Routes & Day Trips
Tra Que Vegetable Village Hoi An: The Best 2026 Guide
Tra Que Vegetable Village is a 400-year-old organic herb farm just 3 km from Hoi An Ancient Town — and the only place in Vietnam named a Best Tourism Village 2024 by UN Tourism. If you have one free morning in Hoi An, this is the trip worth taking: the ticket costs 35,000 VND, the ride is flat and easy, and you walk straight into a working Vietnamese farming village that has barely changed in four centuries.
This is the most complete guide to Tra Que Vegetable Village Hoi An you will find — how to get there, what it costs, the two golden hours for photos, the experiences actually worth your money, a tested half-day itinerary, and the practical details most reviews skip. Every fact here is checked against official sources and updated for Vietnam’s new administrative boundaries from 1 July 2025.
📌 TRA QUE VEGETABLE VILLAGE — QUICK FACTS
Where is Tra Que Vegetable Village? How to get there
Exact location (new administrative update)
Tra Que Vegetable Village sits on the banks of the De Vong River, between Hoi An Ancient Town and An Bang Beach — a position that makes Tra Que Vegetable Village a natural stop on the way to the coast. Since 1 July 2025, Vietnam merged its administrative units: the former Cam Ha commune joined Thanh Ha, Tan An and Cam An to become Hoi An Tay Ward, Da Nang City. The correct address today is Tra Que Village, Hoi An Tay Ward, Da Nang — older articles and even some maps still say “Cam Ha, Quang Nam”, so don’t be confused.
- From Hoi An Ancient Town: about 3 km north
- From An Bang Beach: about 2.5 km
- From central Da Nang: about 25 km
- From Da Nang Airport: about 27 km (~45 minutes)
👉 Open directions to Tra Que Vegetable Village on Google Maps
How to get to Tra Que Vegetable Village
Getting to Tra Que Vegetable Village is simple: from the Ancient Town, follow Hai Ba Trung Street north towards Da Nang for about 3 km. Cross the first bridge and the village gate appears on your right. The lanes are flat, quiet and free of trucks — comfortable even if you are new to riding in Vietnam.
| Transport | Time | Typical cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🛵 Motorbike / scooter | ~8 min | From 120,000 VND/day | Anyone continuing to An Bang, Cua Dai or Da Nang the same day |
| ⚡ Electric scooter | ~10 min | From 200,000 VND/day | No licence needed, silent and emission-free |
| 🚲 Bicycle / e-bike | 15 – 20 min | From 50,000 VND/day | Couples, families, anyone who wants to go slow |
| 🚗 Taxi / Grab | ~8 min | 50,000 – 100,000 VND each way | Groups, older travellers, rainy days |
| 🚶 Walking | 45 – 60 min | Free | Not recommended — no shade, no pavement |
Tra Que Vegetable Village entrance fee and costs in 2026
The entrance fee for Tra Que Vegetable Village is remarkably low for what you get. The 35,000 VND ticket is not just an admission charge — it goes towards helping farmers keep up a hand-worked method that takes many times more labour than industrial growing.
| Item | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Entrance ticket | 35,000 VND (~$1.35) | Village access, walking the herb beds, photos, watching farmers work |
| Children under 1.2 m | Free | — |
| “Farmer for a day” tour | 200,000 – 400,000 VND | Farmer’s shirt and conical hat, hoeing, watering with a bamboo yoke, sowing, harvesting (2–3 hrs) |
| Cooking class in the garden | 350,000 – 700,000 VND | Pick your own herbs + cook 3–4 Hoi An dishes + eat on site |
| Herbal foot soak | 50,000 – 100,000 VND | Warm medicinal-leaf water, usually with ginger tea |
| Bike parking | 5,000 – 10,000 VND | Car park at the village gate |
Why UN Tourism named Tra Que Vegetable Village the world’s best
On 14 November 2024, in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, the United Nations World Tourism Organization — now called UN Tourism — announced that Tra Que Vegetable Village Hoi An had made the Best Tourism Villages 2024 list. It was the only village in Vietnam honoured that year, chosen from more than 260 applications across 60 countries.
Four things convinced the judging panel:
1Sustainability that is real, not a slogan
Four centuries of farming and the soil is still rich — because the village never switched to chemical fertiliser or pesticide. Only river algae and well-rotted organic compost.
2The community actually benefits
Tourism did not push the farmers out. The village’s 326 farmers are the ones teaching visitors to hoe, carry water and cook — the income goes back to them.
3A living heritage, protected
In April 2022 the craft of growing vegetables at Tra Que was added to Vietnam’s National Intangible Cultural Heritage list, under folk knowledge and traditional crafts.
4Nothing here is staged
No concrete gateway, no theme-park add-ons. You walk between real herb beds and meet real farmers, in a village that still earns its living from the soil.
Tra Que Vegetable Village is the third Vietnamese village recognised by UN Tourism, after Thai Hai (Thai Nguyen, 2022) and Tan Hoa (Quang Binh, 2023). You can read the official announcements at UN Tourism and Vietnam Tourism.
400 years of history — and the story behind the name Tra Que
Here is what most visitors never learn: Tra Que Vegetable Village did not begin as a farming village at all. The history of Tra Que Vegetable Village starts with a community of fishermen.
- 16th centuryThe first settlersThe ancestors of Tra Que were fishermen living along the De Vong River who came to clear this alluvial flat. They lived by net and line, not by the hoe.
- The switchFrom fishing to farmingThey discovered the riverside silt was extraordinary for aromatic herbs, and gradually turned to farming — a living the village has kept for more than 400 years since.
- First name“Nhu Que”The village was originally called Nhu Que, meaning herbs that smell as sweet as cinnamon bark.
- Gia Long eraHow it became “Tra Que”Legend has it that Emperor Gia Long, tasting a dish made with the village’s herbs, was struck by the delicate aroma — “fragrant as tea, warm as cinnamon” — and named the land Tra Que (“tra” = tea, “que” = cinnamon).
- April 2022National Intangible Cultural HeritageVietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism recognises the Tra Que vegetable-growing craft.
- Nov 2024Best Tourism Village in the worldUN Tourism honours Tra Que in Colombia — Vietnam’s only entry that year.
The secret behind Tra Que herbs: river algae and human hands
The question visitors ask most when they reach Tra Que Vegetable Village: why do these herbs smell so much stronger than market herbs? Three reasons.
1. Algae from the De Vong River
This is the village’s famous secret. Farmers scoop algae from the De Vong River (the stretch of the Co Co waterway that runs past the village), dry it and let it rot down into fertiliser. Brackish-water algae is mineral-rich, holds moisture and keeps the soil loose — something chemical fertiliser cannot replicate. The village uses no pesticide and no synthetic nitrogen.
2. Sandy alluvial soil beside the river
The flat between the De Vong River and the Tra Que lagoon drains fast but holds its minerals — so leaves grow thick, essential oils concentrate, and the herbs stay crisp and aromatic far longer.
3. Entirely hand-worked
Hoeing, sowing, watering with a twin bamboo yoke, harvesting bunch by bunch — all of it by hand. No machinery, no irrigation systems. That is why Tra Que herbs cost more than ordinary ones, and why the village’s 202 households are called the keepers of Hoi An’s green soul.
Across 18 hectares, Tra Que Vegetable Village grows more than 20 herbs and vegetables: Thai basil, mint, perilla, Vietnamese coriander, cilantro, fish mint, garlic chives, spring onion, lettuce and more. These are the non-negotiable ingredients of Hoi An’s signature dishes — cao lau, mi quang, fried spring rolls and tam huu. Ask any Hoi An chef: without Tra Que herbs, cao lau isn’t cao lau.
Things to do at Tra Que Vegetable Village: 8 experiences
1Farmer for a day
Put on the brown shirt and conical hat, hoe the beds, carry water with a bamboo yoke, sow and harvest. The most-loved experience among international visitors — and a genuine workout.
2Cooking class in the garden
Pick your own herbs, then cook banh xeo, spring rolls and tam huu right there. You eat within ten minutes of harvesting.
3Cycle the village lanes
Narrow brick paths between the beds, no cars. The most relaxing ride anywhere near Hoi An.
4Herbal foot soak + ginger tea
After the hoeing, a soak in warm medicinal-leaf water is the thing you’ll remember. Most households serve hot ginger tea with it.
5Buffalo ride
Some households offer buffalo rides along the field edges — children love it.
6Shoot the golden hour
05:30–07:30 while the farmers water, or 16:00–17:30 when the light goes low and gold. These are the two best windows.
7Cau Bong Festival
The village’s biggest agricultural festival, on the 7th day of Lunar New Year. If you’re in Hoi An for Tet, don’t miss it.
8Buy herbs to take home
Picked at the bed, at farm prices. If your homestay has a kitchen, this is the most useful souvenir in Hoi An.
A perfect half-day at Tra Que Vegetable Village
This is the Tra Que Vegetable Village itinerary Anh Khoa gives our rental customers — balanced between walking, photos and food, and finished before the sun gets harsh.
- 05:30Bike delivered to your hotelAnh Khoa brings it to your door. Head north on Hai Ba Trung Street.
- 05:45Reach the gate, buy your 35,000 VND ticketPark right at the entrance. Still cool, mist still on the beds.
- 06:00 – 07:00Walk the beds, shoot the golden hourFarmers start watering with the bamboo yoke — the best ten minutes of the day.
- 07:00 – 08:30Farming tour or cooking classIf you just want to wander, skip it and take a garden café instead.
- 08:30Herbal foot soak + ginger teaWind down before you leave.
- 09:00Ride on to An Bang Beach (2.5 km)Breakfast with a sea view, or straight into the water.
- 11:00Back to the Ancient Town for cao lauEating cao lau after seeing where its herbs grew is a different experience entirely.
Cau Bong Festival — the soul of Tra Que Vegetable Village
If you’re in Hoi An around Lunar New Year, the Cau Bong Festival alone is worth a return trip to Tra Que Vegetable Village. It is the village’s oldest agricultural festival, giving thanks to heaven, earth and Than Nong (the God of Agriculture), and asking for a kind year.
| When | Ritual |
|---|---|
| 24th of the 12th lunar month | Raising the ceremonial pole — the rites begin |
| 6th day of Lunar New Year | The announcement rite, welcoming the deity |
| 7th day of Lunar New Year | Main ceremony — incense offering to Than Nong, then the festival |
The festival half is what draws all of Hoi An: a spring-roll rolling contest (the village’s speciality), a best farmer competition, and a soil-hoeing race — foreign visitors are welcome to get in the beds and compete alongside the locals.
What to eat around Tra Que Vegetable Village
- Tam huu — “three friends”, the village speciality: shrimp, pork and herbs bound with a garlic chive. Only good when the herbs were picked minutes ago.
- Tra Que spring rolls — the dish they compete over at the Cau Bong Festival.
- Banh xeo — served with a whole basket of Tra Que herbs, the proper Hoi An way.
- Cao lau & mi quang — the fresh herbs on the side almost certainly came from Tra Que.
- Garden cafés — a few small places look straight out over the beds, at local prices.
Visiting Tra Que Vegetable Village: 8 practical tips
1Go early — really early
After 9 AM the sun is fierce and the watering is done. 5:30–7:00 is the window.
2Wear shoes, not flip-flops
You’ll walk a lot on dirt paths. If you join the hoeing tour, shoes are essential.
3Hat, sunscreen, water
There is no shade over the beds. These three are non-negotiable.
4Ask before photographing people
They are working, not performing. One polite question gets you a smile back.
5Agree tour prices upfront
Each household sets its own. Confirm the price and what’s included before starting.
6Don’t step on the beds
Every bed is a family’s income. Stick to the brick lanes and earth banks.
7Bring small cash
Tickets, parking and the smaller households are cash-only.
8Chain your stops
Tra Que + An Bang + Cua Dai in one morning. A full-day bike rental beats taxis by a wide margin.
Combine Tra Que Vegetable Village with what? 3 routes
| Route | Itinerary | Time | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green craft loop | Tra Que → Hoi An craft villages → Thanh Ha Pottery | Half day | Culture and craft lovers |
| Herbs & sea | Tra Que → An Bang Beach → Cua Dai Beach | Half day | Families, couples |
| Full countryside day | Tra Que → Hoi An countryside ride → Bay Mau coconut forest | 1 day | Anyone with a whole day free |
🛵 Rent a bike to Tra Que Vegetable Village with Anh Khoa
Tra Que is only 3 km from the Ancient Town — with your own bike you own the golden hour instead of waiting on a taxi at 5 AM. Anh Khoa delivers to hotels, homestays and resorts across central Hoi An.
- Motorbikes from 120,000 VND/day
- Electric scooters from 200,000 VND/day — no licence needed
- Bicycles & e-bikes from 50,000 VND/day
- Free delivery, helmet included
- 24/7 support on WhatsApp / Zalo
- Up to 30% off when you book online
Not sure which bike? If you don’t hold a licence, take an electric scooter or a bicycle — 3 km to Tra Que is far too short to need anything bigger. See also our delivery fees, current deals and rental FAQs. Riding out? Read our dedicated guide to Tra Que Vegetable Village by motorbike.
Tra Que Vegetable Village FAQ
Where is Tra Que Vegetable Village?
Tra Que Vegetable Village is in Hoi An Tay Ward, Da Nang City (before 1 July 2025 it was Cam Ha commune, Hoi An, Quang Nam province), about 3 km north of Hoi An Ancient Town, on the road out to An Bang Beach.
How much is the Tra Que Vegetable Village entrance fee?
35,000 VND per person (about $1.35) for adults and children over 1.2 m. It covers village access, walking the herb beds and photography. Farming tours and cooking classes are charged separately, roughly 200,000 – 400,000 VND per person.
What are Tra Que Vegetable Village opening hours?
The village is open 07:00 – 17:00 daily. The beds are open fields, however, so you can arrive earlier for sunrise photography — which is the best time of day anyway.
When is the best time to visit Tra Que Vegetable Village?
By hour: 05:30 – 07:30 while farmers water the beds, or 16:00 – 17:30 for low golden light. By season: February–April and August–November, when it’s cool and dry.
How far is Tra Que Vegetable Village from Hoi An?
About 3 km north of Hoi An Ancient Town — roughly 8 minutes by scooter or 15–20 minutes by bicycle along flat, quiet lanes. It’s about 25 km from central Da Nang and 27 km from Da Nang Airport.
How long do you need at Tra Que Vegetable Village?
Just walking and taking photos: 1 – 1.5 hours. With a farming tour or cooking class: 3 – 4 hours. Most visitors give Tra Que a morning and then continue to the beach.
Is Tra Que Vegetable Village worth visiting?
Yes. It’s close, costs almost nothing, and it is a genuine working village rather than a built attraction — which is exactly why UN Tourism named it a Best Tourism Village in 2024. If you want one authentic countryside half-day near Hoi An, this is it.
Why do Tra Que herbs smell stronger than normal herbs?
Because the village fertilises with algae scooped from the De Vong River instead of chemicals, grows on sandy riverside silt, and works entirely by hand. The herbs end up with concentrated essential oils, crisp texture and a long-lasting aroma — folk knowledge recognised as National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2022.
Are there farming tours and cooking classes at Tra Que?
Yes. The “Farmer for a day” tour runs 2–3 hours at 200,000 – 400,000 VND per person: farmer’s clothes, hoeing, watering with a bamboo yoke, sowing and harvesting. Cooking classes in the garden cost roughly 350,000 – 700,000 VND — you pick the herbs yourself and cook 3–4 Hoi An dishes.
When is the Cau Bong Festival at Tra Que?
The main ceremony to Than Nong falls on the 7th day of Lunar New Year each year. The rites start on the 24th of the 12th lunar month (raising the pole) and the 6th day (announcement rite). The festival includes spring-roll rolling, best-farmer and soil-hoeing contests, open to visitors.
Final thoughts
Tra Que Vegetable Village is not a check-in spot built for tourism. It is a village that has lived by growing herbs for more than 400 years and still does — the only difference now is that strangers get invited into the beds. UN Tourism’s Best Tourism Village 2024 title didn’t create Tra Que; it just said out loud what Hoi An has known for a very long time.
Thirty-five thousand dong, three kilometres, and one early morning — that is all it takes to see Tra Que Vegetable Village properly. If you’re in Hoi An, rent a bike from Anh Khoa Hoi An, get up before the sun, and let Hoi An’s green soul start your day. 🌿
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