Where to stay in Hoi An: old town, beach or the fields between
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Where to stay in Hoi An is a choice between three places about 5 km apart: the old town, the beach at An Bang, and the rice fields between them. The ride between any two is fifteen minutes and flat.
Where should you stay in Hoi An?
Just outside the old town, for a first visit of two or three nights. A room within a ten-minute walk of the lanes gives you the town at dawn and after dark, which is when it is worth having. It also avoids old-town prices and a bar under the window.
The Hoi An hub covers what the town is and how long to give it. This page is the choice of neighbourhood.
| Where | Price a night | To the old town | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inside the old town | 1,500,000-4,000,000 | In it | Two nights, no bicycle |
| Just outside | 600,000-1,500,000 | 5-10 min walk | Most visits |
| The rice fields | 400,000-900,000 | 10 min ride | Longer, quieter stays |
| An Bang beach | 900,000-3,000,000 | 15 min ride | Four nights or more |
| Cua Dai | 800,000-2,500,000 | 15 min ride | Resorts, eroded beach |
Old town or beach?
Old town for a short stay, beach for a long one. Two or three nights are not enough to justify commuting to the thing you came for; four or more start to feel cramped if all you can see from the room is a wall.
An Bang is the better beach of the two — Cua Dai has lost a great deal of sand to erosion and much of it now sits behind sea defences. If the beach is the point, An Bang is where to be.
What about the rice fields in between?
The strip between the town and the sea is where the value is. Homestays and small hotels sit among working paddies, cost noticeably less than either end, and put you ten minutes from both.
The catch is dinner. You will not stroll out to eat; you will ride. That is fine on a bicycle at seven in the evening and less fine in November rain.
Does the flooding change the answer?
The flooding changes it, between about October and December. Hoi An floods most years, the streets nearest the Thu Bon go first, and in a bad year boats work the old town.
If your dates fall in that window, book a few streets back from the river or out towards the fields. A ground-floor room by the water is the thing to avoid. The month-by-month guide covers the central coast's wet season, which is the same weather that closes the Hai Van pass views.
What does a room in Hoi An cost?
More than most of Vietnam, because a lot of demand lands in a very small area. A guesthouse runs roughly 400,000 to 900,000 dong, a mid-range hotel with a pool 1,200,000 to 2,500,000, and beach resorts a good deal more.
At about 26,000 dong to the dollar that is 15 to 100 US dollars depending on where in that range you sit. The national accommodation guide puts the tiers in context, and Hoi An sits above them.
What should you check before booking?
A bicycle, the distance and the noise, in that order. Almost every place lends bicycles and the ones that do not are a nuisance in a town built around a flat fifteen-minute ride.
Check the distance on a map rather than in the description. "close to the old town" covers everything from three minutes to three kilometres here.
If you are inside the old town, ask which way the room faces. The lanes are lively until late, and sound carries between the yellow walls.
Does it change what you can do?
Only in the evening. The things to do page works from any of the three bases, since everything is within a short ride.
Where you sleep decides what you do at night: the old town after dark if you are in it, and a beach bar if you are at An Bang. Most people who stay four nights end up wanting one of each, which is an argument for splitting the stay rather than choosing.
FAQ
Where is the best area to stay in Hoi An?
Just outside the old town, within a ten-minute walk of it, for most visits. That buys you the lanes at dawn and dusk without paying old-town prices or sleeping above a bar. The beach at An Bang and the rice fields between the two are the other two answers.
Should you stay in the old town or at the beach in Hoi An?
Old town if you have two or three nights and came for the town. An Bang if you have four or more, or if the trip is really a beach holiday with a town attached. They are about 5 km apart, which is fifteen minutes by bicycle through flat rice fields.
How much does accommodation cost in Hoi An?
A guesthouse room runs roughly 400,000 to 900,000 dong, a good mid-range hotel with a pool 1,200,000 to 2,500,000, and the beach resorts well beyond that. Hoi An sits above the national average because demand is concentrated in a very small area.
Does Hoi An flood, and does it affect where you stay?
Yes, most years between October and December, and the streets nearest the river go first. If your dates fall in that window, a room a few streets back from the Thu Bon or out towards the fields is the practical choice.
Is it worth staying in the rice fields around Hoi An?
For a longer stay, yes. The homestays between the old town and An Bang are quieter and cheaper than either end, and the ride into town takes ten minutes. The trade is that you will not wander out for dinner without getting on a bicycle.
Do you need a bicycle in Hoi An?
Effectively yes, unless you are staying inside the old town and not leaving it. Almost every hotel and homestay lends them, the whole area is flat, and the ride between town, fields and beach is a large part of what makes Hoi An pleasant.