Discover
Discover
Hoi An sits on the Thu Bon River near Viet Nam's central coast. UNESCO describes it as an exceptionally well-preserved example of a Southeast Asian trading port, whose buildings and street plan reflect local and foreign influences combined into something unique.
History
History
From the 15th to the 19th centuries, Chinese, Japanese and other traders came to Hoi An to trade and settle. The covered Japanese Bridge and the assembly halls of Chinese communities are evidence of that age. When the river silted up and trade moved elsewhere, the town stopped growing, which helped its old buildings survive.
People & Culture
People & Culture
Merchants' wooden houses, assembly-hall shrines and riverside markets tell of a town where many cultures lived together through trade. For us, Hoi An is Southeast Asia in miniature: a crossroads of maritime commerce.
Living Heritage
Living Heritage
People still live and work in the old houses. On full-moon nights the town is decorated with lanterns, and tailoring and crafts remain local livelihoods. Floods from the Thu Bon, almost every year, are also part of a life residents have learned to live with.
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