After one day in Hoi An, you no longer know what to visit ..? Why not visiting the countryside of Hoi An and in particular Hoi An Water Coconut village. A place almost unique in Vietnam.
This village has gradually become a must see destination to visit around Hoi An.
Hoi An Water Coconut village is above all a fishing village stretching over 75 ha (just that).
Its particuliarity? This village has 7 ha immerged water coconut trees (Nippa), that’s what makes it curious and each hectare belongs to a family.
Since 2017, there is an entrance fee to visit the village if and only if you are taking a traditionnal Vietnamese boat (basket boat). Entrance fee is about 30,000 vnd per person. If you just want to visit the village without taking a basket boat, it’s still free.
Take a Basket Boat (Vietnamese round boat that you can see everywhere) in this forest is a quite magical experience. It feels like being in an Amazonian forest and feeling alone (if you go to the right place).
Hoi An Water Coconut is also rich in marine species such as crab and clam. This place is the main source of seafood for the region.
We have learned from the local people that during the war, the Vietnamese were hidden in the forest to avoid the Americans.
This forest is an protected area by WWF (World Wild Life).
Cam Thanh Water Coconut Village
The real name of the coconut palm village is Cam Thanh. Located just 6 km from Hoi An, it is possible to easily reach the village of Cam Thanh by boat or bicycle.
If you want to visit the water coconut village, basket boat tours are organized where you wander through the different canals among the coconut trees.
Our travel agency offers a visit to the village of Cam Thanh. Our local guide will pick you up from your hotel to take you aboard a traditional Hoi An boat.
After 30 minutes on the Thu Bon river, you will arrive at the village of Cam Thanh. Thu Bon river is the river which crosses the city of Hoi An and which forms a delta before throwing itself in the sea.
At the edge of the river, fishermen offer tours in round boats typical of the region. Count 150,000 vnd per person for 1 hour of basket boat.
The fishermen will give you a demonstration of fishing with these very mobile boats. Indeed, if you like thrills, fishermen can give you a little demonstration of navigation with these boats.
The main activity after fishing is of course the cultivation of these same coconut palms whose leaves are used to build the roofs of traditional houses as well as parasols, among others. You can see on the side of the roads the leaves that are drying in the sun.
If you are a photo lover, we have only one advice, come at 4 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. for the sunset with the background landscape, the coconut trees or a little further, the fishermen launching their nets, it’s just magnificent !
Why Basket boats in Central Vietnam ?
The basket boat is named the ghe thùng chài, a circular boat of one meter, and sometimes more, very light and with a remarkable stability, which is maneuvered by a pulling paddle movement.
The circular shape is obtained by a booklet and fine bamboo frames linked internally by ties to the basket. The caulking is done with a decoction composed of pulverized resin, lime and buffalo dung, all then coated with wood oil to varnish and protect the caulking.
Admirably adapted to always stay on the blades, the cross effect not existing, we encountered it, even in rough sea and strong swells, around fishing boats, to set or raise traps, longlines or gillnets.
The basket boats that dot the waters from the southern coast all the way up to Danang have become iconic to Vietnam. The origin of these coracles is unclear, but many believe they were born out of ingenuity during the French colonial era.
As the story goes, when the French levied taxes on boats in Vietnam, fishermen couldn’t afford to pay them – so they designed circular woven “baskets” that just so happened to also function as boats. The basket boats quickly became popular up and down the coast thanks to both their tax-free status and their impressive engineering.