Thus, to start the series of tips to discover Hoi An, we’re delighted to share some of the most fun things to do when visiting this city of light
-
Taking part in Cooking class
Having fun in Vietnamese Cuisine class
You are very welcomed to a rice field side restaurant and participate in cooking classes with the professional chefs. A cooking class can take place within 2-4 hours, depends on your requirement about time. First, you can visit a local market to learn about our Vietnamese ingredients in our normal daily meals then apply them for your cooking class. Secondly, enjoy the final products that you just made by your own. In the end, you are able to come home with the secrets recipe for traditional cuisine
There are dozens of cooking classes available around Hoi An and the one you choose simply depends on preference. Here are the top picked cooking classes that we have selectively choose for suggestion:
-
Red Bridge Cooking School: Located in Cam Thanh, roughly 4 km away from the Old Town, Red Bridge Cooking School is one of the most established names in Hoi An when it comes to cooking classes, offering classes now for over 10 years. Daily, they offer a classic half-day tour and a deluxe full-day tour of Hoi An’s colorful central market and other areas
-
RESS kitchen: 211 Cua Dai street – They are a family originally from Hanoi, bringing the Bun Cha and Hanoi Pho recipe to this land. Be advised that Pho Hanoi and Pho Hoian are totally different. Some cookery tours in Hoi An will take you to the Central Market ( which most of you will visit anyway during your time in Hoi An). Joining this cooking class, they will take you to a more ” local” market with fewer tourists and you will be able to learn how to make the famous Bun Cha Hanoi that President Obama really enjoyed when he paid a visit Vietnam in 2016
-
Tra Que Waterwheel Organic Farm Cooking Class: Tra Que Vegetable Garden is an organic herb and vegetable village located two kilometers northeast of Hoi An that has existed for around 300 years. It is where all the delicious herbs and veggies used in everyday meals of Hoi An people are grown. Tra Que Water Wheel restaurant is located right in the heart of the village — a traditional Vietnamese house from where you can watch farmers with their Vietnamese conical hats tend to their produce in absolute tranquility.
Why not try your knife skill to good use?
-
Joining the leather craft workshop
Craft your own real leather items with Blue Lotus
If you are interested in cool detailed handmade item, even if you have experienced with leather crafts or NOT. Let’s immerse yourself in Vietnamese local culture and learn a new skill! This could be you highlight of your whole trip. Join us for the Handmade Coffee & Leather Workshop, with all our passion and enthusiasm, we’re so happy to guide you to learn how to work with leather, design patterns and make your own leather goods. Don’t hesitate and bring home your most unique and meaningful leather presents which was personally made-by-you for your family, friends and the loved one .
Anyone can craft!
In Blue Lotus Coffee & Leather Workshop, we not only provide different leather handmade classes with various time schedules: from the 2-4-hour Express classes to 1-2-day classes which will suit every your “eat & play” plans, but also a friendly brotherhood open space, some nice cups of coffee/tea and good vibes… Don’t be shy, we’re happy to assist you with the design that fits your needs most. Register here
-
Come to Hoi An, listen to Bai Choi singing
Bai Choi is a Vietnamese traditional folk game during Tet
A highlight of local culture is the Bai Choi, a game similar to bingo accompanied by Vietnamese traditional folk music. Every weekend night, by the Hoai River, you will see people gathering around the bamboo huts where being performed Bai Choi at 7pm, inviting people to participate. No one knows exactly when “Bai Choi” appeared. It is said that this game was played during every Spring Festival in Thua Thien Hue Province around 400 years ago and now it becomes the traditional spiritual meals for Hoi An people every Tet Holiday. One game lasts from 5 to 7 minutes. The rules are very simple, team players will be sitting in 9 built-in huts.The card deck is split into two halves: the first half is put in the tube held by the caller, the other half is distributed to the huts, each hut receives three cards, each card consists of 3 words (chess pieces). There will be sire (the dealer) sings the short folk songs representing each of the chess pieces on the bamboo sticks he has drawn out of the tube, and as each card is drawn, its name is announced. Whichever watch-tower has that card receives a flag, the singing continues. The first team to gain 3 flags wins the game. BINGO!
A tourist from Hanoi after participating in the game happily shared: “the folks song lyrics are so beautiful, they encouraged people to be nice and good, to love each other. I’m so lucky and happy that my cards were announced. Furthermore, I can listen to folk songs that I liked.”
-
Wandering to the into the alleys until you reach your favorite hide-out coffee shop
A nice cup of coffee for a warm cold day in Hoi An
It’s worth bearing in mind that a visit in the low season offers the benefits of lower hotel rates and fewer tourists. QUIETLY PEACEFULNESS!
The climate is so comfortable during this time of year. It is significantly cooler with average temperatures ranging from around 20 to 25°C. Getting lost in those small and hidden alleyways is one of my favorite things to do in Hoi An. Is there anything better to do in a warm cold day like this rather than having a nice cup of tea in a hidden coffee shop? You can easily come across some quite, quaint all-day coffee shops decorated with colonial-era design and terraces overlooking roof top, meet up with new amazing people around you, or simply reading your pocket traveling book while sipping on your cup of coffee. What a peaceful and cozy thing to enjoy life!.
5.Get a suntan at the Beaches of Hoi An
Hoi An owns one of the most beautiful beaches in Asia
Hoi An is not only its ancient town: given its prime location on the coast, Hoi An has plenty of beautiful beaches to choose from, so there’s nothing stopping you from grabbing your beach towel and heading down to the sand.
An Bang beach is 3km from the old town, while Cua Dai Beach is a 4km ride away, and they are considered some of the best beaches near Hoi An and generally in Vietnam together with Mui Ne beaches
Some of the most popular activities here are swimming, parasailing, jet-skiing and surfing. If you’re looking to learn how to surf during your visit, come to SALT Pub – 32 Nguyen Phan Vinh, there are plenty of surfing board rentals and weekly surviving skill course for kids on Sunday morning, adults are also welcome, offered by An Bang Beach’s expat surfing community
Alternatively, if you want total peace and quiet, then take a boat trip out to one of the Cham Islands for your own private tropical getaway- even if it is yours just for the afternoon!
6.Enjoying the beauty of Hoi An on a bicycle
Riding around Hoi An is so much fun and it’s a good exercise, too!
Rarely anywhere in this world owns such beauty like Faifo does. A wonderful place with all the most basic things people expect. From the bustling Old town to the peaceful countryside with green vast paddy fields along with nearly untouched blue ocean, white sand and sunshine at the coast side. The city of Hoi An is not too large, so you are strongly encouraged to use bicycle facilities to go around and explore the city. Also, it helps to protect the environment and make Hoi An proudly become the city of ecology, culture and tourism. With Hoi An Cycling, you have nothing to worry about where to go, what to see, or even sharpening your bargain skill while shopping because Hoi an Cycling well-trained lead bikers will take you on a cycling trip to every corner of Hoi An country side. With this choice, you can completely enjoy the beauty of Hoi Pho in a very “chillaxing” way. Why you hesitate? Let’s go explore!
More info abous them: https://hoiancycling.com/
7.Water buffalo riding
Riding water buffalo is one of the coolest thing to do in Hoi An, and so exciting as well 😉
For people in the agricultural development area you might be familiar with animals, but for the urban youngsters like me who only know the buffalo over the dishes on the table (yea, Vietnamese are savage!), so seeing a chilling water buffalo lying under the shade, taking a relaxing nap with its farmer in real life is very strange and interesting to me. So if you are going to Hoi An, I would like to recommend you to try riding around with it for awhile, you will only have to pay a small fee (for the farmer to buy treat for the buffalo), I guarantee you that this spirit animal of Vietnam are very gentle, cute, lovely and very close to people. For all, he likes to take picture with you too. He’s cool!
You may be able to run into a handsome water buffalo with perfect measurements standing on aside of Hai Ba Trung Street (near the paddies field), or by the river near the famous Tra Que Vegetable Village. Easiest for you is to book a half-day tour with Hoi An Aodai Riders, these sisters will take care of you from A to Z. On a motorcycle, she will take you to every corner of this beautiful little city, through the paddy fields to the lesser known areas to help you explore real local cultures and history that other big tours can not organize but they are real Vietnamese images.
– Only $44/pax, you can choose one of the fun tours:
-Rural Countryside Explorer-
-Handicraft Village Experience-
-Island & Countryside Adventure-
-Taste Whole Hoian Street Foods-
8.Nourishing yourself with a Spa Day
No reason to not pampering yourself a bit on this holiday, right???
Hoi An is a city to relax, to dip yourself in slow pace and to enjoy life. the visitors coming here cannot resist but to choose to immerse themselves in this flow. The friendly service coupled with the excellent massages and treatments make for a memorable experience. Why not rewarding yourself a little pampered, nourish so that you will be be able to regain energy for the next session? A massage on the beach is also a good idea! 😉 Just try and stay awake long enough to enjoy it.
9.Floating candle lantern flowers on Hoai River
Beautiful flower lantern blinking on Thu Bon River
The blink-blink colorful lanterns around every corner of the streets is the symbol here. It is this image that made Hoi An Ancient Town become a Special National Cultural Heritage Site, now well-known by more friends at home and abroad.
Located charmingly in the heart of Hoi An Ancient Town, every night, Hoai River carries on its magical, mysterious beauty that touches every human’s heart. Maybe this is also the reason why people come here to send their thoughts, aspirations, wishes into the candles lights then let them go sailing
-
The Price for a Lantern Wish is no more than VND10,000/paper lantern.
-
You can also try experience sitting on a small boat paddling along the river, floating through under the Lantern Bridge to release the candle lantern flowers.
10.Spend the day in tailors’ shops ordering up the perfect outfit
Getting custom outfit with professional tailor in Hoi An
Did you know Hoi An is filled with tailors because a tradition resulting from its past as a trading port on the silk route? Therefore, textile industry here is the most reliable, professional, skillful for the length of vocation. If you are tired of the mainstream ready-made garments, these tailors are so adept with their fingers that you will be able to get suits, ball gowns, wedding dresses, winter coats, pajamas, high heels, boots, etc., of any size, style and fabric made. Use your imagination, browse the internet or ask the team for a recommendation on what will look good on you, and you will have it in your hands in a day or two. Another cool thing about getting custom made outfit in Hoi An is that Most tailors are willing to come all the way to your hotel in Hoi An or even as far as Da Nang for fittings/delivery, and this is usually free of charge! If you are also pressed for time, you can get your final product delivered to you by mail, and if you are super-duper satisfied, you can even ask the tailor to retain your measurements and ask for them to make you something via call or email, continents apart. They will do it. A lot of tailor shops now have their internet presence. Rather than relying on word-of-mouth, why don’t you check for reviews online, like on TripAdvisor to find your favorite one?
