NHA TRANG

Vietnam’s biggest beach resort — all grown up, but still with a fishing-village spirit

Worth It? Certainly; despite the development, it remains Vietnam’s top beach destination
What to Do Sit on the beach, eat sea food, snorkel or dive, go bar-hopping or clubbing
Best Time to Go Avoid rainy season (November & December)
How Long? 2-3 days
Gateway It’s a key stop on the ‘open-bus’ circuit, with overnight trains to/from Saigon, plus daily flights to nearby Cam Rang from Saigon, Danang and Hanoi
Fact Nha Trang was first settled by the Cham up to 1900 years ago. Some people mistranslate the name as ‘white house’ (which is a variant of nha trang in Vietnamese), but it comes from the Cham work for ‘river of reeds’: eatrang or ya trang.

A long arching bay with turquoise water and white(-ish) sand has long put Nha Trang high on the list of traveler’s itineraries looking to be lazy, snorkel and drink – but it’s not the same laid-back fishing town it was a decade ago. At first glance, you could mistake it for Acapulco or a Costa del Sol resort, with 20-storey towering hotels lining waterfront Tran Phu St. But not to fret. The increase in activity hasn’t really hurt the beach – only one hotel is on it – and the nightlife here is still a till-dawn deal, unlike anything else between Hanoi and Saigon.

See the Nha Trang One-Day Planner, or download the Nha Trang map.