Hoi An ancient town located in the lower section T-junction of the Thu Bon River in the central coastal province of Quang Nam, about 30 km south of Da Nang city. It used to be known in the international market with many different names such as Lam Ap, Faifo, Hoai Pho.
As the only traditional Southeast Asian commercial port in Vietnam which was very rare in the world. Hoi An ancient town still preserves nearly all over 1,000 architectural relics such as streets, buildings, assembly halls, temples and pagodas, shrines, ancient wells and tombs… These architectures not only bear the traditional art features of Vietnam but also reflect the cultural exchange and integration between the Eastern and Western countries. Over many centuries, customs, habits, rituals, cultural activities and religious beliefs as well as traditional dishes have been preserved together with generations of the ancient town people. It also has an quiet and healthy natural environment with small and beautiful villages in the outskirts that boast crafts such as carpentry, bronze making, and ceramics…
Researchers said most ancient buildings in Hoi An ancient town were rebuilt at the beginning of the 19th century, even if they might be constructed long time ago. The ancient architecture is shown most clearly in the Old Quarter located in Minh An Ward. It covers about 2 sq.km and gathers almost all famous relics. The streets are very short and leaning from north to south. The architectural works in the Old Quarter were built mostly with traditional materials such as brick and wood and have no more than two floors. Visitors are easy to see the traces of time not only in the architectural design of each building but also everywhere such as on the yin-yang roof tiles covered with moss and plants; the old gray mold walls; the pictures carved with a strange animal, or describing an ancient story… It must have attracted numerous talented artisans in carpentry, ceramics, and woodcarving from China, Japan, Vietnam and Cham Pa… Therefore, each remaining work still imprints diverse and plentiful cultures of many different nations.
For centuries, Hoi An ancient town has developed into a meeting place of different cultures throughout the world. In addition to the Vietnamese people’s native customs and habits, there were also customs and habits brought by foreign communities who came to reside here, including the tradition of worshiping of the Stone and Whale in central coastal residents; and worshiping natural phenomena such as rain, wind and thunder or sacred objects like century-old trees.
Book a car go to Hoi An from Hue to explore this beauty town.