Calm House Hotel Hoi An

There are four of us and we booked two rooms overlooking the river/internal courtyard, but we ended up on the street side, and it was a NIGHTMARE!!! One of the two rooms has a really strong smell of mold/anti-mold paint (I don't know, really heavy) and we can't leave the window open because there's so much activity at night (and it's January, maybe during the peak tourist season). CLARIFICATION: Even with the window closed, it's like being on the street; the old wooden frames let you hear every rooster, every sneeze, and, of course, every scooter. Breakfast wasn't included in our case, but that's a good thing. We asked for a bike rental for just an hour to take a ride, but they told us it was only available for the whole day. Don't leave shoes or slippers at the entrance; one of us had them taken away and never seen them again (certainly other tourists; we have no doubt that it could have been the hotel owners!!! But if you force people to take off their shoes, you should give them the option of leaving them in a locker). I wouldn't go back.

This is my most favorite hotel in Vietnam so far. The room is spacious and very clean. Thuong, the receptionist is fabulous, she arranges everything for us including transportation, tickets, food… My partner got sick, the owner gave him some tumeric and ginger that help him recover quickly. We appreciate it from the bottom of our hearts.

Good things about the place: The lobby is very beautiful and really lives up to the name Calm House. I loved the detail of taking your shoes off at the entrance, I don’t know if that’s common in Vietnam, but coming from Croatia it felt special and welcoming. The reception was warm and helpful throughout the stay. The view from my room was absolutely stunning. I stayed on the top floor overlooking the river, with pure nature, water, and even buffalos, honestly a million-dollar view. The furniture is mostly traditional, old-style, solid wood, which adds a lot of character. The location is good - not far from the center - and if you rent a motorbike, it’s actually perfect. Bad things about the place: This feels like a place that was designed and built with a lot of thought and investment, but unfortunately isn’t maintained with the same level of care. The headboard had stains on it, and the bathroom clearly needed re-siliconing. Overall, the place could really use a deep clean. The wooden balcony fence wasn’t painted or coated, so the bare wood is exposed to the weather. There’s no elevator - understandable for a three-story building - but if you’re not traveling light, carrying luggage up and down the stairs isn’t fun. To be fair, the owner did help us carry our largest bag upstairs, which I appreciated. Sound insulation is below average. I could literally hear other guests talking as if they were in the same room. Luckily, our neighbor was alone and fairly quiet. The worst part (and the reason for the 1-star review): I got sick on the second day of my stay and believe it was due to the air conditioning unit not being cleaned - something I’ve unfortunately experienced before in Asia. When I opened the AC, the filters were completely clogged with thick, compacted dust and lint. This wasn’t a light surface layer - it looked like 12+ months of buildup. The manufacturer recommends cleaning AC filters every two weeks, so I honestly don’t understand how this is overlooked, especially when rooms are cleaned daily. This is a serious health issue, and even more concerning when you’re traveling and have flights booked.