Da Nang Day Trips by Road, Rail and Boat

October 20, 2026

The places people leave Da Nang for are not all the same kind of outing. Two are an easy car ride, one deserves a guide and most of a day, one is best by train or mountain road, and one begins with a boat from a pier outside the city. Sorting them by how you travel makes the choice simpler. Every price here is in Vietnamese dong (VND) and rounded, so look up current fares before you set out.

By Grab car: Hoi An and Ba Na Hills

Hoi An lies about 30 km south and takes roughly 45 minutes along the coast road. Everything between the two cities is overland, by taxi, Grab, tour bus or motorbike. A one-way Grab car costs about 300,000 to 400,000 VND at a fixed in-app price. The Ancient Town is a 16th-century trading port of yellow shophouses, the Japanese Covered Bridge and lantern-lit pedestrian lanes. The heritage ticket, about 120,000 VND, covers five historic sites, and the lanterns make late afternoon into evening the best time to arrive.

Ba Na Hills is about 45 minutes west of Da Nang, high in the Truong Son mountains. It is a resort built for visitors, not a historic site, and the draw is the cable car ride up and the Golden Bridge. The all-inclusive adult ticket is about 1,000,000 VND, children between 1 and 1.4 meters tall pay about 800,000 VND, and under 1 meter is free. Heavy rain can pause the cable cars, so look at the forecast the evening before. Sun World lists current tickets .

By car with a guide: My Son Sanctuary

My Son is a UNESCO World Heritage Site of red-brick Champa temples in a forested valley, about 70 km southwest of the city and 1.5 to 2 hours away. Most of the sanctuaries are dedicated to Shiva. Admission is about 150,000 VND and includes an electric shuttle and a Cham dance performance. The ruins make more sense after an hour at the Museum of Cham Sculpture in Da Nang, where altars and statues from the same culture are on display for about 60,000 VND. A private air-conditioned car with an English-speaking guide for My Son combined with the Marble Mountains is about 1,500,000 to 2,500,000 VND. The My Son Sanctuary site carries visitor details.

By train or mountain road: Hue

Hue is about 100 km north and roughly 2.5 hours away, so it is the longest of the land trips. The Nguyen Dynasty citadel, the Forbidden Purple City and the tombs of Tu Duc and Khai Dinh are part of the UNESCO-listed Complex of Hue Monuments. Check current ticket prices before you go, and start early.

Two routes lead there. The Reunification Express train follows the coast. The road climbs Hai Van Pass, a 21 km stretch of National Route 1A that reaches 496 meters, with old wartime bunkers and views toward Lang Co bay. Open-top jeep and Easy Rider motorbike tours over the pass cost about 1,300,000 to 1,800,000 VND per rider. Fog, wet bends and landslides after heavy rain are the real hazards, and riders should stay in low gear on the descents.

By boat: the Cham Islands

The Cham Islands (Cu Lao Cham) are a biosphere reserve reached by speedboat from Cua Dai pier, which is on the Hoi An side, so allow for the transfer south first. A day tour with coral snorkeling and a seafood lunch costs about 450,000 to 950,000 VND per person. Shared package boats sit at the lower end and private or premium boats at the top. The sea is rough from September to December, so confirm that boats are sailing before you pay.

Choosing and timing

Take one far trip per day. My Son and Hue each use most of a day.
March to August is the dependable window. Typhoons and heavy rain from September to December peak in October and November, and can close Hai Van Pass for a time.
Leave the Cham Islands for a fine day, and pair them with Hoi An rather than another long trip.
Compare guided options on Viator , and look up local events on Danang FantastiCity before you fix a date.