Parks and the outdoors in Nha Trang

17 parks, gardens, beaches and walks in and around Nha Trang.

Ranked with the travel guide's picks and well-known places first.

Do
100 Egg Mud Bath
Amusement park featuring mud baths, pools, hydrotherapy showers, jacuzzi and a big garden.
See
Ba Ho Waterfalls
A series of three waterfalls and a fast flowing river tucked away in the forest. There are limited amenities, although you can buy food like rice, chicken, beers and soft drinks. Taxis are available in Nha Trang to take you there, but it's not too difficult to find yourself and with good weather it's a pleasant drive, if you are confident on a motorbike. It's a good one hour trip from Nha Trang by motorbike through some rough, off-road tracks (especially in the wet season). The turn off from the main highway north of Nha Trang can be easy to miss (a stone pillar), but most locals along the road should be able to point it out. From the turn off it's a straight track to the river. You may want to bring some sturdy shoes to climb across the rocks and swimming gear for a dip when you get there. It will take about 45 minutes from the entrance of the tourist area to the lakes. There is an orphanage very close to the lakes (take a right turn when you get to a T-junction in the rice fields) that would really benefit from any gifts of vegetarian food (take milk, tofu, yogurt, etc.). Call Dieu An, the nun at +84 90 5823807. She speaks only Vietnamese.
Entrance fee 20 000 dong
Do
Bai Duong Beach
North of the Cai river, Bai Duong beach is smaller than in the main tourist area. It is a beautiful beach, but the sewage channels make it somewhat less appealing. The beach is mostly popular among Vietnamese visitors, and hence quite empty during peak sunshine hours. Near the beach there are several seafood restaurants catering to Vietnamese tourists. It can be reached using bus #4.
Do
Biking and Rafting Tour
Combination fast 30-km downhill biking passing through an ethnic village and meeting Raglai people. Then a 12-km rafting trip down the Cai River.
From USUSD 45
Do
Doc Let Beach
Located in the Ninh Hòa district north of Nha Trang, Doc Let is a beautiful, long beach with shallow, crystal-clear waters. The water has weak waves, but it is still excellent for swimming. Local fisher families sell and prepare seafood they will cook for you on the beach for a very reasonable price. The southern part of the beach contains the Ninh Hòa fishing village, where the north of the beach contains some relatively inexpensive resorts or it still underdeveloped. The best parts of the beach are the ones in front of the resorts, with the rest unfortunately with a lot of rubbish thrown by locals. You can pay a fee to rent a chair and use the showers/restrooms of White Sand Doclet resort or Paradise resort. Doc Let beach can be reached from Nha Trang using bus #3, by motorbike, and by some day tous generally aimed at Russian visitors. If you are staying in a resort there, the resort may offer you transfer services for a surcharge.
See
Fairy Spring waterfalls
Suối Tiên
Fairy Spring is a small, cool stream and swimming hole much visited by local kids on weekends. The swimming hole is at the end of a short jungle walk. It is a pleasant place to visit in summer. In winter the water is too cold to swim. The stream's source is the area of Hồn Bà, the highest peak in the province. Bottled and canned drinks are available, but no food is sold here yet. The area is slowly being developed and will eventually become a resort with a hotel, bungalows, and restaurant.
10,000 dong per person, 3,000 dong per motorbike
Do
Hon Chong
Scenic rock formations in the sea. The disposition of the rocks, as well as the sculpture of a giant fist mark in one of them, is mysterious and a source of several folk tales. You can climb the rocks and get some nice views of Bai Doung Beach and the nearby islands. It can be reached using bus #4.
Entrance 22,000 dong, including dance performance
Do
Hòn Tre island
Has several nice beaches, but almost of all them are of exclusive access to guests of the Vinpearl resorts. The exception is the small beach in front of the Vinpearl Land's waterpark, which is accessible for those who bought a ticket to Vinpearl Land. The beach offers waterports and contains a Russian restaurant.
Do
Long Beach
Bai Dai beach
It's in the Cam Lâm and Cam Ranh districts, 20 km south of Nha Trang. Bai Dai is in the middle of a frenetic process of development, with upscale resorts being built nonstop in the beachfront. Even so, the beach is very long and it is still possible to find yourself alone if you walk enough. It has beautiful blue waters, soft sand and it is pleasant to walk upon as it is less steep than the beach in Nha Trang, but rubbish can also be a problem in areas which are not in the front of resorts. Seafood is served at many shacks with deckchairs right on the beach. Probably best to go by motorcycle. The airport bus number 18 might be another option. Get off by road entrance leading to The Shack Vietnam.
Eat
Louisiane Brewhouse
Microbrewery with locally brewed beers, restaurant with fresh cakes and tarts, sushi, quality pizzas, steaks, Vietnamese food and seafood. Pool table, live music and own loungers right at the beach or pool available. Chaises longues at either the pool or beach are 40,000 dong per day. Even if you get a chair on the beach, you still have pool access. They have a sampling tray of beer for 100,000 dong.
Closed · opens 8 am30,000-600,000 dong
Do
Nha Trang Beach
The city's main beach, south of the Cai river, is about 6 km long and lined with a beautiful, well-maintained promenade containing walking paths, gardens, monuments and leisure spaces. The beach itself has a broad strip of sand, and the calm waters are extremely inviting for swimming - but care is needed, as the waters get deep very quickly. While Nha Trang's beach is hardly one of the most beautiful beaches of Southeast Asia, it can still provide one of the best urban beach experiences in the region. You will see many female vendors walking along the beach selling fruit and hot, steamed seafood. Vietnamese typically come to the beach during sunrise and sunset, with the Russians occupying the beach en masse during the peak sunshine hours. Make sure that you visit in the right season. The beach can be disappointing when the weather is grey and the waves choppy. The experience is then one of murky sandy waters, a strip of standard brown sand with a multitude of empty beach chairs and no one to be seen.
See
Po Nagar Cham Towers
These four brick towers were built by the Cham civilization between the 7th and 12th centuries to honour Yang Ino Po Ngar, mother of the kingdom, and the aroma of incense emanating from within makes it clear that this remains a religious site for the local Buddhists of Nha Trang today. The longevity of these last vestiges of a once-dominant SE Asian civilisation should impress temple enthusiasts even if the insensitive restoration and surrounding mass of tourists don't. The small complex sits on a hill which enjoys views across Nha Trang's fishing village. It is a 20- to 25-min walk (or short motorbike ride) from the main beach strip, however be prepared to wander through the real Nha Trang, quite an abrupt change from the showy built-up beach side resort. Public Bus 4 stops near the Cham Towers.
Closed · opens 7:30 am30,000 dong
Do
Thap Ba Hot Springs and Mud baths
Suối Nước Nóng Tháp Bà
Costs 50,000 dong for the hot swimming pool and waterfall, 100,000 dong for shared mud bath (if you are 5-8 people you will probably get put in the same tub), shower, hot/cold water jets, hot Jacuzzi, and the hot waterfalls and swimming pool. A massage by trained masseuses and entrance to the hot swimming pool costs 150,000 dong. There is also a package for 500,000 which included a massage among other extras. A VIP spa package will cost you USUSD 100 or more. If you carry on a further 500 m past the mud baths you arrive at a railway bridge across the river that connects to a tunnel. It's a very scenic spot that's popular for wedding photo shoots.
USUSD 4 mineral pool, USUSD 12.50 mudbath
Do
Vinpearl Amusement Park
From the harbour you can take the cable car over to the island where Vinpearl Resort and Vinpearl Land are located. They have a small tivoli and some restaurants, attractions here include Underwater World (aquarium), water park with water slides and wave pool, amusement park with roller coaster, pirate ship, bumper cars, cinema, arcade machines and a laser show at night time, usually 19:00. All included in the one price.
Adult 600,000 dong; children under 1.4 m tall 450,000 dong; elderly above 60 430,000 dong; children under 1 m: free
Do
Water Puppet Theater
Water puppetry is a Vietnamese original folk art that dates back as far as the 11th century when it began in the villages of the Red River Delta area of northern Vietnam. Today's Vietnamese water puppetry is a unique variation on the ancient Asian puppet tradition.
Do
Yang Bay tourist park
At the Yang Bay waterfalls the Vietnamese have built up a concrete beach, and sort of eco park with a zoo. It used to be a lot nicer before they built it, but it is still a very nice place to visit. You can swim there, and walk around in the area. Just to mention, tourist park receives a lot of negative reviews.
Closed · opens 7:30 amadult 100 000 dong, child 70 000 dong
Do Not mapped
Swimming pools
People come here to swim in the sea, but there are also a number of swimming pools. Louisiane Brewhouse has a good one that is free to use. Hiring a soft chaise longue costs 40,000 dong. The Yasaka Saigon Nha Trang Hotel coffee shop in Yersin St has a small shady pool for free use. A number of mid-range hotels also have pools, some of which can be used by non-guests. Sea and Sun Hotel has a nice rooftop pool and costs 70,000 dong for non-guests. There is another large public pool at Yersin st, opposite the hospital, for 30,000 dong. Another option is Central Park on Tran Phu, near Louisiane Brewhouse. Buy a deckchair for 60,000 or 120,000 and swim for free. Has a small diving board for kids, a lazy river, and a pool bar.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Nha Trang (CC BY-SA 4.0).