Hoi An: Basket Boat & Lantern Release with Flower Class

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/28

Duration3h

GroupUp to 50

LanguagesEN

PickupAt your hotel

Bamboo boats, wishes, and a river full of floating light

You ride a bamboo basket boat through a coconut forest, try casting nets and watching local fishermen spin their boats, eat two famous Hoi An dishes, make your own flower lantern by hand, and release it onto the Hoai River at dusk while hundreds of others float past. The tour includes your guide, all materials, and transport from your hotel, leaving the evening free to explore the lantern-lit Ancient Town on your own.

Step-by-step itinerary

Hoi An basket boat and lantern experience

Ride basket boat in Coconut Forest
Watch basket boat spinning performance
Try catching crabs and casting nets
Eat Bánh Xèo and Ram dishes
Create flower lantern and write wish
Release lantern on Hoai River

The Experience

The basket boat wobbles the moment you step into it—that split second where you think you might tip, but you don't. It's a round bamboo vessel, the kind you see nowhere else, and your guide steadies you with a hand while explaining that fishermen have been spinning these things through the Coconut Forest for generations. The water is still, the palms are thick, and then someone demonstrates the spin—a quick, practiced rotation that sends the boat turning in place. You try it. Your arms feel the resistance of the water, and suddenly you understand why this takes skill. The Bay Mau Coconut Forest is quiet enough that you hear the paddle hit the water, the rustle of fronds, and the guide's voice telling you about the villages here, about crab nets, about how this place used to hide soldiers during the war.

After the boat, there's food—Bánh Xèo, which is a crispy pancake folded with shrimp and bean sprouts, and Ram, which is a spring roll fried until it cracks when you bite it. You eat standing or sitting, depending on where the tour has you at that moment, and the guide points out the textures, the way the wrapper shatters, the herbs that go into the filling. It's not a cooking class; it's a tasting that happens between activities, which somehow makes it feel more real. Then comes the flower lantern workshop. You're handed materials—tissue paper, a wire frame, maybe some flowers—and shown how to fold and glue. Your lantern won't look like the ones in the photographs. It'll be a little lopsided, maybe the petals won't sit quite right, but that's the point. You write a wish on a small card and tuck it inside.

As the sun drops, you board a traditional lantern boat on the Hoai River. The water is dark now, and the ancient town behind you is lit up in gold and red. Other boats are already out there, and the water is starting to fill with floating lanterns—hundreds of them, maybe thousands, drifting downstream. You hold your lantern over the edge, say your wish quietly or not at all, and let it go. It bobs for a second, then catches the current. The moment it leaves your hands is the part people remember. After that, the tour technically ends, but Hoi An Ancient Town is right there—the night market is open, the streets are crowded with lanterns hanging from every shop, and you can wander as long as you want. Hotel pickup is included on the way back.

What’s included

Hotel pickup and return transport in Hoi An, a bamboo basket boat ride through Bay Mau Coconut Forest with a local fisherman's spinning demonstration, the chance to try casting nets, local food tasting of Bánh Xèo and Ram, a guided flower lantern workshop where you create and decorate your own lantern, a traditional lantern boat trip on the Hoai River, and the release of your handmade lantern onto the water. Your local guide is with you throughout, and all materials for the lantern are provided.

Good to know

Easy physical levelStroller friendlyPublic transport nearbyNot for heart conditionsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Hoi An Lantern Boat Tour

Is this one for you?A good fit if you want to experience Hoi An's most iconic evening ritual without arranging boats, food, or timing yourself—the fixed itinerary handles the logistics, which is what leaves you free to linger in the Ancient Town afterward if you want to.