Da Nang is a coastal city with a 60-km long shoreline. With smooth and sandy beaches running across the coast, Da Nang beach is voted by Forbes (U.S.) to be 1 of 6 most beautiful beaches in the world. Not only is the city famous for its beaches, Da Nang’s charm also lays in its geographical position: leaning against the majestic Truong Son mountains (or the Annamite Range), as well as having Son Tra Peninsula embracing the sea. Hai Van Pass, shaped by this ideal geographical feature is praised ‘The most marvelous scenery of all’ for having an amazing view overlooking the sea, besides the notorious dangerous curves. Since the opening of Hai Van tunnel (Viet Nam’s longest road tunnel) traffic flow and safety have improved. From then on, Hai Van Pass has become the destination to nature-loving explorers and motorists who dare to challenge themselves on these notorious routes.
Da Nang city is also home to Ba Na Hills – a well-marketed brand of Da Nang tourism. Explored and constructed since the French colonization, Ba Na Hills has increasingly become a popular tourist attraction with 2 Guiness World Records holder cable cars and the greatest indoor amusement complex in South East Asia – Fantasy Park (Sun World Danang Wonders). From Ba Na Hills – the western part of the city , visitors can turn to explore Son Tra Peninsula in the North East – a jungle in the middle of the city with a rich vegetation, fauna and flora; along the unspoiled rough and rocky coast. Heading towards South East, you will be caught by the renowned Marble Mountains where scenic beauty, culture and religion are preserved.
Da Nang is also the central point connecting three UNESCO World Heritage sites: Hue Citadel, Hoi An ancient town and My Son Sanctuary.
CLIMATE
The city has two distinctive seasons every year, which is the wet period (September until March) and the dry period (April until August) The best time to visit Da Nang is from February to May. As the skies are sunnier and humidity levels lower during this climate transition period, visitors can easily explore Da Nang City’s attractions on foot or motorcycle taxi minus the scorching afternoon heat. With an average water temperature of 25°C, Da Nang’s beaches are great for soaking up the sun as well as enjoying leisure activities and fresh seafood.
RESTAURANTS/DINING
The best dishes in Da Nang Coming to Da Nang, tourists will satisfy their appetite with countless local specialties such as Quang noodles, steamed rice pancake rolls with sliced boiled pork, fresh seafood,…
My Quang ( Quang noodle)
A trip to Danang is not complete without eating My Quang, a specialty of Danang people. My quang or Quang noodle is made from rice flour and cut into long-line pieces. The broth can be made from chicken, shrimp, crab, fish, pork or beef bone. Therefore you can order many versions of My Quang. Mi Quang is served with lime, green chilies and rice cracker, which enhance its taste.
Nam O fish rolls
Nam O has been known for its long-standing fish sauce industry and the extremely famous fish salad/fish rolls.
To make this dish, the villagers’d pick the freshest herrings (or small anchovies), remove the heads and tails and fillet them. Then slightly press the fillets to extract some juice and marinade with ginger, galingale, minced garlic, lemon, vinegar… for about an hour until the fish meat becomes medium rare after absorbing all the acids and spices. After that the fish fillets are coated with roasted corn and peanut powder. The fish juice extracted, along with some other spices, would be used to make a special dipping sauce for the dish. Of course to make the final fish rolls, fresh greens and herbs are vital. What’s different about eating rolls in Nam O is that the greens and herbs here are picked from the forests up on Hai Van pass. It is believed that wild forest vegetables can help eliminate the smell of raw fish. Unlike sashimi of Japan, this fish dish of Da Nang is half-cooked; combined with the dipping sauce, spices and fresh greens, you can barely taste the rawness. Instead it leaves a very mild and pleasant mouthfeel.
Bun Cha Ca (Grilled fish cake noodle)
The noodle is one of the signature dishes of Danang Cuisine. Grilled fish cake made from many kinds of fresh fish including lizardfish, barracuda and mackerel. The broth is cooked with various kinds of vegetables such as pumpkin, cabbage, pineapple, tomato and dried bamboo shoots, which makes it very tasty and healthy. The amazing mixture of the various flavours really gives a delicious taste.
Bánh tráng cuốn thịt heo or sliced pork rolled with rice paper is one of Da Nang specialities. It is a combination of fresh ingredients such as belly pork, fresh vegetables, slices of cucumber and green bananas. All things are wrapped in soft rice paper and eaten with dipping sauce. This dish is famous because of carefully selected ingredients, which makes perfect taste.
Banh Xeo (Pancake)
Banh xeo or Vietnamese pancake is a very popular food in Danang. It is made from rice flour, water, turmeric powder, stuffed with slivers of fatty pork, shrimp, diced green onion, and bean sprouts. In Danang, it is often wrapped in fresh rice paper with a sausage (nemlui) and then dipped in special sauce. It’s great food for a cool or rainy afternoon!
Banh beo (rice flour cake flavoured with ground shrimp), banh nam (flat rice flour dumpling from Hue, stuffed with minced pork and mushrooms), banh loc (rice dumpling cake wrapped in banana leaves)
“Bánh” is a Vietnamese term, translating loosely as “cake” or “bread”, that refers to a wide variety of sweet or savory, distinct cakes, buns, pastries, sandwiches, and food items from Vietnamese cuisine, which may be cooked by steaming, baking, frying, deep-frying, or boiling.
This special food is sold almost everywhere in Danang, from a small retailer to a big restaurant. Tourists could visit the following recommended addresses to taste these dishes.
Be Thui Cau Mong
Be Thui CauMong – Cau Mong barbequed veal is as famous as Quang noodle in Da Nang and Quang Nam. It is also called by familiar name “Cau Mong rare veal”. Put some slices of barbequed veal on the rice paper, wrap with vegetables then dip into fish sauce and chew carefully. The sweetness of barbequed veal mingled with moreish taste of fish sauce will make you forget all the sadness.
MUSEUM OF CHAM SCULPTURE
Museum of Cham Sculpture was built in 1915 under the sponsorship of the French School for Far Eastern Studies in Viet Nam. It is based in Da Nang region which was the seat of the old Champa Kingdom and boasts many attractions like Tra Kieu, Dong Duong, My Son and Thap Mam.
In 1936, the museum was expanded, and opened to the public in 1939. It conserves the last collection of Champa sculpture art in Viet Nam and the world. Its architecture bears the features of Cham architecture. It boasts a row of showrooms white in color with simple yet graceful decorations.
The museum exhibits more than 400 original sandstone sculptures and some baked clay products collected from the temples and towers that lie scattered from Quang Binh to Binh Thuan in the Central. The exhibits are statues, embossments, images, and patterns displayed in 4 showrooms named after the localities where the pieces have been discovered, including My Son, Tra Kieu, Dong Duong and Thap Mam – Binh Dinh.
The compound of the museum blends harmoniously with the local landscape, which gives visitors a chance to relax and feel themselves immersed in the golden past of Cham civilization.
HAN RIVER BRIDGE
Han River Bridge is considered the symbol of Da Nang with the length of 487.7m and width of 12.9m, connecting the two main roads of Le Duan and Pham Van Dong. This is the only swing bridge in Viet Nam. The middle part of the bridge swings on its axis every day at 1.00am to open the way for big ships to go through and close at 4.00am.
DRAGON BRIDGE
Built in the period 2009-2013 with the unique design, the Dragon Bridge resembles a dragon winding on Han River. With the length of 666m and width of 37.5m, the Dragon Bridge has six lanes for vehicles and two lanes for pedestrians. The bridge is the main axis of Da Nang east – west, is the shortest route linking the international airport Da Nang with luxury resorts by the seaside of Son Tra – Dien Ngoc. In the evening of Saturdays and Sundays, local residents and visitors can admire fire and water spraying dragon performance. In 2014, Dragon Bridge was voted as one of the best lighting design in the world.
CON MARKET
The Con Market at 318 Ong Ich Khiem Street in Da Nang’s Hai Chau District is now the largest wholesale and retail venue in the central region, with over 2,000 traders operating there. Its reputation entitles the market to first position in the category of local markets on the website of the Da Nang Markets and Fairs Exhibition Management Company at hctl-danang.com.vn.
The market was first established in the 1940s on a hillock at the centre of the city. At that time, it was a perfect trading venue for the many traders from the city and the rural districts of Dai Loc, Que Son and Thang Binh in Quang Nam Province. The traders sold their locally-grown agricultural products, mainly fresh vegetables and poultry.
A rebuild of the market started in December 1984. It took over 3 months to complete the construction, and it was officially inaugurated on 29 March 1985 to mark the 10th anniversary of the city’s liberation. The new market incorporated a 3,480 m2 3-storey building, two 1,562 m2 2-storey buildings, and a block of single-storey houses with a total area of 8,828 m2, along with a number of other auxiliary facilities. There were 1,473 traders in the market, and many local cooperatives, private businesses and limited companies became involved in trading activities there. Various types of goods were sold at the venue to satisfy the increasing shopping demands of the local residents, and tens of thousands of customers were welcomed every day. The market was at one time renamed Da Nang Commercial Centre.
The current Con Market is now not only a shopping venue in the inner city, but a must-see destination for tourists visiting the beautiful seaside city. The market sells whatever you want to buy.
SON TRA PENINSULA
Son Tra Peninsula is crowned by the Son Tra Mountain that the American soldiers during the Viet Nam War called Monkey Mountain. It is 10km from the center of Da Nang City to the North-east and is 693m high above sea level. Son Tra Mountain can be seen from every places of the City.
Son Tra looks like a mushroom of which cap is Son Tra Mountain and stalk is a beautiful sandy beach that affords an ideal area for bathing, playing sports, fishing and swimming.
With its sea-oriented appearance, Son Tra acts as a giant screen protecting Da Nang from storms and cyclones coming from the sea. Son Tra is put under the national protected forest regulation since it is a natural preservation area. The Peninsula is famous for its plentiful plants and fauna as well as the attractive scenery. It is said that fairies used to come here for singing, dancing and playing chess so Son Tra is also called Tien Sa (Fairies’ landing place). On this mountain, there still remain more than 30km² of natural forests, nearly 300 types of plants and several hundred kinds of fauna, including rare animal. From the top of the mountain, you can see the overall view of Da Nang City, Marble Mountains, Ba Na – Mount Chua, so interesting!
LINH UNG SON TRA PAGODA
Located in the halfway of mountain belonging Son Tra Peninsula, Son Tra District, on an area of 20ha, Linh Ung Son Tra Pagoda faces East Sea and is regarded as the place converging the sanctity spirit of heaven and earth.
Built in July 2004 and inaugurated on 30 July 2010, Son Tra Linh Ung Pagoda is an architectural cluster with items as sanctum, hall, library… The sanctum has the solid pillars carved sophisticatedly dragon shape and worships the statues of Shakyamuni Bodhisattva, Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. Located the straight direction of the sanctum, “Arhat Garden” owns 18 large white stone Arhat statues. Each of them expresses the human emotions of joy, anger, love and sadness. The highlight in the architectural cluster of Linh Ung Son Tra Pagoda is 67m-high Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva statue set in 35m-diameter lotus-shaped platform and facing the sea. There are 17 levels inside the statue, each level houses Buddha statues with different appearances, expressions and gestures. In particular, from the pagoda’s entrance, visitors can sightsee Da Nang City with modern architecture works and beautiful beaches. Farther in sight, Marble Mountains and Da Nang Beach will appear before visitors’ eyes. With the favourable location in Son Tra Peninsula Tourist Area, Linh Ung Son Tra Pagoda is an attractive tourist site for visitors when visiting the charming coastal city of Da Nang.
BA NA – CHUA MOUNT
Located at altitude of about 1,400m, Ba Na – Chua Mount has an average annual temperature that varies between 17 and 20ºC. Each of the four seasons appears within a single day in Ba Na: spring in the morning, summer at noon, autumn in the afternoon and winter at night. One particular characteristic is that the clouds are at the mid-height of the mountain, so the peaks are usually clear. Ba Na also possesses very beautiful forests with green pine hills. Ba Na Hills Mountain Resort has invested to built in Ba Na – Chua Mount the system of cable cars, restaurants, hotels, amusements… to serve visitors. A modern system of cable cars to Ba Na – Chua Mount helps the visitors get a bird’s-eye view, very miraculous and attractive while enjoying a feeling of flying in the blue sky amidst the clouds and wind. The cable car system was recognized with 4 Guinness World Records for the longest non-stop single track cable car (total length of 5,771.61m), the highest non-stop single cable car (a height difference of 1,368.93m), the longest single cable (total length of 11,587m) and the heaviest cable reel (weight of 141.24 tonnes). Coming to Ba Na, you will be also attracted by French architecture works as French Village, Morin Hotel – Restaurant, Debay Wine Cellar, Garden of Love (Le Jardin D’Amour)… or take part in exciting games at Fantasy Park – the only indoor amusement park in Viet Nam located on top of the mountain, experience mountain climbing train and alpine coaster – unique tourism products in Ba Na. Besides, you also can visit the spiritual sites such as Linh Ung Pagoda, Linh Chua Tu Linh Temple, Ba Shrine, Linh Phong Tower, etc and beautiful landscape sites as Mo Stream, Toc Tien Waterfall, Nui Chua Peak – the highest peak at 1,487m, etc. After visiting attractions in Ba Na, you can enjoy Vietnamese traditional and Western dishes in restaurants of Hoi An, Morin, Kavkaz, etc.
Ba Na by night is more wonderful. You can attend a friendly camping fire, sing, dance, and play team building games around the warm fire in the coldish weather. All worries of life will likely disappear, giving place for pleasures and happiness.
Every year, in summer, the Ba Na summer festival is held with many exciting and attracting activities such as carnival, street music performances, wine festival…
MARBLE MOUNTAINS
The Marble Mountains, also referred to as Ngu Hanh Son or Mountains of the Five Elements, consist of five marble mountains: Thuy Son (water) which is the highest, Moc Son (wood), Kim Son (metal), Tho Son (soil), and Hoa Son (fire).
Thuy Son has been exploited as a popular tourist resort because of its alluring beauty. Stone steps carved into the mountain lead to the Tam Thai Pagoda where Phat Di Lac is worshipped. At the back of the pagoda is Huyen Khong Cave. In the past, the pagoda paid tribute to Hindu and Buddhist gods and is now dedicated to Cham deities. Huyen Khong Cave was the base for Vietnamese revolutionaries during wartime. The Marble Mountains are famous for traditional stone engraving activities. In Dong Hai Village close to Thuy Son, 600 families chisel stone producing statues, jewelry, and art work. Stone from the Marble Mountains has been exported to many countries.
One of the most beautiful beaches in Vietnam is located 2km from the mountains and 10km from Danang. It is Non Nuoc Beach which is very convenient for visitors who want to go climbing and bathing.
MY KHE BEACHES
The “mother nature” has granted Da Nang with pristine picturesque beaches. The Forbes voted My Khe beach in Da Nang as one of the six most attractive beaches on the planet. My Khe Beach is located about 6km east of Da Nang and about 24km north of Hoi An. It is a nine-kilometer stretch of smooth sand with an average width between 50m and 70m. The gradient is gentle, and its sheltered position in the lee of the Son Tra peninsula softens the autumn winds that restrict swimming further down the coast. It is an ideal and huge beach with smooth sand and a slight slope. Behind the beach is a dark green poplar forest, and beside, the Kinh River carries crystal water to the sea. The beach has coral, abundant plants and creatures along bankside and under sea. Especially, the beach is next to the city center, in roads easy to come and by various means of transport. Sea water in My Khe is cool with little wave so you can bath all year’s round, especially in summer from May to August. The lack of large waves, less than average pollution, and an annual mean temperature around 25oC, makes it a safe place to swim for adults and children alike.
My Khe was voted by the Forbes as one of the most attractive beaches on the planet since it meets the following criteria: the beach of traffic convenience, the beach open free for tourists, with long and flat sand-bank, sunlight and waves suitable for playing sports, safe for tourists, with luxury resorts and international standard villas…
The Sunday Herald Sun of Australia also voted My Khe as one of 10 most popular beaches in Asia. It is famous for white sand-bank, mild waves, blue water which is warm all year round, coconut trees …. suitable for holiday at any time of the year.
Looking from above, My Khe is fascinating by the blue color stretching to the horizon. Especially at the sunsets, it put on a new color which is quieter, creating a beautiful scene.
Your holiday at My Khe will be more perfect if you stay at one of the nice resorts located along the beach of My Khe, with excellent services and special cuisines.
