Last Updated 5 years ago

Getting around Hoi An, Vietnam is pretty easy!

The town itself isn’t over-populated and it doesn’t cover a lot of distance. Most visitors are happy to explore the town on foot, or by using bicycles. Bikes are usually provided to guests of hotels free of charge, or rented for a very affordable price in town.
Coming from using bicycles in Indonesia, I will say the streets here in Hoi An are much easier to navigate through! They are less crowded and less dangerous than riding around in Bali or Java. However, getting around on bikes isn’t always the best choice. If a torrential downpour is happening, or you just loaded up on groceries at the market, you’re going to need a car.

*Note: Cars are not allowed on the ultra pedestrian friendly and very central blocks of ancient town. Taxis and drivers will drop you as close as they can get you, but some steps are required. Motorbikes, bicycles and scooters can pretty much get anywhere at anytime.

Our favorite way to get around Hoi An is using GRAB, a ride sharing app that is much like Uber.

Grab Hoi An

We first fell in love with Grab from using their services in Bali. We were overjoyed to find out they also exist in Hoi An, Vietnam! To be able to order a car in the app, you’re going to need a phone number they can send a confirmation code to. We got a Mobifone SIM card at the airport on arrival which gave us a Vietnam phone number. This is all we needed to start using Grab all over Vietnam.

How to Use GRAB App

Download the GRAB app.
Register with your Vietnam phone # and enter your confirmation code
Open the app, choose if you need a car or a bike and enter your destination
The app will quote you a price before you order. Click the green ‘Book' button to order.
Your car/bike will show up in minutes! Get in and enjoy the ride. Unlike Uber, you pay the driver in cash once the ride is over.

We have taken Grab around 8 times so far in Hoi An and we are so impressed with it! Each car has been very new, clean, and pretty luxurious to be honest! The drivers have all spoken a very basic amount of English and we’ve never had to wait more than 4 minutes for a car to arrive.

Prices to use Grab in Hoi An

GrabCar Prices

Most rides anywhere around ancient town in Hoi An (and as far as Cam Nam, An Hoi, Cam Pho, etc)
29,000₫ ($1.25 USD)

Ancient town to Cam Chau
35,000₫ ($1.50 USD)

Ancient town to Cam Thanh
65,000₫ ($2.75 USD)

Ancient town to An Bang Beach
70,000₫ ($3.00 USD)

Ancient town to Cua Dai Beach
78,000₫ ($3.30 USD)

GrabBIKE Prices

If you want to save even more money, order a GrabBike instead of a GrabCar.
Here are the same popular routes as above, but jumping on the back of a scooter or motorbike instead:

Most rides anywhere around ancient town in Hoi An (and as far as Cam Nam, An Hoi, Cam Pho, etc)
12,000₫ ($0.50 USD)

Ancient town to Cam Chau
15,000₫ ($0.65 USD)

Ancient town to Cam Thanh
23,000₫ ($1.00 USD)

Ancient town to An Bang Beach
27,000₫ ($1.20 USD)

Ancient town to Cua Dai Beach
29,000₫ ($1.25 USD)

Taxis in Hoi An

Mai Linh (nicknamed Green Taxi) is the most popular choice for taxis in Hoi An. The metre starts at 10,000₫ and goes up by 12,000₫ for each kilometre you travel. (around $0.50 USD)

You can find these taxi’s at popular locations just outside the pedestrian only zones of ancient town, or you can call them to order one.

We learned something interesting about taking a taxi in Hoi An: If they are busy (like if it starts raining) and your ride is very short, they might refuse to drive you. They are holding out for larger fares and longer distances and might refuse your ride if it’s too short/inexpensive. Which is crazy to us! Why blatantly refuse business like that? My advice- If that happens to you, order a Grab instead!

Private Drivers in Hoi An

Private Drivers are best to hire for longer drives, like airport runs and day trips from Hoi An. Each private driver company sets their own price and it can vary for vehicle size, season and time of day.

Here are a few examples of rates for day trips and attractions near Hoi An.
{Each price is a 2 way drive, to and from the location, with the driver waiting for you in between}

Marble Mountain
400,000-500,000₫ ($17-$22 USD)

My Son
550,000-750,000₫ ($24-$32 USD)

Ba Na Hill
800,000-950,000₫ ($35-$40 USD)

Hue
1.5 Mil-1.9Mil ₫ ($65-$82 USD)

Private Driver Hoi An to Da Nang

We recently used a local Hoi An private driver company ‘Same Same But Better‘ to get a ride to Da Nang for the afternoon. The entire process from start to finish was exceptionally easy.
We heard about them in a Hoi An expat Facebook group and decided to give them a try.

On a whim one morning over breakfast we decided we wanted to go to the mall in Da Nang. We Facebook messaged Chau Vu at 9:30am (the owner of ‘Same Same But Better') and he responded immediately. He had a car confirmed to pick us up at our hotel at 11:30am within minutes.
At 11:30am sharp our driver was outside and Chau was also there with water bottles and hand wipes, introducing himself. The driver took us to Da Nang (about a 45 minute ride) and dropped us at the mall. We told Chau we wanted to stay 2 hours, but after getting there, realized we needed more time. We extended our stay an extra hour and Chau confirmed us for a ride home at 3:00pm.
At 3:00pm sharp a new driver collected us from the mall and drove us home.
The entire roundtrip cost was just under $500k or about $20, which is great value for exceptional service.
The cars were newer, drivers were friendly and safe and Chau was easy to co-ordinate with. We will absolutely use them again! Mention Trevor referred you for the BEST pricing!

Cyclos in Hoi An

A cyclo is a bicycle taxi with a carriage for the passenger on the front, and an elevated bike powered manually by a driver in the back. They are very popular with tourists as a way to tour through the old streets of Hoi An.

The going rate is about 22,000₫ per KM, but that is really hard to track. There is no metre on the bike, so better negotiate a fixed rate.

It seems the going rate is around 100,000₫ per 30 minutes on the cyclo. ($4.30 USD)

If you are just looking to take one as part of touring through the downtown, the drivers will have a pre-planned route to take you on. You can also use the cyclos to get from one point to another, just ask if the route you need is possible for them.

Renting a Bicycle or Scooter in Hoi An

If your hotel or homestay doesn’t offer you free use of a bicycle during your stay, you can rent bikes for 30,000₫ per day. ($1.30 USD)

Scooters and Motorbikes can be rented for about 100,000₫ ($4.30) per day, with a cheaper weekly/monthly rate available.

Getting From Hoi An to the Da Nang Airport

Grab Hoi An is great for quick in town rides, but it’s not the best choice for longer trips. For example, the app says getting a Grab to the Da Nang airport can cost anywhere from 270,000₫ to 370,000₫ which is too high compared to the alternatives. Hiring a private driver (or a taxi with a fixed price) to the airport will only cost anywhere between 200,000₫ to 275,000₫ making it a cheaper option than a Grab.

Of course, there are private drivers and taxi’s that will try and sell you on the idea that the trip will cost 300,000₫-450,000₫ but they are overcharging. Negotiate them down to a far rate, which is anything under 275,000₫.

If you have your hotel book you a private car to the airport, expect to pay a premium for a few reasons. First off, they are going the leg work for you and making it convenient. You won’t have to call around and find a driver for your preferred time, they will do all that for you. They also only use companies with good reputations and good track records of actually showing up on time. Thirdly, they make a small amount on the booking. Expect to pay around 300,000-450,000₫ for booking a private car through your hotel.

Taking a Taxi, Private Driver and GRAB in Hoi An