The question we hear most often at the shop is some version of “the Bay Mau coconut forest looks packed — is there a quieter one?” The answer is Tra Nhieu Village. Same water palms, same round basket boats, same Thu Bon estuary, but on the far bank, with a fraction of the visitors, and run by the households who weave the mats and mend the nets themselves. This guide has the ride, what happens there, what it costs and how to combine it with Kim Bong in one morning.

Where Tra Nhieu Village is, and the seven trades

Tra Nhieu Village belongs to the commune of Duy Vinh in the former Duy Xuyen district — since July 2025 administratively part of Da Nang City, and labelled Nam Phuoc on Google Maps. It sits at the point where the Thu Bon, Ly Ly and Truong Giang rivers converge before emptying at Cua Dai, so water surrounds it on three sides and every field is river silt. Seen from Hoi An it is just across the water, behind the carpentry village of Kim Bong.

Locals call Tra Nhieu Village “the land of seven trades”: fishing, sedge mat weaving, net making, basket-boat building, thatching with nipa leaves, bamboo weaving and rice-noodle making. Not all seven are still busy — the last basket-boat maker in the village is in his eighties, and one boat sells for 2.5 to 5 million dong — but mats and nets are still woven and mended on the porches every day, and that is exactly what you come to see.

Riding to Tra Nhieu Village from Hoi An

From 84 Phan Chau Trinh, Google Maps measures 10.5 km, about 25 minutes: follow Hung Vuong out of town, cross the Cam Kim bridge into the Kim Bong carpentry village, then take Kim Bong Tay road south towards Duy Vinh. It is flat village concrete, almost no traffic, sedge fields and water palms on both sides — an automatic scooter, a semi-automatic or an electric bike all handle it easily.

• Which bike: any of them. An electric bike covers the 21 km round trip with charge to spare — tell us in advance so we send it out fully charged.
• Road condition: good, though the last stretch into the village is single-lane concrete. Give way to ox carts and sedge loads.
• Parking: at the host household, normally free when you use their services.
• Season: March to August is dry and the palms are greenest. October to December brings floods and the village goes under — skip it then.

What you actually do at Tra Nhieu Village

The community ecotourism model here started in 2010. Around five households now offer services, and one basket-boat operator provides work for 15 to 20 people in the village. On a busy day a single host receives 50 to 100 visitors, mostly foreign groups — which means on an ordinary weekday you will very likely be the only guest.

Unlike a packaged tour at other spots, everything at Tra Nhieu Village happens on real porches and real riverbank. Do not expect a stage. Expect an afternoon sitting with villagers, sedge dust on your hands and wood smoke in your clothes.

Cam Thanh sells you the coconut forest; Tra Nhieu just lets you sit in it while the village gets on with its day.

Tra Nhieu Village prices, booking ahead and food

The usual package is a basket boat plus food at 200,000 to 250,000₫ per person — the rate the households quoted to Vietnamese media in 2023, and we have not seen it move much since. For two people, message or call the host a day ahead so they can prepare a boat and a meal; turn up on spec in the morning and there is usually a boat, but no guarantee of lunch.

Food at Tra Nhieu Village means grilled river fish, Quang noodles made on the spot, rice paper and home-distilled rice wine. If you want a proper full meal, eat back in Kim Bong or Hoi An — the food here is part of the experience rather than a restaurant.

Tra Nhieu or the Bay Mau coconut forest?

If you have done neither, do the Bay Mau coconut forest first — closer, easier, a sure thing. Save Tra Nhieu Village for the second time.

Kim Bong and Tra Nhieu Village in one morning

The road into Tra Nhieu Village runs straight through Kim Bong Carpentry Village, so pairing them is the obvious plan: leave the shop at 8:00, reach the Kim Bong workshops and boatyards by 8:20, cross to Tra Nhieu at 9:30 and take the basket boat before the sun bites, eat in the village or back in Kim Bong at 11:30, and be in the Old Town by 13:00. Under 25 km of riding in total — a semi-automatic will not even finish a tank.

Want a longer day? Carry on west towards Duy Xuyen for My Son Sanctuary in the afternoon, or loop back through Tra Que Vegetable Village for a three-village day.

Tra Nhieu Village: frequently asked questions