Vietnam Destination- Danang

Danang City

Area: 1,255.5 sq. km
Population: 764,500 habitants (2004)
Administrative divisions:
- Districs: Hai Chau, Thanh Khe, Son Tra, Ngu Hanh Son, Lien Chieu, Cam Le.
- Rural districts: Hoa Vang, Hoang Sa.
Ethnic groups: Viet (Kinh), Hoa, Co Tu, Tay...

Geography:
Danang City is located in middle of Central Vietnam, between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, separated from Laos by the western Truong Son Mountains. It is surrounded by Thua Thien-Hue along the northern border and Quang Nam on the southern border. It is embraced by the East Sea with 150km of seacoast.
Topography is rather complex. The south is impressive Hai Van Pass with Mang Mountain 1,708m, Ba Na Mountain 1,487m. The east is Son Tra Peninsula, an ideal site of yellow sand beaches, historical remains, and rare bird and animal species. The south is Ngu Hanh Son (Marble Mountains). The seashore is Hoang Sa archipelago with a large fishery.
Climate: Danang is located in the zone of typical tropical monsoon, temperate and equable climate. The city’s weather bears the combination of the north and the south climate characters with the inclination to the former. There are two seasons: the wet from August to December and the dry season from January to July, cold waves are occasional but they are of average and short lasting. Average humidity is 83.4%.
Average temperature is about 26ºC, the highest is 28-30ºC in June, July, August, the lowest is 18-23ºC in December, January, February. In Ba Na Mountain, the temperature is 20ºC. Average rainfall is 2,505mm per year that concentrates during October and November.

Tourism:
Danang is an ancient land, closely related with the Sa Huynh cultural traditions. Many imposing, palaces, towers, temples, citadels and ramparts, the vestiges from 1st to 13th are still to be seen in Cham Museum
Danang has other various interesting attractions as Ba Na Tourist Resort, Ngu Hanh Son (Marble Mountains) as well as the Linh Ung Pagoda, Han River, and My An, Non Nuoc beaches, stretching on dozens of kilometers...

Transportation:
Road: Danang is 108km from Hue, 130km from Quang Ngai, 763km from Hanoi, and 947km from Ho Chi Minh City.
Air: The Danang International Airport is 2.5km south-west of the city center. There are domestic flights to some cities. There are direct flight from Bangkok, Hong Kong, Siem Riep, Taipei and Singapore to Danang City by Vietnam Airlines, PB Air, Siem Riep Air way, Far Transportasion and Sil Airway.
Train: Thong Nhat Express train, which connects Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, stop in Danang.
Water: There are marine routes to international and domestic ports. Tien Sa and Han River ports are located in a very wonderful position.

Tourist Attractions:

BA NA - CHUA MOUNT TOURIST AREA
Ba Na - Chua Mount Tourist Area is located in Hoa Vang District, 30km from the centre of Danang City. The mountain, which stands at the altitude of 1,487m above sea-level, has an average annual temperature that varies between 17 and 20°C (62.6 - 68°F).

Each of the four seasons appears within a single day in Ba Na: spring in the morning, summer at noon, autumn in the afternoon and winter at night. One particular characteristic is that the clouds are at the mid-height of the mountain, so the peaks are always clear. Ba Na also possesses very beautiful forests with green pine hills.
Nowadays, coming to this place, you can feel your interests with a lot of pretty villas, newly built hotels, and bungalows here. Each one has its own flower garden with many types of aristocratic flower that Frenchmen left during the 50 past years.

A modern system of cable cars helps the visitors get a bird's-eye view, very miraculous and attractive while enjoying a feeling of flying in the blue sky amidst the clouds and wind. Danang Tourism Company will build the new resorts, including convalescence homes, a three-star hotel with 100 rooms and an area for private businesses' investment. These facilities would help reduce the overload of tourists during summer time, giving the visitors a feeling of being in a fairy-land they have never seen before. Enjoying nature they will feel relaxed and healthy and have peace of mind. However, Ba Na by night is more wonderful. You can attend a friendly camping fire, drink can wine, sing and dance comfortably around the warm fire in the coldish weather. All worries of life will likely disappear, giving place for pleasures and happiness.

Every year, in the middle of July, the big tourism event “Meeting at Ba Na” is held with many exciting and attracting activities such as Procession planquine, Tug of war, Music and song, Exhibition of paints and pictures about Ba Na, displaying of birds-bonsai-fish, Calligraphy contest...

HAI VAN PASS
Hai Van Pass is lying on National Highway No1A on the border between Thua Thien - Hue Province and Danang City. Hai Van Pass is like a giant dragon and which is considered to be one of the largest frontier posts in Vietnam. The name De Nhat Hung Quan, meaning the most colossal frontier post, is engraved on an incense burner in Thai Temple.

In the past, Hai Van Pass was known as the Thuan Hoa and Quang Nam frontier. In the early 14th century (1306), Che Man, a king from Cham Pa, offered two mountainous administrative units of O and Ri as engagement gifts to Princess Huyen Tran, daughter of King Tran Nhan Tong. On his way to see off the Princess in the Quang area in a summer sunny noon, the King and his entourage were on horse back for almost half a day but could not reach the top of the pass. Facing upwards, the King saw a rampart of mountains in dim clouds, and at the foot of the pass, an immense ocean, of waves. Though sorry for his daughter's difficult journey, the king was comforted by the closer ties between the two nations.

Whenever one goes through Hai Van Pass, two feelings are experienced: amazement at passing through the clouds and fear when seeing the dangerous bends of the road. A 21km-long road over Hai Van Pass, opened at the end of the 19th century, winds back and forth to a height of 435m above sea level. With sudden curves and blind corners, Hai Van Pass is likened to an arrogant but beautiful girl challenging drivers' skills. Its name means "Pass of the Ocean Clouds," since the peak of the mountain is in the clouds while its foot is close to the sea.
From the top of Hai Van Pass, one can admire Lang Co Beach to the north and Danang to the south. The curving railway through Hai Van Pass is 3,200m long including sections running through seven tunnels. There are endless forests to the west of Hai Van Pass and the ocean is to the east. Hai Van Pass is a real challenge for drivers, as well as for adventurers.

MARBLE MOUNTAINS
Marble Mountains are located in Hoa Hai Ward, Ngu Hanh Son District, about 7km from the centre of Danang City in the southeast. The Marble Mountains, also referred to as Ngu Hanh Son or Mountains of the Five Elements, consist of five marble mountains: Thuy Son (water) which is the highest, Moc Son (wood), Kim Son (metal), Tho Son (soil), and Hoa Son (fire).

Thuy Son has been exploited as a popular tourist resort because of its alluring beauty. Stone steps carved into the mountain lead to the Tam Thai Pagoda where Phat Di Lac is worshipped. At the back of the pagoda is Huyen Khong Cave. In the past, the pagoda paid tribute to Hindu and Buddhist gods and is now dedicated to Cham deities. Huyen Khong Cave was the base for Vietnamese revolutionaries during wartime.

The Marble Mountains are famous for traditional stone engraving activities. In Dong Hai Village close to Thuy Son, 600 families chisel stone producing statues, jewelry, and art work. Stone from the Marble Mountains has been exported to many countries.

NON NUOC FINE ART VILLAGE
Perhaps no one comes to the Five Marble Mountains without visiting Non Nuoc Fine Arts Village, where nationwide and worldwide famous marble handicraft works are produced.

The Non Nuoc Fine Arts Village has a three or four-hundred-year history. This is affirmed by some steles which still remain at some ancient pagodas in the Quang Nam Province. Currently, there is a temple of the “Marble Fine Arts Founders” at the well-known spot of the Five Marble Mountains, and many ancestor anniversary activities take place largely in this village on the sixth day of the first lunar month every year.

NON NUOC BEACH
Non Nuoc Beach runs for 5km against the Marble Mountains in Danang City. Non Nuoc Beach is famous for its seaweed, which reaches exportation standards.

It is bound by Dien Ngoc Sea to the south and Danang to the north. The beach gently slopes towards the calm, clear, blue sea; the clarity of the water attracts people who come to bathe and enjoy the seafood. Many five-star hotels were built in Non Nuoc to accommodate the domestic and foreign tourists in the area.

SON TRA PENINSULA
Son Tra Peninsula is located 10km from the northeast of Danang City. It looks like a mushroom with its peak of 693m above sea level. The cap of the mushroom is Son Tra Mountain and its stalk is the white sandy beach that affords an ideal area for bathing, playing sports, fishing and swimming.

Son Tra is a special gift of the god to Danang. It can be seen from every places of the city. With its sea-oriented appearance, Son Tra acts as a giant screen protecting Danang from storms and cyclones coming from the sea.

Son Tra Mountain is natural preservation area with various kinds of plants and animals. On this mountain, there still remain more than 30km² of natural forests, nearly 300 types of plants and several hundred kinds of fauna, including rare animal. The scenery is very attractive, it is said that fairies usually chose this place for landing, singing, dancing and playing chess. The name Tien Sa (Tien: Fairy, Sa: landing) is rooted from that. From the top of the mountain, we can see the view of beloved city, Marble Mountains, Ba Na – Mount Chua. It is an enjoyable and peaceful vista.

Suoi Da Stream lies by the side of the foot of the mountain, fine sandy surfaces run round the peninsula, several breaks of waves are running steadily up and down and washing up on the stones heaped up around the seaside. There it is quiet Bai But with groups of small, nice-looking houses, where people can sit for hours to hear the thunder of waves and view the slanginess on the far mount cliffs. At the mount foot, there are colorful and graceful coral beaches where diving tourism can develop.
It is so majestic and it is so romantic, it is so wide and it is really beautiful. In one-day stay at Son Tra, visitors can enjoy living in the resplendent flow of dawn and the quietness of twilight on this fascinating landscape. And that is a time for them to realize the value of each and every moment and the true calling of the hearts.