Hoi An pottery and farming class with dinner: 500-year-old pottery village

You make pottery by hand, plant rice paddies, and ride a water buffalo.

A half-day class in Hoi An combining pottery making at Thanh Ha pottery village, over 500 years old, with hands-on farming at Tra Que organic vegetable village and Cam Thanh rice paddy farm. You work alongside local farmers, planting baby vegetables and rice, then return for a family dinner. The tour includes hotel pickup, an English-speaking guide, and all entry fees.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore villages and farming activities

• Visit Thanh Ha pottery village
• Make pottery by wheel
• Join gardening at Tra Que vegetable village
• Work at Cam Thanh rice paddy farm
• Ride water buffalo
• Have local dinner at family restaurant
• Return to hotel

The experience

You start at Thanh Ha pottery village, where potters have used the same wheel-throwing method for centuries. The village sits along a red brick road lined with hundred-year-old houses, and you'll watch craftspeople at work before getting your hands on the clay yourself. Making pottery by wheel takes practice: the guide walks you through it, and the clay resists until your hands find the rhythm. It's the kind of thing that looks effortless until you try it.

From there you move to Tra Que organic vegetable village, where the work is different but just as physical. You prepare the soil, rake the ground, fertilize with seaweed, plant baby vegetables and herbs, water the rows, and pick what's ready. The vegetables grow in neat rows under open sky, and the work is steady and repetitive in a way that settles the mind. Then comes Cam Thanh rice paddy farm, where you plough the field and plant baby rice the way local farmers do. You also get the chance to ride a water buffalo: an animal that moves slowly and deliberately through the flooded paddies.

The day ends with a local dinner at a family restaurant, where you eat what the region grows. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included, as is an air-conditioned vehicle between stops and an English-speaking guide who explains what you're doing and why. A welcome drink arrives when you start.

What’s included

• Hotel pickup and drop-off in an air-conditioned vehicle.
• English-speaking guide.
• entry to Thanh Ha pottery village, Tra Que organic vegetable village, and Cam Thanh rice paddy farm.
• hands-on pottery-making instruction.
• gardening and rice-planting activities.
• water buffalo ride.
• welcome drink.
• local family dinner.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 08:30 and 14:00

Book up to2h before

AgesAdult (11 to 80 years) · Child (4 to 10 years) · Infant (under 4): free

GroupUp to 15

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated 13 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortInfant seats availablePublic transport nearby

Operated by Hoi An Cooking Class

Is this one for you?The five-hour window leaves room for a morning or afternoon elsewhere in Hoi An, but not both. Book this if you want to work with your hands and eat what you planted, and you're willing to spend most of one half-day doing it.

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Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (4 to 10 years); Infant (under 4): free.

What exactly do I make or learn at Thanh Ha pottery village?

Thanh Ha pottery village has used the same wheel-throwing method for over 500 years, and you get hands-on instruction in making pottery by wheel: the same technique the village's craftspeople still use today. The guide shows you how to work the clay, though it takes practice to keep the pot centered and even.

What farming activities happen at Tra Que and Cam Thanh?

At Tra Que organic vegetable village you prepare the soil, fertilize with seaweed, plant baby vegetables and herbs, water, and pick vegetables ready for harvest. At Cam Thanh rice paddy farm you plough the field, plant baby rice, and ride a water buffalo through the paddies. All the work local farmers do during planting season.

How long does this tour take and what's included in the price?

The tour runs five hours and includes hotel pickup and drop-off, an air-conditioned vehicle, an English-speaking guide, entry to all three villages, a welcome drink, and dinner at a family restaurant. All fees and taxes are covered.

Is this tour physically demanding?

The tour is suitable for all fitness levels. The work (planting, raking, riding a water buffalo) is the same pace as the local farmers do it, which is steady rather than strenuous, though you will be on your feet and handling soil and plants.

What is Thanh Ha pottery village actually like to walk through?

Thanh Ha sits along a red brick road with hundred-year-old houses still standing. You walk through the village, meet the old craftspeople at work, and see the daily rhythms of a place that has made pottery the same way for over five centuries.