Da Nang Vietnam 4 Day Itinerary

Da Nang International Airport sits only three kilometers from downtown, close enough that a taxi or Grab into the city center runs somewhere between 60,000 and 200,000 VND depending on which company you flag and how the meter’s calibrated, a few dollars either way. Grab quotes the fare upfront in the app, which beats negotiating with a driver curbside.

Day 1: Downtown Da Nang

Check into a centrally located hotel, Mercure Danang Resort or Silk Hotel both put you within easy reach of the river. Skip searching for Banh Mi Phuong here, it’s actually in Hoi An on Phan Chu Trinh street, the one Anthony Bourdain made famous, not a Da Nang address, so save that sandwich for day three. Instead grab a banh mi from any of the stalls near Han Market, which is worth an afternoon browse for local goods and produce regardless. Walk the Dragon Bridge at night if you can time it for the weekend, it breathes fire and water on Saturday and Sunday evenings around 9pm, a genuinely fun spectacle that’s easy to miss if you only check it out during the day. Finish with a drink at a rooftop bar along the Han River.

Day 2: My Khe Beach and Ba Na Hills

Spend the morning at My Khe Beach, wide, clean sand that Forbes once ranked among the world’s best, before the midday heat gets serious. Have lunch at a grilled chicken and rice spot near the beach, then commit the whole afternoon to Ba Na Hills rather than trying to squeeze in Son Tra Peninsula the same day, they’re in opposite directions and each deserves unhurried time. Ba Na Hills tickets run around 950,000 to 1,000,000 VND for adults in 2026, covering the cable car up, the Golden Bridge held up by giant stone hands, and the French Village theming at the top. Book online in advance, the queue for tickets bought same-day at the gate can eat an hour you don’t have. The cable car itself, one of the longest single-track systems in the world, is worth the ticket price on its own for the ride over the jungle canopy. Dinner back at your resort or at one of the peninsula’s international restaurants closes the day.

Day 3: Hoi An

Hoi An is a short drive south and worth the full day. Walk the ancient town’s Japanese Covered Bridge, the old merchant houses, and the assembly halls, then have cao lau, the regional noodle dish you genuinely can’t get quite right anywhere else, since the water used in the broth reportedly comes from a specific local well. Now is the moment for that Banh Mi Phuong sandwich, either at the busy main location or the quieter original stall near the market if you want to skip the line. In the afternoon, An Bang Beach is a calmer, less commercial alternative to My Khe, and a short boat trip on the Thu Bon River is a nice way to see the town from the water. Dinner at a social enterprise restaurant training disadvantaged workers in the trade is a good way to put money directly into the local training economy rather than another tourist-menu spot.

Day 4: Last Morning and Departure

Use the morning for whatever you missed, a return trip up Son Tra Peninsula to see the Lady Buddha statue and the monkeys along the road is a good half-day option if Ba Na Hills already covered your mountain fix. Have a relaxed lunch before heading to the airport, leaving buffer time since Da Nang’s arrivals and departures halls can back up during peak flight banks.

Transportation and Practical Notes

Grab covers the city reliably and quotes fares before you commit. If you rent a motorbike, get an International Driving Permit that follows the 1968 Vienna Convention and explicitly lists motorbikes, Vietnamese traffic police do check, and riding without one can void your travel insurance after an accident. Photograph every scratch and dent on the bike with the rental shop present before you ride off, since undocumented pre-existing damage is the most common way tourists get overcharged at return.