Hoi An among top destinations for solo travelers
Hoi An ancient town has been listed among the top 13 most exciting destinations for solo travelers by Momondo, a UK-based travel site.
Hoi An ancient town among the best places in the world for those traveling alone, according to UK-based travel site Momondo. Photo by Vnexpress
The list is based on the best offers on flights, hotels, car hire, and food, as well as safety for solo globetrotters.
Unlike Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi, the two biggest and busiest cities in Vietnam, Hoi An is a charming spot with peaceful and natural beauty. “A well-preserved former trading port on Vietnam’s central coast, Hoi An is a melting pot of cultures and architecture,” the site wrote. “Cars are banned from the city center, so stroll through the old town on foot and admire the street-side cafes and picturesque historical homes lining canals and winding alleyways. At night, the scene becomes more colorful and mysterious, thanks to lanterns everywhere in the ancient town.”
Riding a bike to see the city or cycling out to the pristine beach of An Bang, just a little under 5 km away from the center, is also recommended.
Hoi An is also known for its high-quality and affordable clothing, where you can buy everything from t-shirts and shorts to suits and dresses or even have a specially-made garment made at a very affordable price.
As the ancient town’s diverse culinary scene stems from Japanese, Chinese and Portuguese influences, taking a cooking class promises a new and interesting experience, according to Momondo. It also reminded readers not to leave Hoi An without trying a bowl of its signature cao lau (brown noodles with pork and greens); a speciality found only in town.
Located in the central province of Quang Nam, Hoi An was a leading trading port in Southeast Asia in the 17th and 18th centuries. Cultural exchanges also took place, influencing the town in ways that remain visible today. Its architecture is a combination of Vietnamese, Japanese and Chinese, with a little Western as well. It became a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site in 1999.
It also made a list the 10 most-intriguing travel destinations in Southeast Asia in 2018, as voted by readers of Rough Guide, another UK-based travel site. In 2017 it was ranked seventh among the world’s 15 best cities, as voted by readers of Travel + Leisure, a US travel site.
Its Hoai River and channels in the town center made the list of the ten most famous canals in the world on the US-based travel website touropia.com in 2014.
Hoi An welcomed 3.2 million tourists in 2017, an increase of 21.6 per cent against 2016, according to the Quang Nam Provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
Other cities on the Momondo list are Bordeaux in France, Ghent in Belgium, Split in Croatia, Banos in Ecuador, Florianopolis in Brazil, Dublin in Ireland, Havana in Cuba, Toronto in Canada, Gyeongju in South Korea, Thimphu in Bhutan, Queenstown in New Zealand, and Gothenburg in Sweden.
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