Hoi An Shopping

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Along the river it's possible to buy lanterns from shops and stalls.. it's better to buy them at night, as you'll really be able to see how they'll look like once they are lit up.

What to buy: Silk lanterns, of different sizes and colours. One great thing about them is that they are all foldable, so they'll fit easily in any suitcase or backpack.

What to pay: bargaining, a few dollars

Just something that I noticed when I was walking around. Shopping for bags and other items over the other side of the Japanese bridge (where most of the arts and paintings are being sold) is generally cheaper than in the town centre.

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I went to this shop based on an earlier recommendation & she was right! You can pretty much show them a picture & they'll recreate it exactly with the best fit & no alterations necessary. They speak good english, are very friendly & take many measurements to ensure a great fit. Everything I purchased did not need an alteration. & the prices were cheaper if not comparable to other tailors. They are also very fast. If you go in the morning, it'll be ready the same night.

PLACES TO AVOID: ANA - more expensive for the poorest tailoring: my dress had a crooked hem & my jacket had uneven shoulders, a mate had shorts that lasted a week before splitting, many alterations; YALY - more expensive, poor customer service, many alterations, but large choice in fabrics

Before deciding to get something tailored: bring pictures to save time(or you can spend too much precious time going through catalogs); know exactly what you want & make sure they understand exactly what you want, give yourself enough time in hoi an for possible alterations; if you have time, have the tailor make 1 or 2 things before getting a lot of items to see their quality of work.

What to buy: suits, pants, dresses, jackets...they'll try to make anything you show them.

What to pay: pants (depending on quality of material) - $12-18, suit - $32, shirt dress - $16, wool coat - $40, jacket - $18

I went here for 1 mens and 1 womens suit. And simply put, it wasn't the best.

The staff are very friendly but at the end of the day smiles don't make up for a lack of craftmenship. It isn't much cheaper that Yaly and for the extra $10 or so dollars its worth every cent to be happy with the final product and actually have your tailor point out required adjustments rather than you having to do it yourself.

Even the fabrics (eg lining etc) -once asked for - twice - wern't as good as yaly

There is an overwhelming choice of tailors in Hoi An and it's difficult to know where to start. I went in to one of the first ones I'd seen and was reasonably happy with the results but had no idea whether the price ($140 for a women's suit jacket and 2 pairs of pants) was reasonable.

I searched on-line and found a recommendation for B'Lan tailor, 23 Tran Phu Street from an Ex-pat who lives locally and I wasn't disappointed. I got a better suit for $60 and a fitted long sleeve cotton shirts for $8. I went back for another suit with skirt, a dress and three 'evening' type jackets.

Lan, the owner of the shop, is a lovely lady and the quality and price are great.

What to buy: Clothes, Clothes, Clothes!

Either bring something you would like copied, or choose from a catalogue (often 'Next' directories).

What to pay: As I said I paid $60 for two pairs of trousers and a jacket, $8 for a shirt, $45 for a 'fancy' jacket

Thoung Gia tailor shop on 41 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street in Hoi An.

This store is two doors down from the popular Yaly Couture. This tailor is not recommended. My wife and I bought two suits from this shop. We paid US $200 per suit. This is not a lot by Western standards and is the price you pay for top quality suits at Yaly Couture or A Dong Silk. Our suits were OK but no better than the ones you can buy for US $70 in most other tailors. They put a cheap nylon lining in my jacket and tried to pass it off as satin.

Service was polite but hurried and not good enough service for the price tag. They basically charged whatever they could get. Other people asking prices in the store got widely different prices. Thoung Gia tailors is one to avoid. We came away not particularly happy and with a unneccessarily large hole in our pocket!

We had been recommended to this shop by travellers who were previous customers. It is a family run shop and was not on the list used by tours or hotels....that means, you aren't paying commission to the tours or hotels on top of the cost of what you have made.

The shop is run by Vang, her sister and brother Trang. Their young niece also helps out, Thien. They specialise in silks, linen, cashmere from the UK and natural fabrics.

I had made two cashmere business suits, a silk pants suit, four cotton blend shirts; my teenage daughter had made a silk pants suit, a summer dress; my husband had made some fishing pants (don't ask) and my youngest daughter had made two tennis dresses, a cute dress and some fishing pants, just like Dad's, with pockets for gadgets and which zip off to shorts above the knee.

They helped with choosing styles for the fabrics, could not do enough to get the clothes just right - but do leave reasonable time for this to happen. They aren't genies. They also lined all the suits, the summer dress and used quality zippers and invisible hems. (Other tailors whip around them with the sewing machine.)

They are very concerned to understand what you want, need and are very personable. We enjoyed their company and were very pleased with our shopping here.

We recommend them to you.

What to buy: Women's clothing

Children's clothing

Men's clothing.

I was searhing for tees and all the shops I have been to before this was offering $1.50 a piece. The young lady in this shop initially offered me the same price but when she found out that the ladies and I were getting more than 10 pieces, she offered 20,000d per piece!

The ladies got themselves a FEW pairs of slippers too...

What to buy: T-shirts, paintings, conical hats...