Things to do in Da Nang

Cham Museum

The Cham Museum is the main attraction of Da Nang and is worth the trip, even if you're coming all the way from Hoi An. This old sandstone building houses an excellent collection of Cham art and sculpture. The museum was completed in 1916, with Da Nang chosen as the location due to its proximity to the former kingdom of Champa. The museum follows Cham architectural themes, and was enlarged in 1936 as its collection increased. There are now more than 300 original pieces of sculpture. Each of the museum's ten rooms bears the name of the district in which the relics were found.

A museum shop sells all manner of imitation pieces, priced from 50,000 to 700,000 VND. They will bargain especially if you are buying a few pieces.

A guidebook to the museum is available at the ticket booth for US$5. It's well written and informative, with specific information about many of the major pieces inside the museum.

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Tran Phu Street, at the roundabout with Bach Dang and Duong 2/9, Da Nang
Opening Hours: Daily: 07:00 to 17:00

Cao Dai Temple

Located in a quiet neighbourhood in central Da Nang, the local Cao Dai temple is worth a quick visit, though it's not nearly as spectacular as the temple at the sect's headquarters in Tay Ninh. It's simple from the outside, and an inattentive passerby could easily miss it. Try to take a peek inside though-- if prayer is taking place or a guard is on hand to let you in, you can check out the much more interesting interior, decorated with typical Cao Dai ornamentation -- note the globe at the rear of the interior holding the all-seeing eye. The temple is locked up outside of prayers, but there is often someone around to let you in. Otherwise, you can wander around the grounds and peek through the slatted shutters anytime you please.

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Hai Phong St

Ho Chi Minh Museum

This three-storey museum is packed with more exhibits than you'll be able to take in during one visit, and is a sensible excursion for museum lovers curious about Vietnam's history, as told from the perspective of the current regime. Outside the museum is a sizeable collection of tanks, guns and aircraft dating from the French colonial period through Vietnam's conflict in Cambodia. There are some great specimens on display in good condition, including jets and prop planes from both sides of each conflict, many with grenade and missile launcher still attached. Sadly you can't climb in and sit at the controls, but aviation nuts will still have a field day.

The museum's displays flow from top to bottom, so after entering, climb the stairs to the left up to the top floor. The display commences with some of the actual wooden spikes used by Tran Hung Dao in the 11th century to swamp the Chinese fleet up in Ha Long Bay and continues somewhat chronologically from there through one conflict after another. Some of the displays are trivial, but in among them are some great historical photographs, and most of the legends are translated into reasonably comprehensible broken English.

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Nguyen Van Troi, Da Nang
Opening Hours: Daily 08:30 to 04:30

Da Nang Water Park

The Da Nang Water Park has a wave pool, a kiddie pool full of fountains and a small collection of big slides and loopy tunnel slides. The grounds are getting a bit weedy and neglected and it's never very full, but it's a fun diversion for half a day and well worth the admission price, especially if you happen to be shorter than 1.4 metres. It's located off of 2/9 Road on the west bank of the Han River, just north of the Nguyen Van Troi bridge, about 3 km from central Da Nang.

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2/9, Da Nang
Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 08:30 to 18:30, Sun & Holidays 07:00 to 19:00

Son Tra Peninsula (Monkey Mountain)

A great motorbike trek is available out of Da Nang that we highly recommend. It's about 40 km total that takes you across a road that crests 16km across the top of the Son Tra Mountains. The road is usually deserted and the views are fantastic in fair weather. When it's a bit cloudy, the mist washing over the mountaintops more than compensates for the lack of views. The road features some of the steepest inclines we've seen in Southeast Asia, so if you take a 100cc bike, you won't be able to pull up a passenger -- take separate bikes, unless you have something more powerful.

Starting from Da Nang, head across the Song Han Bridge, 2km to the beach, and take a left, heading north. From there the road hugs the coast of the peninsula. The road isn't finished yet, and at some point you may find a barricade barring through traffic, but we've never had any problems just driving around it. If the construction guys try to stop you, it's mostly just to say hi and try to hit you up for cash! You don't need to pay. From My Khe Beach it's 16km total around the peninsula to where the road ends on the other side. You can go right down the concrete road, and 2km later there's a new road that should, in the future, lead to Bach Niem, and an old banyan tree. The concrete road continues another 1.5 km and then just stops in the middle of nowhere, but it's still a great detour.

Otherwise, just take the concrete road to the left when you hit the end of the beach road. This road goes up and up and up, with green growth encroaching on the road from both sides, and one great view after another. Resist all the turnoffs, which lead nowhere, but at about 5 km, keep an eye out for where there's a gravel patch and an unmarked road ascending sharply on the right. It's only a couple of hundred metres to the top where there is a cell phone tower, manned by some young men who were more than happy, on our visit, to take us up on the top of the building for better views. They were thrilled to hear the spot was going into a guidebook and they might get more visitors. They eat and sleep up here, and say the views at night are the best.

After visiting the boys the road continues another 11km, up and down, passing the weather station (don't try to visit the guys up there, not so friendly) and finally reaching a long descent that puts out on Yet Kieu Road 3km south of Tien Sa beach. Take a left to continue 9km back into town.

Ba Na Mountain

Located about 45km west of Da Nang, Ba Na Mountain was used during the French colonial period as a summer retreat. In the old days, the French colonials used to be born up the winding, 16km road to the top on palanquins. Nowadays, the road is well paved, but still very steep. At the top are the remains of some French villas -- there isn't much left of them, but the ones accessible on foot do give an interesting picture of life on the mountain. There's even an old French wine cellar that can be visited at the Ba Na By Night Resort. Dug into the mountain to keep the wine at the perfect temperature, it's the one structure that has perfectly withstood the passage of time -- shows the French had their priorities in order.

There's an irregularly running cable car that provides panoramic views starting about a kilometre from the summit, but you can also get up by continuing on the paved road. At the top is a weather station, as well as Le Nim Resort, and the 1478 Restaurant, named after the mountain's height above sea level in metres. The actual summit is a short walk from the restaurant and an easy climb. The mountain is cloaked in mist for most of the year, so pick the clearest day you can manage in order to enjoy the views. March through August is the best time to visit -- November and December are so rainy they're all but out of the question. Even under the cover of clouds, the top of the mountain is a beautiful place -- forests of ferns and creepers dripping in the mist -- but to be honest, the mountain is really only worth visiting on a sunny day when you can take advantage of the views. When visibility is better, it's still a far distance for a daytrip, with little in the way of actual sights to reward the tiring bike trip. Staying overnight could make the voyage less exhausting -- but given the two mediocre accommodation options, that isn't particularly tempting.

If you do go, the best way is by motorbike. Don't try it with two people on one 100cc bike -- take separate bikes or find something more powerful -- otherwise, you may find yourself giving up and rolling back down half way up. Oh, and make sure the bike has a good set of brakes -- you'll need them on the way down. Also, no matter what the weather, bring a jumper and some rain gear, just in case.

To get here, take highway 1A north, then take a left on Au Co Road about 3kms past the railroad crossing going north. It's hard to find, but luckily many locals know the route and will understand if you ask for Ba Na. To enter, there is a fee of 10,000 VND per person, as well as a surcharge for your vehicle.

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45km west of Da Nang

Suoi Mo

At the base of Ba Na Mountain, about 30km west of Da Nang, Suoi Mo is another attraction worth a visit, typically in combination with a trek up the mountain. There's a well-marked road heading north -- you'll be asked to pay 5,000 VND at the gate, and the spring is 2km further up the road. You'll have to get out and walk the last couple hundred metres when you reach the cafes at the entrance to the spring proper -- if you plan on a picnic you'll have to bring your own as little else but drinks are available. The path leads along the river, and you'll find some narrow, slippery dirt paths branching out on the left towards the water which give access to the larger swimming areas, though if you go this route, tread carefully and think ahead in terms of where you plan to climb out of the stream. Further up are the waterfalls which feed into the river at a point where it passes through a stone canyon. It's a beautiful spot, with plenty of shade, and while it can get a little crowded, it remains a great spot for a refreshing dip. There are many signs painted on the rocks in Vietnamese warning you where you shouldn't dare to climb. If you're nimble enough, you can make it to the base of the falls for a unique photo op.

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At the base of Ba Na mountain, 30km from Da Nang

Nam O Beach

Nam O Beach borders on the Bay of Da Nang, which is just north of the Son Tra peninsula -- you can get a good view of it from Monkey Mountain. It's a fine beach, but with all the great sand stretching from Cua Dai up to My Khe, there's precious little reason visit. The local government would like people to move out here to relieve pressure on the city centre, but with the failure to complete the bridge connecting Da Nang and Nam O, so far development has been extremely patchy -- there are some hotels along the road far from the water that didn't tempt us at all. The Red Beach Resort has facilities for their rooms right on the beach, though the rooms they offer are somewhere on the other side of the road, and it was clear to us you'd have to be crazy to stay there. It's worth mentioning that they do offer some pricey water sport activities. including jet ski hire at 150,000 VND for 10 minutes, banana boat rides at US$13 per ten minutes per boat, windsurfing at US$9 for 30 minutes and kite surfing at US$16 for 30 minutes.

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Bay of Da Nang

Tien Sa Beach

This very local, very Vietnamese beach is located on the western side of the Son Tra peninsula, east of the Han River. Across the river, the beach is called Nam O along the shores of the Bay of Da Nang. It's a relatively small beach with calm waters in a sheltered cove, and some interesting rocks to climb on to the west. It fills up with Vietnamese on holidays, and rarely gets foreign visitors. There is only one resort on the beach.

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Son Tra Peninsula, Da Nang
How to get there: To get here, leave Da Nang across one of the bridges and go north, following the signs to Cang Tien Sa. The entrance to the beach is on the right. The entrance fee for the public is 10,000 VND, though the entrance to the resort is the next right, and if you're staying there, you needn't bother paying.