Four Seasons Hoi An Review From A Local Traveler

Location

Arrival

We arrived at the resort around 1 pm. As soon as we got off our taxi, staff promptly greeted us and took care of our luggage. To our pleasant surprise, we were informed right away that we had been upgraded from the One-Bedroom Ocean-View Villa to a One-Bedroom Ocean-View Pool Villa. Even better, our villa was already prepared, and a buggy was waiting to take us there immediately, where we could complete the check-in process with a butler.

This was our first stay at Four Seasons Hoi An, so the unexpected upgrade took us by surprise. Later, we appreciated the upgrade even more as we found out that the pool villa was a lot more spacious with features we enjoyed that the regular villa didn’t have. I’ll get into more details in the next section.

The check-in was done smoothly in the villa’s living room, with chilled welcome drinks and cool towels waiting for us. The butler explained all the villa features, daily activities, and how to contact her at any time should we need assistance.

One-bedroom Pool Villa Overview

The Four Seasons Resort Hoi An is quite expansive, with villas spread across a large beachfront property. Designed to reflect traditional Vietnamese architecture, the villas are arranged in clusters and surrounded by lush landscaping. Since the resort has been around for many years, the grounds are beautifully matured, filled with towering coconut palms and dense greenery. The overall atmosphere gave us the feeling of being in a quiet and peaceful village.

Our one-bedroom pool villa was located on the far right end of the property. Compared to the standard one-bedroom villa without a pool, this upgraded category offered significantly more space both indoors and outdoors. Here are the main differences:

• A welcoming entrance courtyard: The villa has a small garden featuring a water lily pond, which created a serene and peaceful feeling every time we returned. This added sense of arrival made the villa feel more like a private retreat.
• A spacious living room in a separate pavilion: The villa was designed with two distinct structures — one for the bedroom and another for the living area. While this setup added a lot more space, it was a bit inconvenient when moving between the two, especially in rainy weather, since they aren’t connected indoors.
• A private swimming pool: we did not use at all as we preferred the beach.
• Generous outdoor space: The villa’s large terrace came with cushioned sofas and a shaded lounging area. Thanks to the villa’s size and layout, there was a good distance between us and neighboring villas, which gave us a strong sense of privacy. Non-pool villas are placed closer together so they likely don’t offer privacy to the same extent.

While the ocean wasn’t directly in front of us and the partial view was somewhat distant, we still spent a lot of time outdoors enjoying the fresh sea breeze and the quiet atmosphere. So although we didn’t care for the pool, we highly valued the upgrade as it gave us much more outdoor space and privacy. The outdoor area of a standard villa without pool is probably less than half the size of the one with a pool.

A special thing about our pool villa is that it is one of the privately owned villas at the Four Seasons Hoi An. I’m not sure if it’s because of that, the bedroom seems to have a slightly different layout compared to those I’ve seen in some online reviews. Some villas seem to have a bathtub oddly placed behind the bed or the mattress is placed on a raised platform. In this particular villa, the bathtub is in the bathroom and the mattress is placed on a proper bed, not a raised platform. Those are other features that we definitely prefer.

So what not to like about the villa? It’s the outdated toilet and bathroom fixtures. They seem to be so behind current standards that I feel like they are such huge minus points. The bathroom is spacious with plenty of hanging space and an adjacent outdoor shower area. It was a really pity that the bathroom fixtures and toilet were so outdated. Additionally, we didn’t like their pillows as they didn’t provide enough support.

Food

Let’s start with breakfast, which is a highlight at Four Seasons Resort Hoi An. The morning spread is a mix of buffet-style counters and a menu featuring freshly made hot dishes. The menu includes a good range of traditional Vietnamese items, Quang Nam regional specialties, and Western options. We ordered noodle soups from the menu every morning and found the flavors consistently authentic and satisfying. Both the chicken and beef phở were prepared in a Northern-style broth. For local specialties, you can try mì Quảng or cao lầu, both nicely executed.

The buffet section includes a variety of salads, cold cuts, breads, pastries, fresh juices, and some hot savory items. I was particularly impressed with the quality of their pastries which were flaky and buttery. That said, we preferred the made-to-order dishes over the savory items from the buffet counters.

Overall, this breakfast ranks among the best we’ve had at luxury resorts in Vietnam. The quality is high across the board, and service is prompt, polite, and attentive without being overbearing.

As for lunch and dinner, we didn’t dine at any of the resort’s onsite restaurants. The first reason is there’s a lot of excellent local food outside of the resort, especially fresh seafood. Second, while the resort’s restaurant pricing is on par with other high-end properties, it didn’t feel compelling to us as locals. Though we can afford it, we were also very certain that their food would not be exceptional enough to justify the cost. Instead, we took a short taxi ride every night to Nam Gia Seafood Restaurant, where we enjoyed a feast of mantis shrimp, grouper, clams, and other local catches.

Activities

Four Seasons Hoi An is situated right on Ha My beach so guests can have direct access to the beach. While the water was still a bit cold at the end of March, it didn’t deter us from going to the beach in the afternoon every day.

In our opinion, this is definitely not the best beach you can find in Vietnam. The sand is quite soft but it doesn’t slope gradually into the ocean. Lang Co, Con Dao and Quy Nhon beaches are more picturesque and better for swimming.

Beyond the beach, the resort offers a wide range of activities to keep guests engaged throughout the day. There are large public swimming pool, as well as well-maintained courts for pickleball, tennis, and basketball — all available for guest use at no additional charge. Equipment can be borrowed easily from the recreation desk. We booked a pickleball court for early morning every day. There’s also an onsite gym and we also saw several guests jogging around the peaceful grounds.

Additionally, the resort organized complimentary daily activities, such as yoga, meditation, cooking demonstration and coconut harvesting. We attended a Vietnamese cooking demo one afternoon, where a chef demonstrated how to prepare a traditional dish. Guests were invited to take part in the cooking process and enjoy the finished dish together. We thought it was quite fun but not many guests showed up.

The next day, we joined the quick coconut harvesting activity. A resort worker skillfully climbed a tree to cut down coconuts, and afterward, everyone was treated to fresh coconut juice and warm coconut cookies. This activity seemed to attract more guests than the cooking session.

You can also ask the buggy driver to give you a quick tour of the resort’s grounds and its vegetable garden. There, you’ll find local vegetables, fruit trees, herbs, and some tropical flowers.

Of all the luxury resorts we’ve stayed at in Vietnam, Four Seasons Hoi An is among the best when it came to free onsite activities both in terms of variety and execution. The programs felt thoughtfully curated and interactive.

One thing we wondered was all activities were carried out in English. We completely understand that the resort caters to a large international clientele, and since we’re fluent in English, it didn’t pose any problem for us personally. Still, there was a small part of me that felt… something. I just wonder how local Vietnamese guests who may not be as comfortable with English would experience these activities.

Services

We usually don’t have many demands when staying at luxury resorts. All we need are quality hard products, efficient and friendly service that ensure a comfortable stay and there’s no surprise. In this regard, the Four Seasons Hoi An did meet our expectations. It was a smooth and peaceful stay with no service issue. Our flight was delayed and the resort promptly gave us a late check-out until 1:30pm.

It was quite convenient to have a butler who we could text our requests for refills, turndown service, activity reservations any time. The butler service is only available for pool villa category upwards. However, I don’t think it is a must as we had stayed at some places with no butler like Amanoi and Amandari and didn’t feel like the service was inadequate.

Final Thoughts

Overall, we were happy with our stay at Four Seasons Resort Hoi An. We appreciated its serene beachfront setting, well-maintained grounds, and the sense of seclusion it offers while still being within easy reach of both Hoi An and Da Nang. The one-bedroom pool villa upgrade definitely enhanced our experience, giving us more space and privacy. The upgrade was completely unexpected, especially since this was our first stay at this property.

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As Vietnamese residents, we were able to take advantage of local resident rates, which made the stay feel more worthwhile. Without that pricing benefit, however, we might have found the value less compelling when compared to other high-end resorts we’ve stayed at, such as Six Senses Ninh Van Bay or Banyan Tree Lang Co.

That said, if you are set on booking a luxury resort in the Da Nang – Hoi An area, it’s hard to argue against The Four Seasons Hoi An. I do have a soft spot for the InterContinental Danang because we stayed there during its opening year and loved its dramatic setting on the Son Tra Peninsula. However, over time, it has become, in our opinion, significantly overpriced. I personally prefer the Four Seasons Hoi An.

If you are considering a more affordable option, check out our review of Tia Wellness Resort, a spa inclusive resort in Danang.