Highlights of the VIETNAMESE COAST
From dramatic karst scenery to powderwhite stretches of sand, from fishing villages to imperial architecture, here are some of the highlights you can look forward to on a coastal tour of Vietnam.
With more than 3,260 kilometers of coastline on the mainland alone, Vietnam has plenty of pretty coastal towns and stretches of sand to lay down your towel. The shore sweeps from north of Halong Bay in the South China Sea down to the Gulf of Thailand in a long, serpentine “S.” The distance covered means you’re guaranteed a diverse geography along the way: in the north, jungle-clad karst peaks pierce the water, while in the south, there are palm-lined beaches and well-preserved Champa ruins, left behind by the country’s Indianized trading empire. Along the way you’ll find colorful waterside towns, busy fishing villages, World Heritage–listed architecture and some of the country’s most luxe hotels and resorts. Read on for all the highlights of a cove-hopping north-tosouth exploration of Vietnam’s coast.
HALONG BAY
A World Heritage Site in northeast Vietnam, Halong Bay hosts a jaw-dropping 1,600 forest- topped limestone islands and islets that jut out of the emerald waters of the Gulf of Tonkin. Many of the karst peaks and pillars are named after their shapes—Stone Dog and Teapot, for example. Some come with internal lakes, while others are blessed with fairytale grottoes studded with gleaming stalagmites and stalactites.
Though less than 40 islands are inhabited, many people live in the bay’s floating fishing villages, earning a living by hauling in some of the 200 species of fish and 400 species of mollusks residing here.
The best way to take in the region’s ethereal beauty is on a junk boat; given the popularity of the area, there are dozens to choose from. On overnight trips you’ll drop anchor to swim, kayak, and explore caves and beaches, with plenty of time to laze on deck while admiring the staggering scenery as it slides by.
HUE
Home to Vietnam’s equivalent of Beijing’s Forbidden City, Hue was the capital of the Nguyen Dynasty from 1802 to 1945. Prepare to
spend the best part of a day exploring Hue’s vast, moat-encircled citadel—home to the Royal Theater as well as the emperor’s onetime residence, and the shrines and palaces of the Imperial City.
Set on the banks of the poetically named Perfume River, just inland from the East Sea, Hue’s numerous historic monuments also include a network of tombs dedicated to imperial rulers past, not to mention the ornate 17th-century Thien Mu Pagoda. These are just some of the attractions that saw the city designated a World Heritage Site in 1993, despite the fact that many of the area’s finest buildings were destroyed during the Vietnam War. The Battle of Hue in 1968 was one of the longest and bloodiest of its kind, and old hillside bunkers remain on the outskirts of town as a permanent reminder.
DA NANG
Da Nang may be Vietnam’s fifth-largest city, but it still enjoys a laid-back vibe thanks to its palmlined beaches and history as a French colonial port. Situated halfway between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang has no shortage of sandy beaches to go for a dip. The most famous is My Khe, nicknamed China Beach by American GIs who visited for R&R during the war.
Da Nang is also the gateway to numerous landbased attractions, from My Son, an impressive collection of ruins from the Champa Kingdom, to the Marble Mountains, a popular pilgrimage destination where grottoes host important Buddhist shrines.
It’s also within easy reach of Lang Co, a sleepy seaside village where powder-white beaches are lined with seafood stalls. A holiday spot historically favored by Vietnamese royalty, the region’s feudal-era architecture inspired the design of luxe Banyan Tree Lang Co, a sprawling resort with spacious pool villas, an 18-hole championship golf course, and a marine center, all backed by rugged mountains with views over the East Sea.
HOI AN
At its most colorful during the monthly Full Moon Lantern Festival, the former Champa port city of
Hoi An is a dramatic confluence of architectural styles. Along the Thu Bon river, the Old Town’s wonderfully preserved mustard-yellow merchants’ houses sit beside wooden Chinese shophouses, French colonial buildings, Vietnamese tube houses, and an ornate Japanese covered bridge. The lovely pedestrianized streets are film-set perfect, with tailor shops, galleries, and artisans selling lacquered bamboo bowls.
Hoi An is known for its diverse food, a legacy of the many nationalities—Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese—that have lived or traded here over the centuries. Try cau lau, a hand-cut noodle dish served with sliced pork, crunchy rice crackers, and fragrant herbs.
It’s a popular bike ride through rice fields to the pristine white sands of Cua Dai Beach. The best way to enjoy this stretch is to rent an umbrella and deck chair from one of the many beachfront café-restaurants, order a cocktail, and watch spectacular sunsets over the Cham Islands.
QUY NHON
The Champa history lesson continues in Quy Nhon, a quiet city with wide boulevards and a long sandy waterfront. Here, you’ll find beach bars and seafood shacks dishing up stir-fried crabs and delectable prawn pancakes laden with fresh chili.
Dotted throughout leafy streets are wellpreserved temples and Buddhist monuments, while Champa ruins dating back centuries remain on the outskirts of town. The Thap Doi Cham towers, an excellent example of the era’s architecture, are an easy two-kilometer cycle from the city center. Slightly further afield is the Hoang De Citadel, the last capital of the Champa Kingdom and arguably the best preserved of its kind in the country.
Quy Nhon—where comfortable digs await at the 63-room Avani resort on Bai Dai Beach—is also the gateway to a number of tiny fishing villages and hidden bays, where you’ll likely have the stretch of sand you’re walking on entirely to yourself.
NHA TRANG
Backdropped by a necklace of hills that frame a turquoise bay with 19 tropical islands, Nha Trang is one of Vietnam’s most popular beach resorts. Many people come here for the snorkeling and
diving opportunities, enticed by the marine protected area’s abundance of fish. Others arrive for the catamaran cruises, replete with top-deck seafood feasts and a bar that comes floating to you after you’ve cannonballed into the water.
The sweeping, six-kilometer white-sand crescent of Tran Phu Beach defines the shoreline, and is backed by an impressive promenade dotted with parks and sculpture gardens. Inland there’s a cosmopolitan array of boutiques and dining options, and a host of spas where mud baths and hot-spring soaks are the best way to end the day.
Other diversions range from river cruises to gaze at Champa towers north of the center, to cable-car rides to neighboring Hon Tre Island. You can also catch a boat to the islands of Hon Mun and Hon Tam for leisurely hikes through nature reserves.
PHU QUOC
In the not-so-distant past, Phu Quoc Island was a destination for intrepid backpackers. But a clutch of new upscale accommodation on this jungledraped slip of land off Vietnam’s southwestern coast has broadened its appeal.
Renowned for its seafood, intensely flavored peppercorns, and the country’s finest fish sauce, the island is enjoying its time in the sun thanks to the recent opening of the Bill Bensley–designed JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay Resort & Spa—the first luxury retreat here—and the even newer InterContinental Phu Quoc Long Beach Resort, set on a 20-kilometer stretch of sand.
There are around 20 other beaches to bliss out on, from Kem Beach overlooking Emerald Bay, to Ganh Dau on the remote northwestern tip. If you dip your head into the sea, you’ll begin to understand why there are plans to turn this patch of paradise into a marine reserve: the warm water is home to some 100 species of coral, 135 species of fish, dugongs, and hawksbill and green turtles.
On land, more than half of Phu Quoc is a national park laced with excellent hiking trails; when you tire of the rain forest, neighboring Hon Thom island is accessible via one of the world’s longest oversea cable cars.