Hôi An is a coastal town at the South China Sea in Central Vietnam (Annam). The former harbour town of the Champa people at the estuary of the Thu Bon was an important trading centre in the 16th and 17th century, where Chinese from various provinces as well as Japanese, Dutch and Indians settled down. During this period of the China trade, the town was called Hai Pho (place at the sea), during the French occupation Faifo. Originally Hai Pho was a divided town, because across the "Japanese Bridge" used to be the Japanese settlement.
In 1999, the old town was declared World Heritage by the UNESCO, as a well-preserved example of a South East Asian trading port of the 15th to 19th century, whose buildings display a unique blend of local and foreign influences.