Hoi An: Between the Ancient Streets and the Rains
We arrived at our hotel in Hoi An on our fifth day, and the rain didn’t let up all morning. We had originally booked a room at Square Villa Hotel, but the owner personally informed us that a guest had fallen ill in the room we were supposed to rent. As a result, we were moved to another hotel managed by the same owner, just a five-minute walk away. They offered us a free breakfast with a choice of two menu options and one drink each, which we were more than happy to accept. Square Villa also provided free bicycles for guests to borrow.
A rainy day in Hoi An
By 10:00 AM, the rain had lightened a little, so we decided to wing it and bike around, searching for the nearest banh mi. There's no need for me to go into detail about the food—it never failed to hit the spot every single day we were in Vietnam.
We biked through light drizzle, stopping at various shops along Tran Phu Street, the street of nostalgia. We also tried the famous MOT herbal tea while waiting out a heavier rain shower.
Waiting out the rain at MOT Herbal Tea Shop
For our sightseeing, we returned the bikes and purchased our Hoi An Ancient Town ticket. The ticket cost 120,000 VND per person, and it allowed us to choose five attractions from a list of around 25, plus free entry to the show at the Hoi An Traditional Art Performance House (with performances at 10:15, 15:15, and 16:15). You can buy these tickets at small yellow ticket booths located at various points in Hoi An Ancient Town. To enter the buildings, however, you need to dress modestly—no sleeveless tops or shorts above the knee.
We started our journey by watching the art performance to really immerse ourselves in traditional Vietnamese culture. Afterward, we followed the map and explored the historical sites we wanted to visit. Our route included the Museum of Traditional Medicine, Hoi An Communal House, Quang Trieu Assembly Hall, Japanese Covered Bridge, Japanese Culture Gallery, and Tan Ky Old House. Now that I’ve written it out, I realize we visited six attractions instead of five—but I think the Japanese Culture Gallery may have been free, possibly.
Around 6:00 PM, we crossed the river for dinner and to wait for our lantern boat ride. We booked the ride through our hotel, which cost 300,000 VND for a private boat with a 20-minute duration. Each of us was given a lantern to release into the water.
Hoi An Ancient Town on a cloudy afternoon—picture taken from a bridge
Hoi An Ancient Town at night—picture taken from our boat during the lantern release escapade
The next day, we had half a day left in Hoi An. We spent it biking to a thrift shop, Tit2hand (where Jose found a great pair of shorts), and visiting the Rehahn Gallery and the Precious Heritage Art Gallery Museum. If you're interested in photography and traditional artifacts or ethnic costumes, I highly recommend visiting these places. Both offer free admission, and the photographer Rehahn is quite famous. If you follow travel or photography magazines, chances are you’ve seen his work.
You can buy original photo postcards at Rehahn Gallery—perfect souvenirs for friends and relatives who love photography
If you follow travel or photography magazines, chances are you’ve seen these photos
Da Nang: Beach Club, Ba Na Hills, and Lobsters at Son Tra Night Market
In Da Nang, the plan was to swim and enjoy the sunset at the new Nautica Beach Club, snap a photo near the iconic hand at the Golden Bridge in Ba Na Hills, explore the night market, and catch the sunrise at My Khe Beach before ending our Vietnam trip and flying back to Jakarta. But, as with almost all our plans, the weather had other ideas.
From the clear blue skies in Fansipan (despite our overzealous attempts to dress warmly) to the grey, windy conditions in Halong Bay (once again mocking our outfit choices), the rainy day in Hoi An (despite plans to walk and bike everywhere), and now our first day in Da Nang—our luck with the weather seemed to run on irony.
We arrived at Nautica Beach Club dressed for lounging and bar-hopping, having paid 350,000 VND per person as credit for the club. Swimsuits at the ready, we anticipated a relaxing dip and a picture-perfect sunset. Instead, we were greeted by freezing pool water, a stormy, dark sky, and strong winds with no sign of the sun. We barely managed to dip our toes in—let alone consider dunking our heads underwater—before retreating, wrapping ourselves in towels, and resigning to the fact that the weather seemed determined to humble us at every turn.
The cloudy view from Ba Na Hills cable car
The day we were scheduled to visit Ba Na Hills, we passed by My Khe Beach and noticed the sun shining brightly against a clear sky, giving us hope for the perfect sunrise the next morning before our departure. That said, Ba Na Hills greeted us with cold, rainy weather—a brisk 17 degree Celsius with wind speeds reaching about 10 m/s (31 mph). The iconic hands of the Golden Bridge were barely visible through the dense fog. Still, we made the most of our visit, trying out several fun activities at the indoor Fantasy Park and taking countless photos in the French Village. The thick fog enveloping the area actually lent the village an otherworldly charm, making it feel more magical and winter-like—just what Jose had originally hoped to experience in Sapa. While it seemed like the weather was intent on challenging us at every turn, I’d say the foggy atmosphere in Ba Na Hills ended up working in our favor.
No epic golden bridge photo, but our French village photos are mystical
We also got back to Da Nang to a clear night sky and proceeded with our plan to dine at Son Tra Night Market near the iconic Dragon Bridge, just about 1 km from our hotel, White Sand Boutique Hotel. We explored the night market and settled near one of the many seafood stalls. We enjoyed lobsters, oysters, clams, bamboo clams, prawns, and water spinach. Since it was also our last dinner in Vietnam, we decided to go all out and also ordered a type of Do-It-Yourself pork spring roll platter. We also bought Korean-style cheesy coin cakes and ate them on our way to the Dragon Bridge.
Son Tra Night Market—your go-to spot for budget-friendly seafood delights
The Dragon Bridge is just a 3-minute walk from Son Tra Night Market
Side note: Street vendors and night market sellers in Vietnam seem to have a surprisingly broad repertoire of languages—English, Korean, Mandarin, and even occasionally Indian or Indonesian—though mostly just enough to pitch their goods. Interestingly, when we spoke English, Vietnamese vendors often addressed us as “madam” or “lady.” As far as I recall, no one used “ma’am” or “miss.” Just a fun little observation!
End of Journey: See You Later, Vietnam!
During our 8-day trip, we faced plenty of weather challenges and countless overdress-versus-underdress moments. At times, it felt like the weather was working so hard against us that we joked about not receiving any blessings for this trip. It was actually quite hilarious how nature seemed to ‘conspire’ to foil our plans. But as they say, no matter the circumstances, if you stay positive and grateful, you’ll still have fun—and that’s exactly how I felt, even when, once again, our effort to watch the sunrise on the last day of our trip went unrewarded.
Despite it all, this trip was filled with so many wonderful moments, and I fell in love with the culture, the places, the people, and the food. If there’s one thing I’d say, it’s that eight days wasn’t nearly enough to feel truly fulfilled. If you have the chance to visit Vietnam more than once, I’d recommend focusing on one region at a time: go on a mountain trek in Sapa, take your time exploring Hanoi’s culinary scene, turn the Halong Bay cruise into a 2-day adventure (and try both routes!), visit more than just five attractions in Hoi An while exploring its galleries, and eat your heart out at night markets across various cities.
And of course, I haven’t even touched the southern region yet! So, See You Later, Vietnam!
