Located some 25km southeast of Danang is the ancient town of Hoi An. One of the key attractions of central Vietnam, it occupies a scenic location along the banks of the Thu Bon River, just a few kilometres inland from the coast and the charms of lovely Cua Dai Beach. To the south is the Unesco-listed Cham site of My Son. Centre Vietnam travel packages
History of Hoi An
Hoi An traces its roots back to the ancient Champa kingdom, when it was a seaport known as Dai Chien. In the 13th and 14th centuries, it developed under the control of the Tran dynasty (1225–1400). At the beginning of the 16th century, the first Portuguese arrived to explore the coastline of Central Vietnam, to be followed by expeditions led by the Chinese, Japanese, Dutch, British and French. The Europeans brought the first Catholic missionaries (and later the Protestants), making Hoi An one of the earliest places to be exposed to Christianity. Among them was the Jesuit priest Alexandre de Rhodes, who devised the Romanised form of the Vietnamese language. BASSAC CRUISE
Hoi An appeared in Western travelogues in the 17th and 18th centuries as Faifo or Hai Po. For several centuries, it was one of the most important trading ports in all of Southeast Asia and an important centre of cultural exchange between Europe and the Orient. By the beginning of the 19th century, however, its fortunes were in free-fall. The conflict between the Trinh and Nguyen Lords and the Tay Son faction caused considerable damage, while the mouth of the Thu Bon River silted up and prevented the flow of sea traffic. Another port was built at the mouth of the Song Han River, and Danang replaced Hoi An as the centre of trade.
In the early 1980s, Unesco took the initiative and funded a restoration programme to safeguard Hoi An’s Old Quarter and historic monuments, leading to its achieving the World Heritage status in 1999. Unfortunately many of Hoi An’s monuments are threatened by annual floods (mainly between October and November) when the water spills over the river banks and submerges streets in up to 3m (10ft) of water, causing serious damage.
Hoi An's atmospheric Old Town
These days, Hoi An is a relaxed town of about 120,000 people, 10 per cent of whom live in the Old Quarter, which has been turned into a historical showpiece for tourists. Many of the older homes, with their wooden beams, carved doors and airy, open rooms, have been turned into souvenir shops masquerading as museums. While it’s certainly the old architecture that draws the tourist buses, there’s no denying that shopping is the new heart and soul of Hoi An. Bespoke tailor shops are found everywhere, and it's not uncommon to see tourists lugging entire suitcases filled with newly tailored suits and dresses. In fact, some worry that the very thing that makes Hoi An attractive – its quiet charm and peaceful atmosphere – is being ruined. Nearly all of the buildings in the Old Town have been turned into shops or restaurants, and about 80 per cent of the residents now directly derive their income from tourism.
My Son is the site of Vietnam's most important Cham monuments, (photo by Peter Stuckings)
Places to see near Hoi An
Cua Dai Beach
Just 5km (3 miles) from Hoi An is the broad silvery expanse of Cua Dai Beach. This stretch of sand is lined with several good beachside resorts, including one of Vietnam’s most expensive, the fabulously indulgent Nam Hai. Some 20km (12 miles), or 25 minutes by speedboat, from Hoi An and Cua Dai Beach is Cu Lao Cham Marine Park, which comprises eight islands that make up the Cham Islands archipelago. The marine park is one of the finest diving spots in central Vietnam. The main Cham Island is known for its rich bounty of swallows’ nests (the species in question is, in fact, German’s swiftlet), used in birds’ nest soup – a prized delicacy in Chinese communities all over Asia.
My Son
The ancient kingdom of Champa, which is thought to date back to the second century AD and flourished from the fifth to the 15th centuries, once occupied the central Vietnamese coast all the way to the Dong Nai River in the south. After many struggles, Champa was conquered by the Vietnamese – but the Cham people remained. As their kingdom was swallowed piecemeal by the invading Viet (Kinh), increasing numbers of Cham fled to neighbouring Cambodia, though others chose to remain under Viet tutelage in their former homelands. My Son, nestled under the green slopes of Cat’s Tooth Mountain (Nui Rang Meo) some 50km (31 miles) from Hoi An, is the site of Vietnam’s most important Cham monuments and was declared a Unesco World Heritage site in 1999. It is one of the most atmospheric locations anywhere in the country, with the crumbling ruins set in a verdant jungle. Chosen as a religious sanctuary by King Bhadravarman I in the fourth century, many temples and towers (kalan) were built in this area. There are 11 designated temple groups in My Son, and there are likely to be other groups of ruins that are either unpublicised or undiscovered.
