The ancient town of Hoi An in the central city of Da Nang has been named the most beautiful historic center in Asia by French online travel platform Tourlane, according to a report from the Government News.

Tourlane evaluated historic centers based on four criteria: walkability, age, entrance fees, and popularity on Instagram.

With the advantage of a well-preserved 16th-century old town, an entrance fee of only about €2 (US$2.36), and a convenient pedestrian-friendly layout, Hoi An surpassed many competitors to take the top spot in Asia's ranking.

Tourlane describes Hoi An as "one of the best-preserved ancient towns in Southeast Asia," distinguished by streets filled with the vibrant colors of thousands of lanterns.

Located in the lower reach of Thu Bon River in the coastal plain, about 30 km south of Da Nang city, Hoi An has been known in the international market by various names such as Lam Ap, Faifo, Hoai Pho and Hoi An.

The only Southeast Asian port-market in Vietnam and very rare in the world, Hoi An keeps almost 1,360 architectural relics intact. These include streets, houses, assembly halls, communal houses, pagodas, shrines, clan houses, ancient wells and tombs. They exhibit both Vietnamese traditional art characteristics and the convergence of eastern and western cultures.

The cultural and economic exchanges that occurred from the 16th to 19th centuries have left in ancient Hoi An most of the forms of Vietnam's ancient architecture, grouping traditional national arts enriched with sketches of foreign arts.

Through centuries, customs and practices, rites, cultural and belief activities as well as traditional foods of Hoi An are still kept and preserved along with generations of ancient street dwellers. The town also boasts a natural environment which is healthy and peaceful with small suburban villages engaged in crafts like carpentry and pottery.

On December 4, 1999, in Marrakech city of Morocco, the 23rd session of the World Heritage Committee of the UNESCO officially included Hoi An ancient town into the list of world's cultural heritage sites.