Things to do in Hoi An

There are many sites in Hoi An worth a visit like Merchant Houses, Japanese Bridge (chua Cau), Phuc Kien Community Hall, China Beach,  Cua Dai beach. You could do the following things:

• Hoi An Easy Riders: Riding the back of a motorbike with a driver/guide is a great way for a non-motorcyclist to tour around Vietnam. Providing an insight and access to places you might otherwise never experience. With good spoken English and French, originating from surrounding villages they seem to know everyone you'll get a truly amazing experience. To get in contact with them you can find their details on the web site. Prices range from about US$60-75 per person, per day an include accommodation.

• Rent a motorbike. If the traffic scared you in Ho Chi Minh city or Hanoi, here is the place to learn. Rent a bike for US$4 per day. The quiet streets are an ideal place to learn. After a few minutes fiddling with gears you'll be ready to roll. When renting make sure you get a helmet. Take a short ride down to the beach and enjoy the water or travel toward Danang to visit the stunning Marble Mountains.

• Cloth Market, located next to the Central Market and looks like a cloth warehouse. Inside are many small tailor stalls that are generally cheaper and more reliable than shops elsewhere. Orders usually take a day or two.

• Yaly, Tran Phu Street, has a great and extensive range of fabrics to choose from and the staff are very attentive and extremely patient. Ignore the fixed price claim! Discounts can be given for multiple purchases. This is possibly the biggest tailor in the old town and is constantly full of tourists. Demand attention from a staff member who will then ply you with all the catalogues you want - much easier trying to pry the catalogues away from other people.

• Adong Silk is another large tailor, however nowhere near the size of Yaly. There is a better staff to customer ratio but the customer service is comparable between the two, as are the prices. Again bargain hard if you're buying multiple items.

• Thuong, 30 Le Loi Street, a great alternative to the fancy shops mentioned above. Friendly and no hassle service providing great value.

• Central Market, Bach Dang Street, (just before the Cam Nam Bridge) has all of the cheapster t-shirts and bog-standard souvenirs you've seen at every other stop in Vietnam, but it also has plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables, seafood, and all of the other stuff they use in Hoi An's terrific restaurants. T-shirts should cost around 40000 dong, and any amount of haggling will not reduce the prices beyond this level. There are shops selling backpacks, around US$20 for a 100L backpack. However, Hanoi has a wider but more expensive selection.

• Thanh Ha Pottery Village - about 2km west of town, this traditional village has been making pottery for more than 450 years. It was on the verge of extinction until the wave of new hotel construction in Hoi An revived demand.