Hoi An is, on most accounts, one of the most beautiful small towns in Southeast Asia. The UNESCO-listed Ancient Town — a preserved trading port from the 15th to 19th centuries — occupies a bend in the Thu Bon River and retains its wooden merchant houses, lantern-strung alleys, and evening food markets with a completeness that most historic towns can only approximate. That it also happens to sit within 30 minutes of two of Vietnam's finest championship golf courses is, in the broader context of golf travel, remarkable good fortune.
Golfers who use Hoi An as their central Vietnam base get both: mornings on Hoiana Shores or Laguna Lang Co, and evenings in one of Asia's most compelling urban environments. The contrast between the medieval streetscape and the resort-quality golf a short drive away is one of the most distinctive features of this section of the ASEAN Links itinerary.
The Golf Within Reach
Hoiana Shores, Robert Trent Jones Jr's links-style design on natural white sand dunes, is effectively Hoi An's home course — the Hoiana resort complex sits on the coast just south of the city, and transfers from Hoi An accommodation take 20-25 minutes through the agricultural coastal plain. The course is the most authentically links-style layout on the Da Nang circuit, and its location near Hoi An makes it the natural first round for golfers based in the ancient town.
Laguna Lang Co, Sir Nick Faldo's lagoon-and-beach design 30 kilometres to the north, is a slightly longer transfer from Hoi An — approximately 45 minutes — but entirely manageable for early tee times. Many golfers on the ASEAN Links tours consider this their favourite Vietnam round, and the drive north through the coastal scenery past the Hai Van Pass foothills is a good warm-up for the round.
Da Nang's two other marquee courses — Montgomerie Links and Ba Na Hills — are both within an hour from Hoi An, and are easily incorporated into a week-long stay.
Hoi An Evenings: The Lantern Ritual
Hoi An's Ancient Town comes fully alive after dark. The 600-year-old merchant houses and assembly halls light up with silk lanterns — red, yellow, blue, green — that spill their colour into the Thu Bon River below. The streets narrow as the evening progresses, and the sound of the town shifts from the daytime commerce of the tailor shops and restaurants to something quieter and more atmospheric.
The tailor experience is worth engaging with seriously rather than dismissing as tourist-oriented commerce. Hoi An's tailors are genuinely skilled, and a custom shirt or jacket ordered on the first evening will be ready for a fitting by night two and collected before departure. The quality, for the price, is exceptional. Multiple ASEAN Links guests have returned from Vietnam trips with garments they still wear years later.
For food, the Old Town's riverside restaurants serve the Hoi An specialties that have made this one of Vietnam's most celebrated culinary stops. White rose dumplings, cao lau noodles (made with lye water and pork specific to Hoi An's local tradition), and the banh mi from Banh Mi Phuong — consistently cited among the world's great sandwiches — are all experiences rather than merely meals.
The Full Moon Lantern Festival
On the 14th day of each lunar month, Hoi An holds a full moon lantern festival — the streets go dark, electric lights are extinguished, and the town illuminates itself entirely by candlelight and lantern. Tourists launch paper lanterns on the Thu Bon River. Musicians play traditional instruments in the temple courtyards. The effect is otherworldly. If the ASEAN Links departure timing aligns with the lunar calendar (as it often does in February-March), this is worth planning an evening around.
The Hoi An Links and Lanterns tour is specifically designed around this combination — the golf, the ancient town, and the evening atmosphere of central Vietnam. It can also be incorporated into the Grand ASEAN Tour 2027 as part of the full 19-day Cambodia and Vietnam circuit.
Contact the team on WhatsApp (+84 70 327 1844) or at aseanlinksgolf@gmail.com.