About us

Who we are

Free Walking Tours Hoi An is a locally led walking-tour team based in Hoi An, Quang Nam. We guide small groups through the UNESCO-listed Ancient Town — sharing the stories behind lanterns, merchant houses, riverside life, and the dishes that make Central Vietnam distinct.

We are not a faceless booking platform. When you walk with us, you walk with people who live in or around Hoi An and who care how the town is experienced — respectfully, at a human pace, with room for questions.

Why Free Walking Tours Hoi An exists

Hoi An is one of Southeast Asia's most visited heritage towns. Many travellers arrive with a short list of landmarks but leave without understanding the merchants, families, and craft traditions that built the place.

We exist to close that gap: to offer an accessible first conversation with the town — free to join, led in English, sized for actual dialogue. If the walk earns your trust, you may tip your guide at the end. That model keeps the door open while aligning our guides' income with the quality of each experience.

Our philosophy

• ·Stories before scripts — we explain context, not just names and dates.
• ·Small groups — so you can hear, ask, and pause when something catches your eye.
• ·Honest expectations — if meeting times or routes are still being confirmed, we say so clearly.
• ·No pressure — tips are voluntary; our guides do not chase payments.

Responsible tourism

Heritage towns thrive when visitors respect residents, vendors, and sacred spaces. Our guides route groups through quieter alleys when possible, explain local customs at temples and assembly halls, and encourage thoughtful photography.

We do not invent history or embellish traditions for effect. When a detail is uncertain or still being verified with our team, we tell you — the same standard we apply to meeting points and schedules on our tour pages.

Local guides

Our walks are led by English-speaking guides from the Hoi An area. Individual guide profiles will be published on this site once our team confirms bios and photos — we do not publish placeholder biographies.

Guides are compensated primarily through tips at the end of each tour. That keeps the experience accessible while rewarding guides who invest preparation, warmth, and local knowledge in every walk.

Community

We buy tastings from family-run vendors on our food tour, recommend locally owned businesses when guests ask where to eat or shop, and keep groups small enough that street life is not overwhelmed.

Free Walking Tours Hoi An is one chapter of the Free Walking Tours Vietnam network — independent city teams in places such as Hanoi, Hue, and Ho Chi Minh City. Each team runs its own walks and its own reviews; success in another city does not speak for our Hoi An operation.