As one of the top travel destinations in Southeast Asia, Nha Trang attracts millions of tourists each year who seek a perfect blend of relaxation and adventure. Whether you are a beach lover, a history enthusiast, or an adrenaline junkie, Nha Trang has something to offer. In this article, we will explore the must-visit attractions, local cuisine, and exciting activities that make Nha Trang a must-see destination.
Best Time to Visit Nha Trang
The climate in Nha Trang is relatively mild, with a dry season lasting from January to August, without a cold winter. Therefore, tourists can come here to travel all year round. From April to the end of June, the weather is more sunny and hot, but not too hot.
In September, it starts to rain sporadically, so it does not affect tourists' activities too much. From October to December, it rains more, possibly accompanied by cold air. This is no longer the peak season for domestic tourism in Nha Trang, so it is suitable for tourists who want a quiet vacation.
Move
Currently, Vietnamese airlines such as Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, Jetstar, all operate flights from Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City to Nha Trang, via Cam Ranh airport. Bamboo Airways has flights from Hanoi. Ticket prices range from 1,400,000 VND to 2,500,000 VND.
Cam Ranh Airport is about 35 km from the city center. There are taxi companies here that pick up passengers for about 300,000 VND per trip. In addition, visitors can use bus route 18, priced at 50,000 VND per trip.
Nha Trang city is not too big, the main road runs along the beach, so visitors should rent a motorbike to visit, especially if they want to enjoy local cuisine. Motorbikes cost about 100,000 - 150,000 VND to rent. Usually hotels will provide this service.
Hotel, resort
Tran Phu is a road running along the beach, there are many hotels for tourists to choose from. Some suggested hotels are Muong Thanh, Novotel, InterContinental Nha Trang, Sheraton Nha Trang, Lodge... With the advantage of being close to the beach and the center, hotels on this road cost from 900,000 VND per night. More high-end ones cost 2 - 3 million VND per night.
To save money, visitors can find hotels and homestays after Tran Phu. Specifically, Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Hung Vuong or Nguyen Thien Thuat streets.
For tourists who love resort tourism, with private space, not close to the center, Amiana resort on Pham Van Dong street; Vinpearl Resort, Hon Tre or MerPerle are suitable choices.
Local Cuisine and Dining Experiences
In addition to seafood, the city also has many specialties and attractive dishes such as squid pancakes, grilled spring rolls, fish noodle soup, banh can, banh uot... Below are the addresses and places to eat in Nha Trang.
- Lac Canh Grilled Beef - 44 Nguyen Binh Khiem
- Thanh Da Goat Restaurant - 66 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai
- Anh Sang Oxtail Hotpot - 126 Nguyen Khuyen
- Beefsteak, beef la restaurant Hoa - 9 Co Bac (only open in the morning)
- Ba Le Bread - No. 2 2/4 Street
- Aunt Loan Rice Cake - 16A Hong Linh
- Hiep Grilled Spring Rolls - 96 Luong Dinh Cua
- Small pan shrimp and squid pancake - 3 Tran Kim Hung
- Large Pan Fried Pancakes - Dam Market
- Fish noodle soup - 24 Nguyen Cong Tru
- Oc Le - 76 Vo Tru
- Snail Alley 89/5 Van Don
- Son Cang Seafood Restaurant - 142 Pham Van Dong
In addition, there are also many coffee shops, lemon tea shops, milk tea shops, and sweet soup shops that are loved by many tourists and locals.
- Mrs. Nhi's Sweet Soup - 19 Phan Dinh Giot
- Son Juice & More Juice World - 102 Hong Bang
- Coffee and Beer Talk 1992 - 2/4 Street
- Sunday Coffee - 336 Da Tuong
- Coffee Shop 1925 Roastery - 27 Cau Be Street
Where to play?
Sea and islands
Nha Trang beach runs along the city, just walk from Tran Phu street to reach the sea. However, the most crowded place for bathing is in the area around Tram Huong tower. The city's beach is rated by many tourists as clear, clean, with fine yellow sand.
The islands in Nha Trang Bay have their own beauty, with fishing villages, pristine beaches, the "kingdom" of monkeys and colorful coral reefs.
Hon Mieu is known as one of the most beautiful islands in the bay, located close to the mainland. Here, Tranh beach stretches nearly 500 m, with one side being fine white sand, the other side being a shallow beach with many small pebbles. The sea water here is clear, especially gentle, suitable for swimming. Tranh beach is also a gathering place for a series of games and sea sports such as jet skiing, parasailing, banana floats, flyboards...
Here, visitors should not forget to visit Tri Nguyen Aquarium , with a giant ship design. Inside is the basement with 4 fish tanks. This is the main sightseeing area, gathering hundreds of marine creatures like a miniature ocean. On the 2nd and 3rd floors are restaurants and souvenir shops.
Hon Tam is about 7 km southeast of the city from the mainland. This island has a green forest carpet, long sandy beaches with gentle waves, especially suitable for tourists who love resort tourism.
Hon Chong is located on Pham Van Dong Street, about 3 km northeast of the city center. This is a complex of large rocks with various shapes, stacked on top of each other running from the high bank down to the sea. This tourist destination is also one of the most beautiful places to see the coastal city, with fresh, quiet air.
Hon Mun is the most beautiful destination for diving and coral viewing, 12 km from Cau Da port. With the intersection of two hot ocean currents, the island has about 2,000 species of coral and many tropical marine creatures. Joining the diving tour at a depth of 6 - 8 m, visitors will admire the colorful ocean world and touch many species of stars, sea fish...
Yen Island - Hon Noi , 25 km from the port, is famous for its wild and peaceful beauty. There is a double beach here, with a white, smooth sandbank and clear blue sea water on both sides. Visitors can see the entire sea view from the top of Du Ha mountain, with about 200 steps.
Monkey Island - Hon Lao is a special attraction, with about 1,500 monkeys living in the forest. Walking around the island, visitors can see them anywhere. Most of the monkeys here are friendly to people, however visitors should be careful because they often come close to steal food. On the island there is also a circus area with time slots at 9:30, 10:30 and 15:15.
Hon Mot Island attracts tourists by the peaceful beauty of the fishing village on the sea, with tiled houses covered with green moss and boats bobbing on the sea. Here, visitors will enjoy the fresh sea air and observe the life of fishermen. On the island, there are also many other activities such as scuba diving to see coral, jet skiing, glass-bottomed basket boats, parasailing canoes...
Tourists traveling in large groups can rent a canoe for about 1,300,000 VND to visit the islands here. Some islands charge an entrance fee such as Hon Mun for 22,000 VND, Monkey Island sells tickets for adults for 144,000 VND and children for 72,000 VND.
However, to save money and time, visitors should book island tours. Beach and game tours at Hon Mun - Tranh beach, or Hon Tam cost 450,000 - 600,000 VND. Diving tour at Hon Mun costs 600,000 VND. In addition to visiting the island, the tours often include mud baths, lunch at the fishing village...
Oceanographic Museum
The Oceanographic Museum is part of the Nha Trang Oceanographic Institute, established in 1923, located at 1 Cau Da. The museum includes a marine life breeding area, a natural disaster area, an artificial mangrove forest, a large marine life specimen area, oceanographic research equipment and intangible resources.
Here, visitors will admire more than 20,000 specimens of marine and freshwater creatures. Some creatures are kept in glass tanks such as stonefish, lionfish, tube anemones... showing the diversity of Vietnam's marine ecosystem. In particular, the museum also displays an 18-meter-long whale skeleton and a specimen of a Dugong, caught in a fisherman's net in Phu Quoc in 2003.
Museum admission is 40,000 VND per adult, 20,000 VND for students and 10,000 VND for pupils.
Ponagar Tower
This is a Cham Pa temple located on the top of a hill about 10 m above sea level, at the mouth of the Cai River, now in Vinh Phuoc ward. This is one of the largest Cham Pa cultural heritages in the country.
The architecture consists of 3 floors, going from bottom to top by stone steps. Of which, the Gate Tower area no longer exists. The middle floor or the Mandapa front area is where guests rest and prepare offerings. There are 4 rows of octagonal columns, including 12 small columns on the outside and 10 large columns on the inside.
Following the steep steps, visitors will reach the temple tower area, including 6 red brick Kalan (temple towers), of which 2 towers have been destroyed, leaving only the foundations. The towers are built in the same style but differ in size, of which the northeastern tower is the tallest, about 23 m. The four corners of the roof are three miniature roofs decorated with many mascots such as elephants, swans, goats... Around the temple tower area, there are many trees for visitors to sit, rest and enjoy the cool breeze.
In addition to pilgrimage and taking photos with majestic ancient towers, visitors can watch the bustling boats on the river.
VinWonders Nha Trang Park
This is an entertainment and resort area located on Hon Tre Island, with a total area of 200,000 m2, connected to the mainland by a modern cable car system. The entertainment area is divided into indoor, outdoor, water park, aquarium, performing arts area, ocean movie castle and food court.
Here, visitors have many options to have fun at the water park or experience thrills with games such as the free fall tower, thrill rides, roller coasters... For families with children, don't forget to visit the movie castle or the candy fortress.
At the end of the day, visitors can experience the 120 m high Ferris wheel with their family to admire the majestic landscape of Nha Trang Bay.
The entrance fee and round-trip cable car ticket for adults is 880,000 VND, and for children from 1m to 1.4m, the ticket price is 660,000 VND. Customers over 60 years old get a discounted ticket price of 530,000 VND.