Online Travel Vietnam: Visitors to the tourist magnet of Hoi An Town will have access to local relics at night from January 2, 2010 under a project of Hoi An municipal authorities to boost tourist arrivals to the ancient town.
Under the current regulation, tourists to the UNESCO-listed town are only allowed to explore the city’s Old Quarter and a number of cultural and historical relics during the day.
While visitors are restricted to certain relics like ancient houses and cultural venues as night falls.
During the night tours, travelers can choose the venues they want to go to, according to local authorities.
Entertainment activities and venues, including a food street, performances of traditional arts and crafts, and a floating food market on the Hoai River, will be held to spice up the nightlife in Hoi An.
Visitors can also take part in traditional folk games, shop at local night market, riding boats on the river and listen to folk music.
The night tickets are expected to cost VND40,000 (US$2.16) per person each Vietnamese and VND90,000 ($4.87) each foreigners.
Some 30 kilometers away from central coastal Danang City, the former harbor city of Hoi An was an important trading center of Vietnam during the 16th and 17th centuries.
The town is famed for its poetic and picturesque landscapes stemming from old houses and structures, diverse cultural influences, mostly from Chinese and Japanese traders who helped turned Hoi An into a commercial district in the 16th century.
It is said that the streets of Hoi An are in the most romantic time when locals at the ancient town switch off their lights and hang colored lanterns on their porches and windows on the 14th day of each lunar month.
In 1999, the old town was declared a World Heritage site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as a well-preserved example of a Southeast Asian trading port of the 15th to 19th centuries, with buildings that display a unique blend of local and foreign influences.
Source; Compiled by Hong Nguyen, Vietnews
