Located midway between Hanoi and Saigon, Da Nang is the country’s third largest city and an up-and-coming beach destination in Central Vietnam. Dubbed “the Miami of Vietnam” by the New York Times, it is very much on the tourist radar these days thanks to its breathtaking oceanic landscapes, spectacular river bridges as well as a vibrant food scene.
Da Nang’s attractive coast stretches for 30 kilometres, and it was here, at Nam O Beach, that American combat troops first landed in Vietnam in 1965 – but rather than with bullets, they were famously greeted with garlands of flowers in a carefully stage-managed welcome. Nowadays the entire beach strip is lined with hotels and resorts, and attracts huge crowds at weekends and public holidays.
A provincial backwater until not very long ago, Da Nang is Vietnam’s rapid development in a nutshell. It is also conveniently close to the ancient port town of Hoi An as well as the former imperial capital of Hue, making it your ideal holiday base if you’d like to get the best of the two worlds – sightseeing and sunbathing.