Da Nang Travel Guide – Visit Da Nang – Budget Travel In Vietnam

Visit Da Nang in Vietnam to experience a city that has transformed from an old French colonial port into a modern city with brightly lit hotels and incredible bridges.

Despite being the third biggest city in Vietnam, you rarely hear Da Nang mentioned in Vietnam itineraries. This is unfortunate as the city is a wonderful mix of old and modern architecture and has one of the most impressive skylines in Vietnam and some great beaches.

First Impressions Of Da Nang

On our journey from Hue to Hoi An, we had to transfer from train to bus in Da Nang. We walked for about 10 minutes to the bus stop and we both got the impression that Da Nang, unlike Hoi An, had little to offer.

I started to get an image in my head that Da Nang was a place that only attracted visitors due its close proximity to Hoi An (and the fact it was the nearest train station).

So, we had small expectations of Da Nang as we arrived. Luckily, we had only booked to spend one night here, as we were leaving on the sleeper train the next morning.

How To Get To Da Nang From Hoi An By Bus: SCAM ALERT!

As we’d already took this bus to get to Hoi An, we knew what to expect. This time was slightly different as we took the bus from the station so we were not refused entry onto the bus. If the conductor wanted to scam us, he would have to kick us off, rather than not let us on. Worryingly, we had heard reports of that happening to other tourists.

It made for a slightly anxious wait for paying our fare. The bus had already left the station and was on its way before the conductor started collecting fares. I had already took a photo of the bus fare information on the outside of the bus.

Shortly after leaving the station, the bus stopped to let on a few guys with loads of luggage. They practically filled the bus with boxes, bags and even trees!

After seeing the conductor overcharge even locals, he finally made his way to us. The interaction went like this.

“30,000.”

“No, it’s 18.”

He then left us for a few minutes then came back.

“30,000.”

“No, it’s 18.”

We gave him exactly 36,000 VND which he deliberately dropped onto the floor. We picked it up and gave it back to him.

“Look, it’s a scam. We know it’s a scam and we’re not falling for it.”

“20,000?”

“No, it’s 18.”

He took the money. We were on our way.

Where To Stay In Da Nang

These are some of the best budget hostels in Da Nang, according to user reviews. These are affiliate links to the Agoda web site. I found Agoda to be much better than booking.com in Southeast Asia. I receive a small amount for any bookings made through these links at no extra cost to you.

• Starfish Alley Hostel
• Khang Homestay
• Posiki Dorm Hostel
• Hana Homestay Danang
• The Vietnam Hostel
• DGreen Hostel
• Loca Homestay
• Blue-S Hotel & Apartment

Trang Ngan Hotel

We were only staying for one night and we booked a room at ‘Trang Ngan Hotel’ (map). The hotel was minutes away from the beach and we could actually see the sea from our hotel window. The room was modern and clean, the wifi was good and the bed was comfortable. The only negative would be that there was no communal area, but for one night that didn’t matter.

Click here to book a stay at ‘Trang Ngan Hotel’.

It was a strange time to arrive as it wasn’t quite late enough to go out for the evening but it was too early to do anything. We decided to just have a walk to the beach and get some food nearby.

Things To Do In Da Nang

The most obvious direction was Da Nang beach. The beach was well maintained but it was quiet as we were still enjoying the cool Vietnam weather. Just as well we hadn’t planned to do any sunbathing.

We walked along the seafront, pausing only to allow Joanna to show off her superhuman strength.

We then headed away from the beach and discovered a cool area near the night market (map). There were a couple of bars that looked interesting and I would have definitely made more use of them if we had been staying longer. Right now, though, we were looking for food.

Valhalla Grill

Just around the corner from these bars were a number of western style restaurants. For some bizarre reason, the previous day I had a craving for currywurst; something I’d not eaten in years. By sheer coincidence, Valhalla Grill (map) had currywurst on the menu. They also did a mean-looking pulled pork sandwich but the currywurst craving was too strong. The food was great; a perfectly sized portion of German sausage served with fries and covered in a fruity curry sauce.

Da Nang Nightlife

After a short rest, we decided to head out to see what Da Nang offered in the evening. We headed back to the beach but this time headed north. Apart from the many seafood restaurants, the city seemed in transition with a lot of places either closed or nearly opening giving the impression of a resort not quite ready.

Suddenly, it all started to change!

We turned west, heading towards the dragon bridge and suddenly we were passing HUGE restaurants.

Dragon Bridge Da Nang

We came across a night market just before the dragon bridge, where Joanna bought some veggie sushi. It didn’t have lots of other food options so I decided to wait. We headed towards the bridge and this is where we really were shocked.

It’s not so much the bridge itself (though that is pretty cool) but the views are incredible. A full 360 degrees turn shows you a major city, filled with lights. Our previous preconceptions of Da Nang as a small place that relies on tourists of Hoi An were immediately shattered. This place is BIG. And colourful! We were literally gobsmacked by the colour.

Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see the dragon shoot flames and water at unsuspecting tourists (that only happens at weekends at 9 pm). We crossed the bridge to a throng of street food vendors and locals.

Cầu Trần Thị Lý

We headed south towards the bridge that had caught our eye from the dragon bridge. Passing street dancers on the way, the bridge looked more impressive the closer we got. Once we actually crossed the bridge, it was like walking into a Pink Floyd concert.

Da Nang Street Food

By this time, my stomach was making it clear to me that I’d still not eaten. We passed a local street food place that seemed intrigued by our presence. I pointed at something on a menu and within minutes I had a small plate of some kind of pork in breadcrumbs served with a very hot chilli sauce. It was delightful!

Hideout Cafe

The following day, we had to check out of the hotel but our train didn’t leave until 9.30 pm. Our hotel let us leave our bags meaning we had a day to explore more of Da Nang. We had toyed with the idea of visiting the theme park but the rain put a stop to that plan. To help us decide what we were going to do with our day, we needed coffee.

‘Hideout Cafe’ (map) was a great start to the day. Good, well-priced coffee in a relaxed setting with soft, acoustic music. I’d like to say that we made definite plans whilst here, but that was not the case. Much wandering would follow.

Han River Bridge

From the coffee shop, we wandered the backstreets of Da Nang and then headed towards Han River Bridge (map). We had failed in our food mission so ended up buying from a mall.

We walked from Han River Bridge, stopping off to look at some sculptures on the way.

It was at this point that we decided there was one way to make the day seem shorter: beer.

Gammer Beer

We came across ‘Gammer Beer’ (map) and were won over by its promotion of buy one, get one free. We bought the bottles that were on offer then realised they were still much more expensive than the draught beer that everyone else was drinking. I nearly fell for the ‘free’ nuts scam but, after eating a handful and then rearranging them so they looked like they were untouched, we didn’t get billed.

N-Pub Bar & Coffee

We headed back to the hotel and picked up our bags. All there was to do now was find a cool bar nearby and sit and have a couple of beers until it was time to eat then head to the station. We found ‘N-Pub’ (map), a bar that promotes local art and even holds art classes. It played great music and the beer was good and cheap. It was nice of the staff to point out it was happy hour as we didn’t know and got our beer for half the price. It’s a great bar to check out in Da Nang.

Com Nha Linh

We then headed for some food before our night train. I had walked past ‘Com Nha Linh’ (map) earlier and commented on how empty it was. It was a bit busier now but the food wasn’t great. We were given a free starter of shrimp patties which turned out to be made of pork, much to Joanna’s disgust. I had a snakefish in clay dish but it was only average.

Night Train To Nha Trang

We got a Grab to the train station only to find out our train had been delayed by 10 hours!! Luckily for us, there were seats available on an alternative train which left a couple of hours later but actually arrived at the same time as our original train. We had to downgrade from a 4 berth to a 6 and pay for the privilege.

Is Da Nang Worth Visiting?

Da Nang really surprised us. We were expecting little but we were actually blown away by the sights from the Dragon Bridge in the evening. If you are heading to Hoi An, make sure you spend at least one night in this modern city.