We adore Hoi An on Vietnam‘s central coast and would probably still be living there if it wasn’t for a visa mess-up by a travel agent. Now we’re dreaming of dancing boats on Hoi An’s enchanting river. I shot this sunset timelapse in Hoi An when we were living there last year and we can’t stop watching the mesmerising video. Take a look and let us know what you think.
One of Southeast Asia’s most charming riverside cities, Hoi An is often dismissed as merely a tourist town by people who pass through quickly, only spending a few days. However, when you live in a place for a few months or more, you get to scratch beneath the surface, peeling back a place’s many layers, and discovering different sides of those cities and towns.
That’s what happened in Hoi An. We’re not just smitten with the jaw-dropping beauty of the town. As a result, Hoi An is our most favourite little town in Vietnam, if not Southeast Asia.
As a photographer, the joy experienced hitting the Hoi An streets every morning and afternoon to make photographs is just irresistible. I was addicted and found myself doing it again and again each day.
My favourite time to photograph there (like most places) was the late afternoon – the magic hour – and on a good day the light was so luminous it was breathtaking. I couldn’t help but try to make a sunset time-lapse in Hoi An.
We have a lot of stories and images on Hoi An that haven’t been published here on Grantourismo as we need to wait until our commissions appear in print. You can expect to see a couple of stories on the cuisine of Hoi An in Feast magazine and The Guardian newspaper soon, we hope. Once they’re out, we’ll be able to share more stories with you here, and hopefully have a chance to post some articles very soon.
In the meantime, enjoy what I saw every afternoon for three months here – no wonder we never wanted to leave!
This place looks fantastic… When I see that, I know I cannot stop traveling. This kind of atmosphere and discoveries are what I’m looking for. Thanks for sharing the beauty!
And Hoi An is very beautiful! When you visit make sure you settle in and stay for a while. Because it’s only after dark, when all the day-trippers have returned to their beach hotels and their cruise ships, and the city is quiet, and it’s just the residents (locals and expats) that you really appreciate the charm of Hoi An. And please let us know if you get there and you also fall in love with Hoi An! Thanks for dropping by!
Hoi An is such a charming town. the sunset will never get old.
Yes, we agree, absolutely loved living there and never got tired of the sunset. We made sure we were out on the streets savouring it each day.