Old Town: We’ve been in Hoi An proper about 5 weeks, and we’re now at our second location for this portion of our stay. The first four weeks were spent on the small island of An Hoi, which is just across the bridge from Hoi An Old Town, which is where 90% of the action is. Now we’re 15 minutes away at the beach, An Bang, and find it totally different, so I thought I’d offer an overview of the many different places/ faces of Hoi An.

It is the only OFFICIAL Ancient Town rated by UNESCO, but there are several other “old towns” in the country that have a similar nickname. It was the hub of trading and shipping from the 15th century, and many of those old buildings still stand. It truly is a beautiful little town, with hundreds of restaurants and coffee shops that you could not cover if you stayed for a year! It is also well known for tailoring, and you can get suits, dresses, and shirts made from custom fabric of your choice.

Like, crazy crowded, especially crossing the walking bridge which connected our island paradise to the city itself. Walking along the Thu Bon River is a treat and every evening lanterns are placed in the water as prayer offerings and scores of people jump into sampans for a short ride up and down the river. The bottom line: Old Town is busy, busy, so if you like the hustle & bustle and want close access to coffee or food, then it’s worth considering.

Meanwhile, the two very proximate islands, An Hoi, where we were , and Cam Nan, are a bit more peaceful and away from the chaos. Our little sanctuary was very nice, and we could get almost everywhere we wanted to go in about 15 minutes. Neighboring Cam Nan is not so developed and even more quiet. We didn’t stay there, but we almost did. When we were looking to book a room in Hoi An we could not remember the name of the island where we wanted to stay, so mistakenly booked on Cam Nan. Since we weren’t familiar with it and there did not seem to be as much there, we cancelled and rebooked for An Hoi.

Conclusion: either of these two islands may offer you the best of both worlds: proximity to the action, but the ability to retreat.

A bit outside of town is a small area near the beach called Cam Thanh, which is where we stayed for a month in 2024. It was about 15 minutes from town on a very quiet road, and unfortunately not close to anything. We had a scooter which made it more practical, and the prices are probably the cheapest in the area. My thoughts: if you want quiet and peace and don’t mind being further out, then Cam Thanh is a consideration.

Last is An Bang beach, which is where we are now, and I think, it’s the best of all. It is on the water, much smaller than any “town,” in the area, and has plenty of homestays and eateries for anyone’s’ tastes. If you want to go INTO Old Town it’s a 15-minute Grab ride, costing about $3. It’s kind of a small enclave of expats and locals but also has lots of tourists. It is also a bit closer to Da Nang city itself, so if you have a need to go there, you can avoid some of the Hoi An traffic. If you are a beach bum or bunny and want access to the water, this is the only option of all of these.