Da Nang is one of Vietnam's largest cities and the gateway to the central coast. It has an international airport, a station on the north-south railway, a long city beach and a river running through the middle. Most visitors arrive here for somewhere else — Hoi An to the south, Hue to the north — and the question is how much of the city itself to use.
The shape of the city
The Han River divides Da Nang. The west bank is the older city: the market, the cathedral, the museum, the business district. The east bank is the beach side: My Khe and the hotel strip, the An Thuong grid of cafes and small hotels behind it, and the Son Tra peninsula rising at the northern end.
Several bridges connect the two, the best known being the Dragon Bridge. Distances across the city are short, and Grab is cheap and everywhere.
The beach
My Khe runs for several kilometres along the eastern side of the city — wide, sandy, and lined with hotels from budget to international resort. It is a genuine city beach rather than a resort strip in isolation, with local swimmers early in the morning and in the evening.
Swimming conditions change with the season. From roughly September to November the central coast is in its storm season, the sea gets rough and flags go up; the drier months are when the beach works.
What to see
The Museum of Cham Sculpture holds a large collection of Cham art, much of it removed from My Son and the other temple sites. It is, to my mind, the most rewarding indoor hour in the city, particularly before or after a trip to My Son.
The Son Tra peninsula, north-east of the centre, is a forested headland with viewpoints, a long coast road and the Linh Ung Pagoda with its tall Lady Buddha statue facing the sea. The Marble Mountains, south towards Hoi An, are a cluster of limestone hills with caves and shrines inside them.
The Dragon Bridge
A steel bridge in the form of a dragon, lit at night, which breathes fire and sprays water at set times on weekend evenings. It is unapologetically a spectacle, it is free, and the crowds on the embankments are part of it. Check the current schedule locally, because the timing changes.
Eating
Da Nang is a seafood city. The restaurants along the beach road and on the river sell fish, crab and shellfish chosen from tanks and priced by weight — agree the weight and the price before it is cooked.
The local dish to look for is mi quang, a turmeric-yellow noodle dish from this province with pork, shrimp, herbs and only a small amount of broth. Banh xeo, the crisp folded rice-flour pancake, is a Da Nang staple too, eaten wrapped in rice paper and herbs.
Where to stay
Three broad choices. The My Khe beachfront, where the international resorts and the sea view are. An Thuong, the grid of streets a block or two back, with smaller hotels, hostels and cafes at lower prices. Or the west bank near the river and the market, which is cheaper again and closer to where the city eats.
The bridges add time at busy hours, so which side of the river you are on matters more than the map suggests.
Day trips
Hoi An is around forty-five minutes south by car and is the most common day trip, though most people stay there rather than visit. The Marble Mountains sit on the same road and take an hour or two. Ba Na Hills, with its cable car and the Golden Bridge, is west of the city and takes a full day. The Hai Van Pass heads north towards Hue.
My Son Sanctuary is roughly ninety minutes south-west, and is usually combined with Hoi An rather than done from Da Nang.
How long to stay
Da Nang rewards a stay in proportion to what else you want. Two nights covers the Cham museum, the beach, Son Tra and an evening on the river. A week works if you want a beach base with a city attached and day trips in several directions. One night is an airport stopover, which is a legitimate use of it.
What Da Nang is not is a substitute for Hoi An. The two are different propositions forty-five minutes apart, and treating one as a day trip from the other costs real time each way.
An evening on the river
The riverfront between the Dragon Bridge and the Han River Bridge is where the city walks in the evening. Bridges and buildings are lit, there are cafes along the embankment, and the Han River Bridge swings open late at night to let boats through.
Getting there and around
The airport sits close to the city centre and takes domestic flights from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City as well as regional international routes. The railway runs north to Hue along the coast and south towards Nha Trang and Ho Chi Minh City. Within the city, Grab covers everything; renting a motorbike yourself is not an option for most visitors, because a US licence and an International Driving Permit are both invalid in Vietnam and driving without a Vietnamese licence can mean a fine, arrest, or jail.
Which of Vietnam's airports you fly into and out of shapes the whole route, and that is a question Vietnam, End to End works through.
FAQ
How is Da Nang laid out?
The Han River divides Da Nang. The west bank is the older city: the market, the cathedral, the museum, the business district. The east bank is the beach side: My Khe and the hotel strip, the An Thuong grid of cafes and small hotels behind it, and the Son Tra peninsula rising at the northern end.
What is My Khe beach like?
My Khe runs for several kilometres along the eastern side of the city — wide, sandy, and lined with hotels from budget to international resort. It is a genuine city beach rather than a resort strip in isolation, with local swimmers early in the morning and in the evening.
What is worth seeing in Da Nang?
The Museum of Cham Sculpture holds a large collection of Cham art, much of it removed from My Son and the other temple sites. It is, to my mind, the most rewarding indoor hour in the city, particularly before or after a trip to My Son.
