Transportation

Get in

By plane
The nearest airport is in Danang, which has frequent connections to Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and some flights to Bangkok, Singapore and Siem Reap, Cambodia (for Angkor Wat). A taxi from the airport to Hoi An costs about US$15 thanks to the cartel, but only about half that in the other direction.

By train
There is no railway station in Hoi An. The nearest is in Danang (see below), which receives several trains a day from Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hue, Nha Trang etc. Most travel agents and hotels can book a train ticket for you.

By bus
Traveller buses run daily up and down the coast from Da Nang, Hue and Nha Trang. Note the road to Nha Trang is awful and the trip takes all day - it is much better to take a train. Sinh Cafe's office is at 2 Phan Dinh Phung St., just off Hai Ba Trung, and they charge US$2 for the trip to Hue (4 hours, twice daily).

By motorbike or taxi
It's easy to take a motorbike or taxi to and from Da Nang via the Marble Mountains (see below), from where you can catch a train onwards.

Get around

The centre of Hoi An is very small and pedestrianised, so you will be walking around most of the time. Unfortunately bikes have not been banned from the center yet, so particularly at night keep an eye out for motorized kamikazes.

To go to the beach, or reach some of the more remote hotels, it is easy and cheap to hire a bicycle. Taxis are few and far between, but can be called by phone. You can also charter boats for about US$1/hour.

Almost all of the hotels will rent out motorbikes at about five USD a day. It's standard practice for them to rent you the bike with just enough petrol to make it to the next petrol station. If you value your money, go to a gas station, rather than the hand-operated roadside pumps - the markup is vicious. Use the bike to visit My Son, about an hour away, or the Marble Mountains, about forty minutes north towards Da Nang.