Da Nang is a famous tourist city in Vietnam. Here, there are many stunning things to see and do as well as delicious local food to try. If just have/plan two days in this city, it’s still enough to explore some highlights amongst them. Now, let’s HoiAn Day Trip Company recommends a 3-day itinerary in Da Nang (without Hoi An). If possible, we recommend spending more nights in Da Nang.
You may also like: Da Nang 1 Day Itinerary, Da Nang 2 Day Itinerary
• Content by Tam Le, founder of HOIAN DAY TRIP CO.,LTD
• Designed by Giang Cong Minh, co-founder of LS E&C LTD and his team
• Photo by Dang Cong Loi, Dao Xuan Son, Tam Le & others
Is 3 Days Enough in Da Nang Vietnam?
3 days are enough to see highlights in/around Da Nang city. There are Golden Hands Bridge, Ba Na Hills, Hoi An Ancient Town, My Son Sanctuary, the Marble Mountains. We recommend spending more nights to visit more attractions in this area if possible.
For 3 days in Da Nang, visitors can stay in the hotel on/near Da Nang main beachfront (My Khe Beach) or on/near Da Nang riverfront (Han River). In these areas, there are many accommodation options to choose from. Beside that, it’s also convenient (close to main attractions, easy to pick up/drop off, close to many restaurants/bar/shops).
Day 1: Golden Bridge/Ba Na Hills + Dragon Bridge Fire Show
Day: Golden Bridge & Ba Na Hills
The first morning in Da Nang should be a 1/2 day trip to Ba Na Hills with its Golden Hands Bridge, around 1 hour drive from Hoi An. This place is a huge complex of attractions, amusement park, restaurants, and hotels that mostly sit atop a high mountain. Its elevation is 1,400 meters. To get there, visitors will ride one of the longest cable cars of the world (average length is 5km) across a national park and through the cloud. Ba Na Hills cable car experience alone is an awesome experience. See more information & details
The most famous place in Ba Na Hills by foreign visitors today is Golden Bridge. It’s a 150-meters-long walking bridge with golden handrail, supported by two massive stone-like hands symbolizing hands of the mountain god. This bridge is just perfect for taking pictures (dozens of thousands of posts now about it on social media!). See more information & details
Additionally, Ba Na Hills also boasts of beautiful Le Jardin D’amour Flower Garden, 100-years-old Debay Wine Cellar, Giant Buddha Statue (27 meters tall), holy Linh Ung Ba Na Pagoda, Lunar/Moon Castle, Atlas Statue, Eclipse Plaza, French Village with Saint Denis Church, Helios Waterfall, the Medieval Fair, King Peak (top of Ba Na Hills), Fantasty Park, Ba Na Brew House, Wax Museum,…
Recommended tour:
Golden Hands Bridge Half Day Tour (early morning pick up available)
Golden Bridge & Marble Mountain Day Tour (having lunch at Ba Na Hills)
For lunch, visitors can think about an international buffet (costing 350,000 VND/person, 2024) or fast foods at street stalls or restaurants with different styles (Vietnamese, French, Italian, Korean, Chinese, Thai, Russian, Japanese, Indian) in Ba Na Hills. See more information & details
Night: Dragon Bridge Fire Show, Son Tra Night Market
On every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night, watching the fire show at Dragon Bridge is an activity that visitors should not miss. It occurs at 9:00 pm. In which, the dragon spits fire first and then water from its mouth, in order to bring peacefulness and prosperity to the city. Visitors can choose standing on the bridge to have a close look or on the riverside promenade to see/photograph. Taking a night cruise on Han River is another great idea. It must be boarded at 8:00 pm to stop by the bridge on time (from Song Han Port, Bach Dang Street). Sure, there are no crowds if do this way.
*If do not have any chance on the trip to watch the dragon breathing fire, the Dragon Bridge itself is awesome at night.
Before/after the Dragon Bridge fire show, visitors should go to Son Tra Night Market, a short walk from the bridge or the river. This night market is the biggest in Da Nang, including more than 150 stalls and vendors selling food and souvenirs. It’s less busy before showtime. Here, it’s easy to see many local specialty dishes and seafood barbecue to eat or try, alongside tables and chairs to have a seat. In other corners, local products (clothes, shoes, handicraft items, cakes, candies, dried fruits, dried seafood, etc) are sold. See more information & details
Not too far, Carp Dragon Statue (will spit water on the weekends) and Love Lock Bridge (highly recommended for couples) are other nice spots to see/photograph.
On the other side of the river, Bach Dang Walking Street (between APEC Park and Tran Thi Ly Bridge) has food, drink and souvenir shops. The river view and atmosphere here are less chaotic.
Day 2: Marble Mountain + Coconut Village + Hoi An Old Town
Morning: Marble Mountain, Coconut Village
In the morning of Day 2, visitors can go to the Marble Mountains (just 15-20 mins drive from Da Nang city centre and 1 hour drive from Ba Na Hills). It’s easy to get there by car/taxi or motorbike. First timers often spend 2-3 hours to see, shop and photograph at Non Nuoc Stone Carving Village, Am Phu Cave, and then climb to the top of the Water Mountain (the only accessible mountain in the Marble Mountains). Please remember to bring good shoes & wear long clothes. Main sights on the top of that mountain are Linh Ung Pagoda (aka Non Nuoc Pagoda), Tam Thai Pagoda, Huyen Khong Cave (famous for amazing beams of light), Tang Chon Cave, Van Thong Cave, Heaven Gate, Thuong Thai Peak. Elevator is available here, but it just takes visitors to Linh Ung Pagoda. The rest of the mountain still needs to be done by climbing stairs or hiking.
Recommended tours:
Marble Mountain & Am Phu Cave Tour
Golden Bridge & Marble Mountain Day Tour (having lunch at Ba Na Hills)
The next attraction Cam Thanh Coconut Village is a good place to go and explore Hoi An’s countryside. It has lots of coconut farms and a vast water coconut forest (nipa palm forest), making its nickname ‘coconut village’. It’s around 15 mins drive from Hoi An city centre/old town.
The most popular activity in Cam Thanh Coconut Village is basket boat ride in the coconut forest. Nowhere else in the country, visitors can see ‘basket boat’ (a round bamboo boat looks like a basket). A tour with this boat often lasts 30-60 mins, including some activities such as seeing the former hiding place of Vietcong communists, watching ‘spinning boat’ performance, going crab fishing or watching locals catching fish by net. It’s fun & unique.
In the village, local families also organize a hands-on cooking class in which family members will teach visitors how to cook Vietnamese food. Popular dishes are banh xeo (crispy rice pancakes), goi hoa cuoi (banana flower salad) or goi du du (papaya salad), fried spring rolls, cao lau noodles,… Not only knowing new spices & recipes, learners also have a fun time with different skills and tasting food they cooked by themselves.
In the Coconut village, riding the water buffalo is another interesting local experience. If love animals, you can remove/skip this activity from travel plans or tours.
Tour recommended: Cam Thanh Coconut Village tour (transfers, basket boat ride, water buffalo ride)
Afternoon, Evening: Hoi An Old Town
The Hoi An Old Town is a preserved trading town in the heart of Hoi An city. Between 15th and 19th centuries, it served as an international port, attracting merchants from all over the world. In 1999, this area was inscribed by Unesco to be a world heritage site.
To enter Hoi An Old Town, visitors need to buy an entrance ticket (more information & details); After that, can use it to sightsee 5 attractions (such as Japanese Covered Bridge, Chinese assembly halls, old houses, museums,…), take photos and learn about history. Hoi An Central Market, the oldest and the biggest local market, is also worth visiting.
After the sun goes down, this centuries-old town becomes so brilliant and atmospheric thanks to thousands of colorful lanterns; If possible, visitors should come on the full moon day to celebrate Lantern Festival together with locals (the best local festival in the area). It happens on the 14th day of each lunar month.
Besides strolling around the town to see lanterns or going shopping or taking pictures, visitors can consider doing these activities: boat ride on Hoai River & release wishing lanterns (15 mins long, 150,000-200,000 VND/boat), visiting Hoi An night market, watching Vietnamese bamboo circus (6 to 7 PM, unavailable on Monday & Friday, from 700,000 VND/adult), Hoi An Memories Show (8 to 9 PM, unavailable on Tuesday, from 600,000 VND/adult). Full list of things to do in Hoi An at night is here.
The best food for dinner at Hoi An are local specialty dishes; There are cao lau noodles, mi quang noodles, banh mi sandwich, Hoi An style beef noodle soup Pho, Hoi An style chicken rice, white rose dumplings, fried wonton, crispy rice pancake banh xeo, grilled pork skewers with rice paper and raw vegetables,… See more information & details
Tour recommended: Hoi An Evening Tour with Lantern Boat Ride
Day 3 (1st Option): My Son Sanctuary + My Khe Beach + Lady Buddha
See also: My Son Sanctuary & Lady Buddha Tour
Morning: My Son Sanctuary
Afternoon: My Khe Beach, Lady Buddha
After having lunch, visitors will have the chance to see/photograph My Khe Beach. This is the most beautiful beach in Da Nang city and one of the world’s 6 sexiest beaches by Forbes. Opening to the public, it’s a lengthy fine sandy beach, bordered by crystal clear water in the front, with a view to nearby islands and mountains, and coconut forests in the back. It’s perfect for sightseeing, taking pictures, strolling, relaxing (lots of sun loungers for rent), going swimming, participating in water sports,… The best time to visit My Khe Beach is the dry season from February to September yearly. See more information & details
The next attraction is the giant Lady Buddha in Son Tra Peninsula (aka Monkey Mountain). This statue is 67 meters tall, making it the tallest standing buddha in Vietnam when it’s inaugurated (2010). In local belief, she blesses fishermen a safe trip on the sea or prayers to have good fortune, happy life, good health. Because she stands on the hilltop, visitors will catch a breath-taking view and have some awesome pictures. Not far away, Linh Ung Son Tra Pagoda is the largest Buddhist temple in the city. It has grand religious monuments, lots of bodhi trees and bonsai trees as well as marble sculptures. See more information & details
Evening: Da Nang Motorbike Food Tour
The evening is the best time to visit Da Nang city centre and try local foods. With a motorbike, visitors will join the traffic, cross the most beautiful and vibrant roads, cross colorful bridges and sample the most delicious local dishes. See more information & details
Day 3 (2nd Option): Cham Islands Day Trip
Cham Islands is an offshore archipelago, a marine park and a Unesco world heritage site near Da Nang. It has 8 islands that are famous for beautiful beaches, fresh seafood and diverse underwater life (one of the best snorkeling/diving spots in Vietnam). The largest island has fishing villages, historical sites and rain forests. The best time to visit is the dry season (February to August) when it’s sunny, with no typhoons and the weather is stable. The best way to explore Cham Islands is doing a day trip with speed boat, guide, lunch, snorkeling and roundtrip transfer from the city. See more details
Tours recommended:
Cham Island Day Tour from Da Nang
Cham Island Private Tour with Lunch
Day 3 (3rd Option): Hue Ancient City Day Trip
Hue is nearly 100 kilometers north of Da Nang city center. It played its role as the capital of Vietnam in 19th and 20th centuries. Here, the kings constructed an extensive citadel with the Imperial City and the Forbidden Purple City, religious buildings and royal mausoleums. In 1993, all of them as a whole was honored to be Unesco world heritage site. Besides the heritages, this city is also famous for cuisine and the Perfume River which runs through its city downtown. See more details
Tours recommended:
– Hue Day Tour from Da Nang
