Come with us as we explore magical Ba Na Hills in Vietnam from the iconic Golden Bridge to the picturesque French Village, cable car and scenic gardens. This detailed guide covers tickets, food, rides, the best spot for Instagram worthy photos as well as where to get street food and Michelin recommended restaurants. Perfect for planning your day trip from Da Nang!
About Ba Na Hills
Ba Na Hills is located deep in the forests in the Ba Na Suoi Mo Tourist Area and is one of the most popular places for visitors to Da Nang in Central Vietnam. It is 45 minutes outside of Da Nang city at the Sun World theme park.
The Golden Bridge is the major drawcard at Ba Na Hills. This pedestrian bridge features two giant hands holding up a golden bridge and spans 150-metre-long or 490 ft. The hands and bridge appear as if floating in the sky.
Ba Na Hills was given its name as French explorers initially saw the numerous banana trees. The French pronunciation of banana is banane (ba-na) and the Vietnamese called it Ba Na Hills after that. It was established by the French as a destination to get a cooler respite from the heat. At its highest point it is 1,487 metres or 4,800 feet elevation.
How Expensive is Ba Na Hills? Do I Need a Tour?
A lot of people book a guided tour but we haven't had great experiences with guided tours and we didn't want to be stuck there for the whole day if we weren't enjoying it as Mr NQN wasn't feeling 100%. So while you can book a tour with tickets, lunch and pick up from a central location for around 1,645,000VND/$97AUD/$62USD per person, you can also easily go there by yourself and explore it at your leisure.
All up we spent around $190AUD/$123USD for the day for 2 people including all meals, experiences and transport. This was the most expensive thing we did in Vietnam, although as far as tourist attractions go it is well priced compared to other theme parks. The higher cost was because we had a private transfer and tried the Michelin recommended restaurant.
What type of ticket should I buy for Ba Na Hills?
Ba Na Hills and the Golden Bridge is a ticketed attraction and part of Sun World theme park. Tickets do not need to be pre-booked or pre-purchased and you can buy tickets on the day. There are two types of tickets and the main difference is whether you want the buffet lunch or not.
A basic adult ticket for 950,000VND/$56AUD/$36USD includes the cable car, fantasy park (not the games), Moon Castle, French Village, mountain train service, some rides and 2 free beers per person. We purchased this ticket.
A full ticket is 1,250,000VND/$74AUD/$48USD and includes all of this plus a buffet lunch (Asian or Indian food), the Deebay wine cellar, priority path at the Wax Museum, Alpine coast, climbing wall at Fantasy Park, 10D movies and games with prizes. Tickets to the Alpine coaster can be purchased for 70,000VND/$4AUD/$2.65USD separately. I'd recommend buying a full ticket if you don't mind buffet lunches and you plan to spend all day there and do and see absolutely everything.
The 3 Kingdoms of Ba Na Hills
There are 3 main areas in Ba Na Hills: Earth, the Sun Kingdom and the Moon Kingdom.
1 - Earth:
The entrance and the section on ground level with the Time Gate and shops. This is where you buy tickets and where you can get dropped off or picked up.
2 - Sun Kingdom:
This is on the Eastern side of the Ba Na Hills complex with the French medieval village which is where most of the food, shops, hotel, brew house and rides are. There is everything from fast food like Lotteria, food court food, sit down restaurants and buffet food. You can also walk up to the highest point here at the spiritual area where the Linh Chua Linh Tu temple is located. The Sun Kingdom is also where the Pop Mart store is located. They specialise in collectible toys in blind boxes like Labubus.
3 - Moon Kingdom:
This is on the Western side of Ba Na Hills. This is where the Golden Bridge, Flower Garden (Le Jardin D'Amour), Pagoda, buddha, Pink Lava castle, Lunar Castle and Eclipse Plaza are located. Lunar Castle is more a photo opportunity from the outside with a couple of shops on the inside and the Flying Eyes theatre and 4d Moon Junction theatre with a large moon replica. Tip: the Lunar Castle is where you can get the train back to the French village.
The Cable Cars
It is about a 10 minute walk from the entrance of Ba Na Hills to the cable car entrance. You will go up to the top on one of six cable car routes. Some cable car routes take you straight to the Golden Bridge (Marseille station) while others take you to the French village (L'Indochine station) and it's sort of random which cable car route you'll go on. The cable car ride lasts around 20 minutes to reach the top. Tip: make sure to grab a free map as soon as you arrive. There's a lot to see!
Where can I get the best Instagram photos at Ba Na Hills?
There are several spots to get great Instagram photos. The Golden Bridge is the top spot. There are also specially designated spots where people queue for great photos. Tip: we got all of these photos easily without the need for a drone or special permission (drones aren't permitted BTW).
Don't miss the Le Jardin D'Amour flower garden adjacent to the Golden Bridge. These manicured gardens have several photo ops including the Eden garden with the peacock garden and the giant woman. Tip: they change the woman so when we visited she was wearing a yellow dress. Previously, she was wearing a red dress and we saw a lot of groups who wore red to coordinate with her.
The medieval French village is a very popular Disney-esque place to take photos. Don't worry if it is shrouded in mist-the mist comes and goes and makes it more atmospheric. Tip: there is also the Saint Denis church there that is open and you can get some nice pics here.
The Lava Castle or Pink Castle is very photogenic and is located near the Eclipse Plaza, a large glass pyramid. You cannot enter the Lava Castle unfortunately.
What Is The Food Like at Ba Na Hills?
There are Asian and Indian buffet restaurants as well as a couple of French restaurants, a Japanese restaurant and burgers or pizza.
Beer lovers also have the massive multi level Ba Na Brew House and beer hall which is where you collect your 2x250ml/8.8floz free Suncraft beers that are brewed in Da Nang (tip: make sure to claim these before 6pm). You can also order food there like Korean fried chicken, pizza, soft pretzels, fries and burgers.
If you want a quick and easy lunch or dinner, head to one of the outdoor stands in Union Square where there is banh mi for 70,000 or meat skewers and wraps. We ordered a pork skewer with capsicum and onion cooked on the charcoal that was delicious.
We also tried a crispy wrap filled with coleslaw and charcoal grilled chicken which was very fresh and tasty. These each came with a free glass of beer.
We also loved the Mango Holic mango soft serve that tastes like fresh mango with little cubes of mango. They also sell mango sticky rice and mango bingsu.
For foodies, there's also a vegan restaurant in the Michelin guide that I wish I had known about because we didn't discover it until late in the afternoon! This outpost of Ngoc Chi is located in the Le Jardin D'Amour. It's a serene spot away from all of the crowds.
We both loved the lotus seed drink that is like a super creamy and smooth milk with a light nuttiness. It also wasn't overly sweet.
The mushroom sushi roll with shiitake mushroom floss on top and filled with carrot and cucumber is delicious when lightly dunked into the dipping sauce that is a powerhouse of flavour.
We also tried one of the Golden Coin pancakes for 30,000VND and it's a sweet pancake filled with stretchy mozzarella cheese. It was fine but I wouldn't buy it again as it was a bit dry.
What Are the Rides Like at Ba Na Hills?
Mr NQN wasn't feeling well so we didn't do a lot of rides but there are some free rides like dodgems, carousel du Soleil, Swing Du Fantasie and Spinning Hops Flowers near the Beer Hall. There is also Fantasy Park which is the amusement park area which is where all the rides and games are located. It is based around two novels by French writer Jules Verne: "Journey to the Center of the Earth" and "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea".
How much time is needed at Ba Na Hills?
I would say that you need 5 hours at the very least to see most things. We spent 5 and a half hours there. A lot of people spend the whole day there!
Is it better to go to Ba Na Hills in the morning or afternoon?
I'd recommend visiting Ba Na Hills and specifically the Golden Bridge either early in the morning or later in the afternoon (around 4pm) for less crowds to get a better picture on the bridge. However the bridge is just part of what is available there. We arrived at 11am and left around 4:30pm. After 4pm the crowds on the Golden Bridge really died down so it was a great time to get less crowded pictures.
What should you wear to Ba Na Hills?
That depends on what you want to do. A lot of people get dressed up for Instagram pictures. Some couples and large families colour coordinate so that they get great photos. Make sure to wear comfortable shoes though! There's a lot of walking between attractions although there is a train that takes people between the Sun and Moon Kingdoms. But there are no golf buggys like there are at Vin Wonders.
What Can I Buy at Ba Na Hills?
If you're a Labubu fan head to Pop Mart. You may have to queue to get in and it is very busy!
What is the temperature like at Ba Na Hills?
If you find the weather in Vietnam a bit too hot, I've got great news: head to Ba Na Hills! The weather at Ba Na Hills is at elevation so it is colder than sea level and mist often envelops the buildings. When we visited in November (the start of Winter) it felt like we were in an air conditioned building. Mr NQN was fine in shorts and a tshirt whereas I wore a dress with a wrap. Some people bring puffer jackets if they are not used to the cold but I was fine with a wrap.
Can You Stay at Ba Na Hills?
Yes there is a hotel there called the Mercure Da Nang French village. It's around $120USD a night and gives guests early access to the Golden Bridge. We didn't stay here but the rooms are simple and around 25-30 square metres in size.
How To Get To Ba Na Hills
Ba Na Hills is a 45 minute drive from Da Nang, 1 hour from Hoi An or 2 hours drive from Hue.
We went via a Grab car where it was around 375,000VND or $22AUD/$14USD each way. Our driver wanted to wait for us for the return trip but we told him that we would just get a Grab back. They will almost insist on waiting but he ended up getting another return fare a few hours after dropping us. Tip: there were lots of Grabs available waiting to take us back to Da Nang.
So tell me Dear Reader, have you ever been to Ba Na Hills? Would it interest you?
Our visit to Ba Na Hills was independently paid for.
Ba Na Hills
Thôn An Sơn, Hòa Vang, Da Nang, Vietnam
Open 7 days 7am-8pm
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