Best Hoi An River Cruises — Our Top 15

1.Hoai River Boat Trip by Night and Floating Lantern

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 1,988 reviews · 20 min · from $8Our pick

Meet your English-speaking guide at the Kazimierz Kwiatkowski Bust on Tran Phu Street. You’ll receive a paper lantern, walk five minutes to the Thu Bon River, and board a private wooden boat for your group. The rower helps light and release the lantern during a 10 to 15 minute ride. Guides including Linh and Phuoc Ho are praised for clear communication and smooth arrangements.

“The river was beautiful at night, and each party got their own boat, which was very nice. There was a crazy amount if people and boats in the area, but the experience was nice”

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2.River Lantern Boat Experience with Free 5G eSIM

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 1,819 reviews · 20 min · from $8

Meet at 153 Tran Phu Street near the Japanese Bridge, then walk about five minutes to the Hoai River. Your 20-minute boat ride includes a lantern to release, bottled herbal tea, and help from English-speaking staff. The free 24-hour eSIM adds 8GB of data and 10 minutes of local calls.

“Surprised by how good this was! I thought it would be crazy and really busy. But it was so slick and peaceful! We didn’t have to wait at all and whilst the experience was relatively short, it didn’t feel rushed. We recalled enjoyed it :)”

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3.My Son Sanctuary and Thu Bon River Boat Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 653 reviews · 5 hours · from $16

Spend five hours visiting My Son Sanctuary with an English-speaking guide, see a Cham dance performance, enjoy local lunch or banh mi, then cruise back toward Hoi An on the Thu Bon River. Guides such as Philip, Ben, Lee, Tu, and Vu are known for clear history talks and friendly help.

“Definitely worthy! Our guide Ben was very informative and I have to say such a skilled photographer. We are very impressed with the My Son site and had super nice time thanks to Ben!”

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4.My Son Sanctuary & Sunset River Cruise BBQ or Banhmi

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 345 reviews · 5 hours - 330 minutes · from $18

You’ll visit My Son Sanctuary from Hoi An with an English-speaking guide such as Thao, Tin, Van, or Lam, then finish with a sunset cruise on the Thu Bon River. Choose a BBQ meal or banh mi. Expect Hindu temples, a traditional Cham performance, Vietnamese coffee with the BBQ option, and hotel pickup within Hoi An.

“A perfect day out. Charlie the guide was excellent 👍”

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5.Hoi An Lantern Boat Ride on the Thu Bon River

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 169 reviews · 20 min · from $8

Meet your English-speaking host at the Kazimierz Kwiatkowski bust near 140 Tran Phu Street. Walk five minutes to the river, board a wooden boat, release one flower lantern, and enjoy a 15-minute cruise past Hoi An’s glowing Old Town. Boats hold one to five people.

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6.PRIAVATE DaNang CITY TOUR-FOOD TOUR-Sunset BOAT TRIP on Han river

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 63 reviews · from $100Top rated

Start at 1:30 pm with hotel pickup in Hoi An or Da Nang. Guide Long leads you to Marble Mountains, Am Phu Cave, Non Nuoc stone carving village, My Khe Beach, Linh Ung Pagoda, and Han Market. Finish with local food and a one-hour Han River boat ride past nine bridges. Entrance fees, drinks, fruit, and transfers are included.

“We had a great time with Pacific Boat team to visit all most beautiful destinations of the city.Long is a superb guide who is helpful and smart.The place was well worth to visit and very comfortable with group only 8 persons.Highly recommend”

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7.Private Hoi An Bike, Thu Bon River Cruise & Dinner Experience

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 50 reviews · from $69

Ride 10 kilometers through Hoi An’s countryside, pedal to Tra Que Vegetable Village, cruise the Thu Bon River at sunset, and finish with a six-dish Vietnamese dinner. Your private English-speaking guide may be named Ha, Luong, Luc, or Luke. The ride is gentle but requires basic cycling fitness, and the dinner setting can be rustic.

“The tour and our guide ( Lou ) was awesome, the food was good except the prawns but I'm fussy about cleaning the poop out first. Definitely recommend it!”

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8.Hoai River Night Boat Trip and Floating Lantern

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 32 reviews · 15 min · from $10

Meet an English-speaking greeter opposite 140 Tran Phu Street, walk to the dock, and board a wooden boat for up to four people. You’ll float along the Hoai River for 15 minutes, light one flower lantern, make a wish, and watch it drift away. Afterward, explore Hoi An’s night market on foot.

“magical experience..we were the only 3 on boat so it was great ..would definitely recommend 10/10”

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9.Marble mountain, Monkey Mountains with Cruise Trip on Han River

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 23 reviews · from $69

Start at 2 pm with hotel pickup in Hoi An, then explore Marble Mountain caves and Buddhist shrines, Son Tra Peninsula, and Linh Ung Pagoda. After dinner, cruise the Han River at about 8 pm for views of Da Nang’s lit bridges. The group is limited to 15, with an English guide, transport, tickets, and dinner included.

“This was the second time I've taken this tour with Turtle - I liked it so much the first time that when my parents came to visit, I signed us up for it again! It's a good way to see some highlights of Danang, which is beautifully lit up at night. Just be aware - there is a lot of walking and steps to climb, which was a bit hard in the summer heat.”

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10.Danang: My Son Sanctuary and River Cruise 7.30 am/12.30 pm

★★★★★★★★★★3.6 · 20 reviews · 5 - 6 hours · from $33

Travel from Danang to My Son Sanctuary with an English-speaking guide, explore the former Cham religious center, and watch an Apsara dance. The morning option adds lunch at a local house and a boat ride to Hoi An. The afternoon option includes Vietnamese bread and a sunset cruise when weather allows. Guides such as Simon and Tu have been praised for clear explanations and friendly service.

“Very knowledgeable guide Mr Simon. Thanks a lot to him.”

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11.Da Nang or Hoi An: Countryside Bike & Basket Boat Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 13 reviews · 270 minutes - 6 hours · from $36

Cycle quiet farming roads through Hoi An’s rice fields, meet local farmers, try traditional fishing, and ride a round basket boat through Cam Thanh’s nipa palms. Guides including Man, Tony, Duk, and Mr. Cu lead the experience in English. A Vietnamese meal, hotel pickup, bicycles, and helmets are included.

“Mr. Cu was our guide. He was very humble, friendly, welcoming and had a very good sense of humor. His English is very good and easy to understand. From the beginning we called him “Mr LA” because of his hat. He was present and he took care of us, making sure we were alright along the journey and also on our stops. We started our bike journey at the rice fields and we were cycling around it. He introduced us the eco village concept by presenting us the people who are involved, such as the farmers, the fisherman and the people responsible for our meal (that are also involved in…”

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12.Basket Boat Tour by River Boat and Lantern Release

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 11 reviews · 2 hours · from $19

Meet the English-speaking boat team at 40 Bach Dang Street and cruise from Hoi An to Bay Mau Coconut Forest. You’ll ride a traditional basket boat, see local river life, and return by cruiser at sunset. Mr. Bai may operate the basket boat, and lanterns are provided for the closing wish ritual.

“The experience was good. The guide was super nice and attention with us . He took us to a channel during the sunset. Nice spot . We just had to wait around 45min for the boat , but the experience was nice .”

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13.Lantern Boat Ride on the Hoai River

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 10 reviews · 15 min · from $8

Meet your English-speaking greeter at Kazimierz Kwiatkowsky Square, near 140 Tran Phu, then take a 15-minute Hoai River boat ride. You receive one flower lantern and release it as a prayer for luck, peace, health, and fortune. The 19:00 to 20:00 period is busiest, so expect a queue.

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14.Authentic Mekong Delta: Tuk Tuk, Rowing Boat, Biking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★3.2 · 9 reviews · 8 hours · from $18

Spend eight hours traveling from Ho Chi Minh City into the Mekong Delta by air-conditioned van, motorboat, rowing boat, and tuk tuk. You’ll visit Vinh Trang Pagoda, Qui Islet, a coconut candy workshop, a Garden-Pond-Cage farm, tropical fruit gardens, and a Southern Vietnamese folk music performance. Lunch, fruit, water, and central District 1 pickup are included.

“loved the boat ride and lunch. really great tour and the guide really trys to make sure you have a great experience. very friendly and I highly recommend”

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15.HoiAn Small Boat By Night on Bach Dang River

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 9 reviews · from $9

Take a private, roughly 20-minute boat ride from 94 Bach Dang in Hoi An’s old town. Choose sunset for river photos or night for the chance to release a lantern. A local guide, coffee or tea, and mobile ticket are included, but pickup details need checking.

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