Hoi An tour to Kim Bong and Thanh Ha traditional handicraft villages

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Hoi an is known as an ideal relaxing place, together with its enchanting town, great foods, beautiful beaches, and pensive traditional handicraft villages. Especially, the villages as Kim Bong and Thanh Ha are proud of a strong vitality in spite of undergoing lots of time. They are the most famous traditional villages in Faifo owing to the classical products that have flourished to the romance of the old town. Hoi an tour to Kim Bong and Thanh Ha offers you not only the knowledge about these beguiling villages, but also the experience in trying doing a carpentry or pottery products.

Kim Bong Village - The Long-Standing Carpentry Village of Hoian

Description:

Like the ancient town of Hoi An, Kim Bong carpentry village is also famous in many areas by carpenters going nationwide to build beam houses, old three-space houses retained until now.

Kim Bong carpentry village is now located on Cam Kim lands, was built at the end of 15th century. It takes only 10 minute for visitors to sitting on ferry from Hoian ancient town to Kim Bong carpentry village, Cam Kim island commune. As soon as stepping foot on this land, we heard the sound of chiseling, drilling resounding from both sides in the west and east. The sound has become an integral part in the locals’ lives of many generations having been here for a long time.

You can take a boat from Hoian's old town to Kim Bong Village everyday

Every day, many ferries bring visitors to the reputable carpentry village.

Cam Kim lands is situated on the downstream area of Thu Bon river, Hoian was used to be an bustling trading port of Dang Trong in the past, so trade villages here such as Thanh Ha pottery village, Kim Bong carpentry are facilitated to develop.
Located on water area so it is convenient to transport of catamarans, build a ship, launch a ship, Kim Bong carpentry village also offers its products to many countries in the world by merchant ships. Therefore, until now, the woodworks of the village such as furniture, wardrobe, statue of Buddha,...are still ordered by many foreign traders. Eastern Kim Bong build a ship, Western Kim Bong carve woodwork so as to make the products existing for decades, whereas the old town of Hoi An is one of proofs of a prosperous period and talent of carpenters in Kim Bong as well.

Kim Bong artisan continues doing the carpentry products

The generations in Kim Bong village still continue doing traditional carpentry

Thanks to the East-West culture exchange, Kim Bong carpentry village still keeps for itself the distinctive specific through strokes of carving. While the carpentry villages of Northern provinces are affected a little bit by Northern feudal system, to bear the mark of Northern feudal dynasty. Each characteristic pattern is liken to dancing dragon and phoenix which representing power and influence of each period. Referring to Kim Bong woodworks, being gentle, rustic but exquisite is the things visitors can feel about the ancient town of Hoi An or other products. The design on each pillar is the pattern of flowers, leaves. With an image of dragon, whereas that made by Kim Bong carpenter is the image of bamboo turning into dragon, its mouth holds flowers and smiles gently. The image of farmer or Vietnam bamboo is also carved. All of them are rustic, close to people’s lives.

In addition to the ancient town of Hoi An, the talent of Kim Bong carpenters is also recognized through the building history of Hue ancient capital. At that time, when Nguyen Dynasty decided to set up the capital in Hue, they invited the carpenters from the southern area to build. That carpenters are from Kim Bong village and Van Ha, Quang Nam province. Kim Bong has not only "carpentry", but also "plaster", they built royal tombs, temples and shrines throughout the central provinces. If carpenters make the fame of a house, the masons will plaster wall, cover the roof to complete the house, communal house.

You can see lots of the article products of Kim Bong in Hoian' Old Quarter

The carpenter named Huynh Suong, who is 13th inheritor of the Huynh specializing in carpentry, said that

The woodwork of Kim Bong village is not same as goods to sell in market. From past to now, it is thought as a job. A product needs long time, a lot of effort and enthusiasm. So each house, each furniture also show the talent of the carpenters.

The carpenters of Kim Bong village nowadays still go to many different regions to build the ancient houses and beds, three compartments and two lean-tos. The Huynh family, which is one of four families donated to form the village including Huynh - Truong - Phan – Nguyen, be still proud of Mr Huynh Kim Hon that used to participate in building Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. The father and son of Mr. Huynh Ri, Mr. Huynh Suong also become excellent carpenters of Kim Bong carpentry village.

Coming to Kim Bong carpentry village, visitors have an opportunity to visit the carpenter’s shop, watch directly the carving on products of talented craftsmen. There are a lot of special exhibits here such as the incensory carved the image of 1000 dragons by bamboo which showed in the millennium of Thang Long, Hanoi or Cau pagoda in Hoi An preserved the status quo.

The entrancement article product from the artisans of Kim Bong Village

The entrancement carpentry product from the artisans of Kim Bong Village, which is very famous.

The products of the village now having differences with the other villages’ are that woodworks are kept original color, even if they are painted or polished, they are also very light and still keep the natural wood color. Owing to the wooden buffaloes, wooden pigs, carved, the plates carved bamboos, the young women with long dresses, it attracted the curious tourists at home and abroad tourists in the occasion to learn about Kim Bong carpentry.

Kim Bong carpentry products are not sold or promoted in anywhere, but people who love woodworks from many places still come to Kim Bong to order for an old house, old furniture. And somewhere in the ancient town of Hoi An, Hue imperial city which existing quietly for so many years, there always have images of the carpenters and mason in Kim Bong.

Kim Bong Village - The Long-Standing Carpentry Village of Hoian

Thanh Ha Pottery Village - 500 Years Old Handicraft Village of Hoian

Description:

Following steps of tour guide to Thanh Ha pottery village, I was surprised at the change of this ancient village I visited 8 years ago. The tourism development follow positive way, not only preserve traditional pottery village but also introduce Vietnamese pottery brand to other countries in the world.

Foreign customers is DIY a pottery product

Situated on Thu Bon River bank, far about 4 km from Hoian ancient town to the west, Thanh Ha pottery village is known as the famous traditional village existing along with formation and development of Faifo (other name of Hoian) from XV- XVI century. Ceramic products are allocated to all communes in Hoi An and neighboring areas to serve the daily life of local people, contributing to embellish the calm beauty of the world cultural heritage.

The article products of Thanh Ha Pottery Village

Thanh Ha pottery is different from others because the potters don’t use glaze but combining several elements including land, water, fire and experience to create soul of ceramic products. Thus, after being baked with fire, the color of clay turns pink which is very strong and typical. Material of Thanh Ha pottery is made of clay of Thu Bon River, this is a yellow-brown clay with highly plastic and adhesive characteristic. The potters take land then mixing, plastering, keeping tightly, until it is well-kneaded then just putting it on turning table. By the hands of the potters, clays are made different shapes and dried then taking them to dry under sun.

The close products of Thanh Ha is sold in Hoian's old town

Coming to Thanh Ha, in addition to enjoy talent of ceramic art, tourists are also more interested in being instructed by the artisans to make ceramic products with their own hand only with clay and a simple turning table. Witnessing an elderly potter instruct young foreigners to make pottery, I feel love the hands created the perfect curve on ceramic vases. Not any word but by an eye contact, a gesture, a smile, it still expresses the understanding between two generations from two different cultures to make a product together; that’s a pleasant experience which is quite difficult for you to find out in other places. What made me proud was the small souvenirs that guests respected, carefully packed into bags, so Vietnamese ceramic brand was taken to the new lands.

An old-age artisan of the handicraft village

Artisans of pottery village

Traveling to Thanh Ha village nowadays, the red color of ceramic products is still showed everywhere, each house also has shadowing green trees; banian tree, pond, communal house’s yard of the old village are kept intact, bringing the relaxing feeling in peaceful countryside. Walking on country lanes with straight rows of Chinese tea, I am silently grateful to local people here by the ways they preserve “previous scene and people” to introduce to foreigners.

Thanh Ha Pottery Village - 500 Years Old Handicraft Village of Hoian

Date

Destinations

Meals

Day 1

The Old Town - Thanh Ha - Kim Bong

Itinerary Services & Price

Inclusion

English and Vietnamese speaking guide.
Boat trip to visit villages.
Lunch.
Visitors’ fee and souvenir.

Exclusion

Insurance and other personal fees

Call to book
(+84) 3 87 86 68 52

sales@fareastour.com

Date

Destinations

Meals

Day 1

The Old Town - Thanh Ha - Kim Bong

The classic ceramic product of the artisan in Thanh Ha Village

08.30. The local tour guide will pick you up from your hotel. We start the cultural day by a walking throughout Hoi an town to the port on Thu Bon river. Embark to the wooden boat, then streaming along Thu Bon. From there, you can admire the busy life in the riverside.
10.00. The boat stop in Thanh Ha Pottery village where you can feel about a rural country with the clever pottery artisans. Experience the daily life of a traditional handicraft village, and learn the way of making ceramic products with the steps as forming the clay, natural drying under the sunlight, burning, sculpturing…
Introduce about Thanh Ha Village:
Appearing from the 15th and 16th centuries, Thanh Ha village was development fast together with the changing of Hoi an commercial port. It is well-known by the earthenware products, which is made from brown clay. Thanks to many years of traditional handicraft growth, Thanh Ha products as bricks, tiles, vases, bowls, floor slabs… was sold in many provinces of central Vietnam. Nowadays, you can admire many ancient pottery arts in the boutique houses and streets of Hoi an.

11.30. The boat continues stopping at Kim Bong Village – the motherland of the most talented woodwork carpenters in central Vietnam. Visiting the village, you will listen to the history of Kim Bong, go to the ship - building yards, then observing the making process of artisans here. The handicrafts and sculptures is “must-see” things in Kim Bong.
Introduce about Kim Bong Village:
The Kim Bong is an integral destination to be deep in the spiritual culture and art of Hoian. Going with the development of Faifo commercial port, the village has had a significant contribution to the life, architecture, and beauty of Hoian from the 15th century. Kim Bong experienced its own majestic period in the 18th century when itself dividing the traditional handicraft into three main works: woodworks of urban architectures, carpentry in civil projects, and ship building. The village is really famous thanks to the preserved long-standing products in Hoian Old Town. Nowadays, travelers can find out the silhouette of the Kim Bong in the ancient architecture of Hoi an.

13.00. Have lunch at a local restaurant (on request). Back to your hotel. End of Hoi an tour to Kim Bong and Thanh Tra traditional villages.

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Book the tour

Call to book

(+84) 3 87 86 68 52

Esther Tran

Travel Consultant

Operator Department

Marketing Department

Board of Management

sales@fareastour.com

Inclusion

English and Vietnamese speaking guide.
Boat trip to visit villages.
Lunch.
Visitors’ fee and souvenir.

Exclusion

Insurance and other personal fees

Call to book
(+84) 3 87 86 68 52

sales@fareastour.com

Sit on a local board to contemplate the picturesque Hoi An Town and observe the interesting daily life of people here.
Visit Kim Bong carpentry village where produces the talented artisans who have been contributed a lot into the exotic beauty of Hoi an.
Disembark in Thanh Ha pottery village – the fatherland of the featured roof tops that you see in the Old Quarter.

Itinerary Services & Price

Call to book
(+84) 3 87 86 68 52

sales@fareastour.com

Sit on a local board to contemplate the picturesque Hoi An Town and observe the interesting daily life of people here.
Visit Kim Bong carpentry village where produces the talented artisans who have been contributed a lot into the exotic beauty of Hoi an.
Disembark in Thanh Ha pottery village – the fatherland of the featured roof tops that you see in the Old Quarter.

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