Resort Guide - Hoi An

Hoi An is most people's favourite place in Vietnam and with good reason.

Formerly known as Faifo, Hoi An was a major international port in the 16th and 17th centuries, and the foreign influences are discernible to this day. While the serious shipping business has long since moved to Danang, the heart of the city is still the Old Town, full of winding lanes and Chinese-styled shophouses, which is particularly atmospheric in the evening as the sun goes down. While most all shops now cater to the tourist trade, unusually in Vietnam the area has been largely preserved as is and renovation has proceeded slowly and carefully, mercifully absent of towering concrete blocks and karaoke parlors.

Hoi An's best-known landmark is a picturesque covered bridge and pagoda. The bridge was constructed in the early 1600's by the Japanese community, roughly 40 years before they left the city to return to Japan.

This traditional two-story wooden house, inhabited over 100 years by eight generations offers a nice insight into days gone by.

Numerous congregation halls, where Chinese expatriate residents met and socialized, are dotted about the town. They are typically named after their home region, such as Fujian and Canton.

A great place to experience local life and be swept along in the throng of shoppers.

The beach is only a 5 minute drive from town or a relaxing 20 minute cycle ride. It's not bad as far as beaches go. The water is clean and the sand stretches for miles. After a hard afternoons relaxing there are plenty of seafood restaurants to wind up in.

Angkor Wat like ruins of the Cham civilisation in an atmospheric jungle setting.

On the way to Danang, the Marble Mountains are well worth a stop, with Buddhist Temples built into caves in the limestone mountains.

Made-to-measure shirts, blouses, dresses, jeans - there seems no limit to what can be rustled up by the locals at bargain prices. Vietnamese art shops also abound, with some quality items mixed up amongst the kitsch and tat.

Hoi An is known for it's local specialities:

• Cao lau, a dish of rice noodles topped with slices of roast pork, dough fritters, and this being Vietnam, lots of fresh herbs and veggies.
• White rose a type of shrimp dumpling made from translucent white dough bunched up to look like a rose
• Wantan dumplings, essentially the same as the Chinese kind, served up in soup or deep-fried

Once you've sampled the local delights - why not learn how to cook them. Many people take advantage of the local cooking schools to spend an afternoon in the kitchen, and why not?