Why You Should Visit DA NANG, Not HOI AN | Vietnam's Hidden Gem

Hoi An Vietnam is a very busy, overcrowded tourist trap. But just 30km away is Vietnam’s best hidden gem. A city that is far less visited and far more fun. This is why you should visit DA NANG not Hoi An!

In this travel guide, I will cover all of the best things to do in Da Nang: the best day trips, the Son Tra Peninsula, the ruins of My Son Sanctuary, Marble Mountain, My An district, the Dragon Bridge and My Khe beach and the best beach in Da Nang.

EVERYTHING FEATURED IN THIS GUIDE:

0:42 - Hoi An in the morning
This is the best time to see Hoi An without crowds. Travel and Leisure magazine voted Hoi An as the best city in the world for 2019 - and this is when you can see why. The only thing you won’t see its famous magic lantern displays.

1:25 - Overtourism in Hoi An
Whilst it was once a charming Old Town, Hoi An’s historic streets are now being destroyed by the crowds of mass tourism. In places it now resembles a theme park.

3:23 - Best Things to Do in Da Nang Vietnam: Travel Guide
All the information on Da Nang starts here!

4:30 - My Khe Beach, Da Nang
5km of beautiful beach on the seafront of the city, right in front of My An. For me, this is a better tourist beach than An Bang beach in Hoi An - and the best beach in Da Nang.

4:57 - Son Tra Da Nang Vietnam (aka Monkey Mountain)
The best Da Nang motorcycle route and my favourite thing to do in the city. Home to the biggest buddha statue in Vietnam, an 800 year old Banyan, amazing viewpoints and the best hidden beaches.

7:53 - Marble Mountain Da Nang Vietnam
A cluster of five marble and limestone hills with temples and viewpoints. Busy, but good fun.

8:33 - My Son Da Nang Vietnam
Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary is a cluster of abandoned and partially ruined Hindu temples in Vietnam. Like a smaller version of Cambodia’s Angkor Was temples.

8:42 - My An Da Nang
Da Nang’s coolest neighbourhood, popular with digital nomads and expats for great coffee shops, restaurants and rooftop bars.

9:55 - Dragon Bridge Da Nang Vietnam
A bridge over the River Hàn in the shape of a dragon. It blows fire from it’s head on weekends (seriously)!

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This cinematic travel guide comes from One Shot Adventures, an independent production company that specializes in unique travel videography.

[OneShotAdventures]

Make sure you check out Hepsima's channel in the video description! If you want YOUR channel featured in the next Vietnam film, read this!

Hello guys, Ryan here! Thanks so much for watching this film! As some of you probably noticed, I ended up taking an unplanned break from Youtube for the last month. There's been a few "life things" that have got in the way, a few stories that I'll tell when the time is right... All is well though!

If you want to have your channel featured at the end of the next Vietnam film, post a comment on this video, subscribe to the channel. Tell me which part of Da Nang you like the look of the most and why!

[Antzzz_Manzzz]

I was born there 50 years ago n left at young age. Didn’t return 30 years later n Da Nang has changed so much. Beautiful n have everything. Great vid 👍🏼

[ItsChrisLloyd]

Wow, those caves at Da Nang were incredible! Instagram is really a blessing and a curse. In some ways, it is great to find these interesting and beautiful destinations, but it's truly unfortunate that the crowds coming via Instagram seem to be ruining these places.


Glad you are back, Ryan!

[pm_-wmwq]

I spent a month traveling in Vietnam in 2004 and another month in 2005. Hoi An was magical and I felt like I had it all to myself. Grateful.

[leonoranaidu]

We stayed in Danang and visited Hoi An. Best thing we could of done. We totally enjoyed our trip. Hoi An was beautiful but too busy as you mentioned. Danang was beautiful, the beach, markets and Bana Hills.

[howarthmillerweddings]

totally agree with everything you said... We started in Da Nang and went to Hoi An... Stayed one night and then left back to Da Nang! busy and not as great as you imagine. Its crazy.. Fine for a day trip x

[KinhThuc]

Da Nang my hometown very beautiful, thank you for this video❤

[-UnknownX-]

I lived in HCM City since I was born but I went to many city in Việt Nam and I got to say Đà Nẵng city is the best city to live in Việt Nam and deserve on top in the world! If you wanna retired, you should go to Đà Nẵng(Việt Nam)! It's safe, friendly people, fresh air(near beach), long beach, beautiful places, delicious foods... And most of all is very cheap!

[AdventureEverywhere]

I'm totally with you. Tourism can be so damaging. The more an economy depends on tourism, the more stalled it becomes. Tourism kills culture too. Now, here's hoping that Da Nang doesn't succumb to tourism, right? Marble Mountain looked incredible. What do you use for video in dark places? You had some nice lighting in the caves there. BTW, welcome back. We are on a semi-hiatus as well...I just don't have time to make videos right now, which is sad because I have hours and hours of video to edit. (If you have any tips on making time for making vids, I'll take em!)

[littlesparrowchannel]

Beautiful place, love the video 📼. Look forward to see more video from you. Keep on going 👍👍🎉

[floridaaguada]

Such a beautiful Vietnam, thanks for sharing your video😍

[jerrywhite]

My wife is Vietnamese, and we have traveled Viet Nam from Sapa in the north to Phu Quoc in the south. I agree with you as to Hoi An having turned into a Disneyland. You can barely move at night due to bumping into tourists right and left. BTW: The beaches in Da Nang are clean compared to Phu Quoc where the beaches were cluttered with washed up garbage....plastic was everywhere. Da Nang is without a doubt my favorite city in Viet Nam. My next favorite is Nha Trang; however, it is also becoming overrun with tourists but not remotely as bad as Hoi An. Da Lat is also very nice, but crowded at times due to its being close to Saigon. After the heat of Saigon, it’s cool weather is very nice. Speaking of Saigon, it is my least favorite city as it is very hot, crowded, noisy, and dirty. My wife’s family lives not far from Saigon near My Tho. Other quick inputs... Sapa is beautiful but quite a ways north near the Chinese border...Hue is interesting but nothing remarkable, and I found Hanoi to be much the same. Ha Long Bay is beautiful but becoming the tourist trap that Hoi An is. So in closing, to me, Da Nang is a very clean and modern city with many beautiful as well as historical attractions within an hour of the city. One could easily stay an enjoyable week in Da Nang. After spending 8 months in Viet Nam, we will return to the USA in June.

[angie]

I'm so glad that this video confirmed my choice to use Da Nang as my home base to explore South East Asia, I narrowed in on Da Nang as my choice because of the mix of city and beach

[rexyadav]

thak you so much buddy, you helped me getting my priorities straight on my Vietnam trip

[Calvinl]

When a place is crowded, it just means lots of people love the place, it shouldn’t stop you from visiting. Hoi An and Da Nang, different vibe, that’s both worth checking out.

[tomhiddleston]

Wow great video . So beautiful.... 👍👍💖💖👏👏

[fachrizahari]

Awesome video, its make me wanna come to Da Nang in my next trip to Vietnam

[cesarmijareslampongjr.]

Jeez! This is perfect! I'm planning my itinerary trip to Hoi An on December. I've been looking for a quiet beach near Hoi An for months. Just when I thought I'm not going to see any, I stumble across your vlog. Very informative! Great job mate! Fan of your work

[miennguyen]

Thanks so much for sharing.
Really enjoyed this video

[saibuamartin]

We enjoyed the beach near Hoi An. It was quaint with nice restaurants and places to stay. Made a 2-3 hour visit to Hoi An which was more than enough time.