30 Amazing Things to Do in Nha Trang [UPDATED]

No matter how much the tourism trend has changed over time, Nha Trang has always been hot on Vietnam’s tourism map. The stunning Pearl City is a center of politics, economy, culture, technology, and especially tourism of Khanh Hoa Province.

There are a variety of things to do in Nha Trang: outdoor activities like swimming, kayaking, snorkeling…, or indoor activities like visiting museums, joining a cooking class, trying mud bath and hot springs. Therefore, do not miss your chances to take part in the top 30 things to do in Nha Trang below.

1. Sunbathe on the beach

Where is the best place to visit in Nha Trang? It is the beach! Beaches in Nha Trang are beautiful with white sand, rolling blue water, lush green mountains, and gently swaying palm trees. You will be surprised when you see how beautiful the beaches in Nha Trang are.

The beach stretches for miles, and you can choose any places for sunbathing. Just hire a deck chair and chill out in the sun. There are a lot of beaches in Nha Trang that you can go for sunbathing. Doc Let beach, Bai Dai beach, and Nha Trang beach are the most beautiful beaches in Nha Trang. Doc let beach is about 45 km from Nha Trang center, a pristine beach with calm, clean water and shallow beach.

Bai Dai beach is about 30 km from Nha Trang city center. Bai Dai possesses several kilometers of long smooth sandy beach, clear blue water, and coconut lines swaying in the wind. Nha Trang beach is in the city center where you can easily get access to luxury hotels, resorts, shops, and restaurants…

Relaxing on the beach in Nha Trang

2. Go scuba diving

Another must thing to do in Nha Trang is to go for scuba diving. With more than 350 species of corals, scorpionfish, cuttlefish, lionfish, clownfish, frogfish, moray eels, parrotfish, needlefish, paperfish, rockfish and trumpet fisha, nearby marine park, clear water and calm currents, Nha Trang becomes one of the most popular destinations in the Southeast Asian country for scuba diving.

Sometimes, you will be able to see octopus, trevally, tuna, barracuda, or stingrays and eagle rays. PADI courses here are among the cheapest ones in the world. Therefore, it is an ideal place for people who want to perfect their diving skills or get more experience.

Hon Mun Marine Park, about 8 kilometers east of Nha Trang, Moray Beach with its shallow sandy bottom, and Whale Island are among the best places for scuba diving in Nha Trang. The best time to dive in Nha Trang is between the months of April and August when visibility in the East Sea can go up to 30 meters and the temperatures t ranges between 28°C and 30° C.

Trying scuba diving in Nha Trang

3. Visit Po Nagar Cham Towers

Po Nagar Towers, located about 2 km from Nha Trang city center, is a place of worship by Cham, Chinese, Vietnam, and Buddhist worshippers. It is something similar to World Heritage My Son Sanctuary in Danang. Tourists from over the world come here to see the Ancient Cham people’s special skills in sculpture and architecture.

This site has originally been eight towers in the old days but now only four are still standing. The most famous one is called the North Tower (or Thap Chinh in Vietnamese) which is 28 meters high and was built in 817 AD. The highlight of this tower is its remarkable pyramidal roof which is also terraced and a vaulted ceiling and a grand foyer inside.

Other towers are in different architecture and are built to honor different deities. There are often bustling annual festival held at the towers from April to May if you are interested in. The opening time of this historical and cultural site is from 7:00 to 19:00 and the entrance fee is only 1USD.

Po Nagar Cham Towers

4. Take a cruise

Taking a cruise is one of the best ways to explore Nha Trang. Nha Trang has about 19 islands of which Mieu Island, Mun Island, Tam Island, Tre Island, Monkey Island, and Yen Island are among the best islands to visit. Taking a cruise is a really interesting activity, and you will be able to contemplate different islands with a different size, enjoy the fresh air from the sea.

he price for a boat trip in Nha Trang varies, from budget to luxury, so you can choose which one is more suitable for you. Emperor Cruise, Sea Cora, Horizon Cruise are the most luxurious cruises in Nha Trang. Most of these cruises offer a lot of water activities like swimming, kayaking, snorkeling, fishing…, seafood lunch, island exploration. You choose a full-day cruise, sunrise, or sunset cruise. Alternatively, you can choose a simple boat that is sailed by local people.

Taking a cruise in Nha Trang

5. Enjoy a mud spa

Enjoying a mud spa in Nha Trang, you may find it odds for the first time you hear about it, but you will like it after you try it. Mud spa is believed to bring a lot of benefits for your health. It can help eliminate dead skin cells, promote your body's absorb minerals, increase dieresis, strengthen your bones, decrease stress and fatigue, relieve aches, rheumatism, and trauma, make your own skin fine and smooth, decrease blood sugar level, balance the decrease of chloride and support with some urinary tract problems.

If you do not feel comfortable sitting with a stranger in a tub, you can choose a private package. The best places to enjoy mud spa in Nha Trang are Thap Ba Hot Springs Center, I-resort, 100 Egg Mud Bath, Galina Mud Bath in Galina Hotel. The price ranges from 400.000 VND per person for a communal bath to 3.000.000 VND per person for the VIP package.

Enjoy mud bathing

6. Have fun at Vinpearl amusement park

Located on Hon Tre Island, Vinpearl Land is considered as “Disneyland of Vietnam”. It is a place where you can relax a 5-star resort, eat at luxury restaurants, go shopping, and join in a lot of amazing activities. To get Vinpearl Land, you’ll get a ride on the Vinpearl Cable Car, the world’s longest oversea cable car with a length of 3320 m.

Vinpearl amusement park is a part of Vinpearl Land Nha Trang, and it is divided into 6 main areas: Water Park, Outdoor game area, Indoor game area, aquarium, Movie Castle, and Performance Stage. Water Park and outdoor game area are great for people who are looking for joining new adventures like dropping from the height of 21m, trying to control the tsunami, and participating in the number 1 Race Formula or unique thrilling games such as Slide, Roundabout, Pirate Ship…

Vinpearl Park’s indoor amusement park offers a wide variety of games that are suitable for different ages such as 3D virtual worlds, electric cars, fairy tale, 4D cinema... The ticket price for this amazing place is VND 800,000 per adult and VND 700,000 per child.

Vinpearl amusement park

7. Taste grilled pork rolls

The grilled pork rolls dish is famous in not only Nha Trang, but also the whole Central part of Vietnam. Its main element is the grilled pork sausages. Grilled pork sausages are wrapped with all kinds of vegetables, fruit slices, and herbs in rice papers then dived into a bowl of wonderful dipping sauce which is made of fish sauce, minced pork, and lime water.

Ninh Hoa district in Khanh Hoa province is the best place to enjoy this delicious dish when in Nha Trang city, you can go to Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street or Phan Boi Chau street to taste dish kind of food. A portion costs about 50.000VND

Grilled pork rolls

8. Shop at Dam Market

Dam Market is the largest and most popular market in Nha Trang. It is the place where you can find almost everything from souvenirs to local products. Clothes, shoes, and bags to tourist trinkets, art, designed knockoffs, electronics, dried foods including shrimp, squid, and cuttlefish, and food stalls.

Like while you are in other local markets in Vietnam, do not forget to bargain to have the best price. Visiting this market early in the morning is a great experience, you will be able to see more the local lifestyle and you will be able to avoid the heat of the day.

Dam market

9. Relax at a luxury resort

Nha Trang is not only the beach capital but also the capital of luxury resort. Therefore, do not miss your chance to stay in one of the best luxury resorts in Vietnam. Mia resort Nha Trang, Amiana resort and villas, Six senses Ninh Van Bay or Vinpearl Luxury Nah Trang are among the best resorts in Nha Trang. Most of the luxury resorts in Nha Trang have private beaches, offers plenty of recreational activities, have easy access to the historical and cultural sites in the city.

The resorts also provide other services that can be found only in Nha Trang like mud spa, beach yoga, cooking class, or snorkeling. You can also book tours from these resorts like the tour to explore the island, sightseeing tour…

Mia luxurious resort 

10. Tour to Hon Tre Island

Located 5 km from Nha Trang center, Hon Tre Island is the largest island in Nha Trang complex. It has an area of 36 km², and is home to the world-famous amusement parks -Vinpearl Amusement Park, Bai Tru Beach- one of the most spectacular beaches in Nha Trang, Bay Lagoon-a pristine natural beauty and much more.

From Nha Trang city, you can get on a ferry that runs every 30 mins from 7:00-16:00 or uses speedboats which starts at 8:00 every day to reach the island. The best time to visit this island is in the dry season from January to May, and you do not have to worry about the storms. If you want to scuba dive in this island, come here from April to August when the water is super clear.

Hon Tre island

11. Admire the White Buddha

White Buddha is the famous statue in Long Son pagoda which was constructed in 1964. It is a perfect place for people who want to learn more about religion in Vietnam and want to find peace in mind. The statue is visible from afar as one enters the city, from either the national highway or by train. From the platform at the base of the white Buddha, you can enjoy a bird’s eye view of Nha Trang and the sea beyond.

The White Buddha has 24 meters tall, sitting on a lotus throne. Around the statue are statues of seven arahants. In front of the statue are a pair of dragons, which are 7.20 m long. Here, you can also see the statues of Thich Quang Duc and six other monks who set fire to themselves in protest in 1963. Seeing this Buddha in the middle of the blue sky among the vast white clouds in the famous Lon Son pagoda, you will know why this statue becomes the symbol for peace and happiness of Nha Trang for a long time.

White Buddha in Long Son pagoda

12. Play a golf

What is another interesting to do in Nha Trang? If you are interested in golf, Nha Trang is the best place in Vietnam for golf. The city has a lot of championship golf courses such as Vinpearl Golf Club Nha Trang, Golf course KN Golf Links, Diamond Bay Golf Course.

These courses are built to a professional standard and you can play golf while also taking in the spectacular views over Nha Trang. More interestingly, the price for playing golf in these golf courses is reasonable in comparison with other courses in the region.

Playing golf in Golf Course KN Golf Links

13. Go fishing

Nha Trang has a lot of islands and islets, rivers, ponds, lakes making it a suitable place for fishing. Some people go fishing in the fishing area which is run by local people, some come to lakes, rivers to fish. Professionals hire a boat to go offshore in the water. Hon Mun, Hon Tam, Hon Mot are popular spots for fishing. There are a lot of tours stopping at these islands and tourists can go for sightseeing, swimming, snorkeling, and fishing.

The best season for fishing is in the spring when the fish often float to the surface of the water and are easily hooked. Go fishing in the early morning or late afternoon when you go fishing in the river, but you had better fish at night when you are on the sea.

Go fishing in Hon Tre island

14. Visit art gallery & museum

Visiting art galleries and museums is one of many ways to know more about a city. In Nha Trang, there are a lot of museums for you to visit. National Oceanographic Museum, the Alexandre Yersin Museum are among the top attractive museums in Nha Trang. Alexandre Yersin Museum is dedicated to Dr. Alexandre Yersin who was a popular scientist in Vietnam. He brought rubber and quinine trees to Vietnam and he also discovered the microbe that causes bubonic plague.

National Oceanographic Museum has a maritime theme as well as a large aquarium. Here you can see a wide variety of colorful fish, some rare indigenous underwater creatures, sea horses, sharks, and turtles. Moreover, Do Dien Khanh Gallery and Long Thanh Gallery are worth visiting. Photographs in these galleries tell the story of local life in the countryside.

Display in Yersin Museum Nha Trang

15. Eat Chinese food

Chinese food is famous around the world, and Chinese food in Nha Trang has no exception. There are a lot of Chinese tourists in Nha Trang, demand for Chinese food here is high. Therefore, this city is one of the best places in Vietnam where you can find delicious Chinese food from the street to luxury restaurants.

The best restaurants to taste Chinese food in Nha Trang are Nha Trang Dimsum House, Hutong Ariyana Nha Trang, Crystal Jade Kitchen Ariyana, Phuc Mieu Dimsum & Tea House. They have delicious Chinese food at a reasonable price.

Chinese food

16. Take a jet ski tour

Besides taking a cruise trip to explore the beautiful bay of Nha Trang, you can take a jet ski tour. This is a sport for travelers who love speed. Learning how to control the moto is not too difficult, and you will able to drive in just a few minutes. The feeling when experiencing this game with friends is very interesting, especially when you control the jet ski through the high waves.

On the moto jetski, you will be able to discover islands, waterways, or see monkeys, and local lifestyles. There is an option to stop on the island for a beach session, look for marine life if you snorkel in the sea.

Jet ski tour

17. Try parasailing

Looking for another thrilling and bold activity, parasailing can be a good choice for you. After signing up for the game, you will be provided with a life vest, and some fundamental lessons and quick tips on how to parasail. You are told to be relaxed as possible, the supported on the group will help you to check the gear before takeoff.

A parasailing trip takes around 15 minutes, but everything goes faster than you may think. You are air-bound for few seconds, then a few seconds later you are high in the air, so get your chance to see the bay from above. Hom Tam is among the best places in Nha Trang to try this game.

Double Parasailing

18. Experience flyboard

If parasailing is not thrilling and bold enough, try another unique kind of water sport: flyboard. Invented by French water-craft rider, Franky Zapata, flyboard is expected to bring you an awesome feeling of conquering the blue horizon, a perfect choice for people who are looking for something changing in life. You will feel like a superhero standing on the ocean, seeing everything below you.

The board you stand on is connected by a long hose to a watercraft. Water is forced under pressure to a pair of boots with jet nozzles underneath allowing you to fly up to 09-15 meters in the air or to dive headlong through the water. A short session for flyboard is about 10-15 minute, or longer one lasts about 20-25 minute

Flyboard

19. Cycle around the countryside

Besides beaches and water sports on the beaches, exploring the countryside in Nha Trang on the bicycle is another interesting activity. The countryside in Nha Trang is only a few kilometers from Nha Trang center, it is a place full of palm trees, fruit orchards, and irrigated rice paddy fields.

Cycling there, you will have cance to interact with ethnic minority people, explore the country trails, village's life, town and farms, pagodas, see the "true" Vietnamese countryside. There are a lot of tour operators having a cycling trip to the countryside in Nha Trang, and you need a full day tour to see all the countryside in Nha Trang. Booking a tour to the countryside in Nha Trang by click Countryside Biking Safaris Full Day

Cycle around the countryside

20. Challenge with river rafting

In Nha Trang, you will not only have a chance to take part in water sports on the beaches but also there is a chance for you to raft in the river. River rafting is considered an extreme sport and can be fatal. This game is for people who love speed and adventure. It can be done on whitewater or different degrees of rough water, which creates a challenging environment for participants.

On Cai river in Nha Trang, you will raft downstream about 45 minutes along the hill tribe’s villages to understand how local people struggle for existence and there is a chance to talk with locals, especially kids who are always happy with their lives. This is absolutely a great choice to move your muscle a little bit and enjoy life a little more.
River rafting in Nha Trang is often combined with Mountain Biking, making it a full day tour: Mountain Biking & Rafting Full Day

Rafting in Cai river

21. Soak at hot springs center

A lot of adventurous activities in Nha Trang, but where to find something relaxing, somewhere to recover from your travel? A hot springs center can be a great choice. Hot spring is believed to bring a lot of benefits for your health: detoxifying and soothing fatigued muscles, removing dead skin cells and supplying minerals to the body.

Thap Ba Hot Springs Center, I-resort, and 100 Egg Mud Bath are among the best places where you can try hot spring. There, you can enjoy hot water from jacuzzi pool, hydrotherapy, waterfall, mineral rain shower, swimming pool. Hot spring is often combined with a mud bath, that will be a great experience, and worth to try at least once!
For more details click Thap Ba Hot Spring & Mud Bath Half day

Thap Ba Hot Springs Center

22. Visit Hon Chong Promontory

Located 3.5km north from the center of Nha Trang City, Hon Chong is a natural landscape that has existed for a long time and attracted numerous people coming to visit. This place consists of two enormous groups of rocks lying by the sea with rocks lying in disorder. It is not the only place for sightseeing, but there is a beach where you can swim or climb on the rock.

Coming here, you will be told the legend of a giant man who sits here to fish and you will be able to see his imprints of a giant’s five-fingered hand engraved on the stone side facing the sea. To get here, tourists can take a taxi or sign up for a Nha Trang Culture Tour Full Day which stops at Hon Chong Promonotory. The entrance fee is 1USD.

Hon Chong Promontory

23. Call on Monkey Island

Located 20 kilometers off the coast of Nha Trang, Monkey island is one of the interesting destinations for tourists to explore beautiful landscapes, temples, ancient ruins. The island is called Monkey island as there are over 1000 monkeys on the island. Visiting this island, you can feed them, but do not carry the food with you as you can be stolen by the playful monkeys.

There is also a beach here where you can swim, go snorkeling or scuba diving. Some funny animal shows, elephants and ostriches, so do not miss your chance to watch the show or play with these lovely animals. To get there, you need to take a boat or book a tour like Monkey Island – Doc Let Beach Full day

Monkey island

24. Visit a fishing village

For a more authentic experience, you should visit fishing villages when traveling in Nha Trang. A few kilometers south of the city center in Nha Trang, tourists can see several floating villages. Life in these villages is different from city life, local people live mainly on fishing and fish farming.

People here are easy to be happy even though their lives are hard. Children enjoy playing a game using their slippers and a can with a string. It is great if you can visit the local communities, support their lives with some donations.

Fishing village

25. Join a cooking class

Vietnamese cuisine is famous around the world, so when in Vietnam, take your chance to join our cooking class. Anywhere in Vietnam, a cooking class is a great place to learn more about Vietnamese cuisine and Vietnamese culture. Nha Trang is the best place in Vietnam to learn cooking seafood dishes. Like other cooking classes in Vietnam, it often starts with a visit to the local market where you will buy the main ingredients and a range of herbs, meats, vegetables, and spices.

At the market, you have a chance to talk with the local people, try to bargain with the help of the tour guide. During the cooking class, the chef will instruct you how to cook delicious Vietnamese dishes, share with you the special techniques which can not be found in any books. Feel free to ask any questions or ask for the secret to make the dishes successful from the cook

Cooking class

26. Explore the National Oceanographic Museum of Vietnam

Among the museums in Nha Trang, the National Oceanographic Museum of Vietnam is always on top of the most visited museums in Nha Trang. The museum has a large exhibit of local marine life, including over 20,000 live and preserved marine specimens.

Visiting this place, you will see a wide variety of colorful fish, sea horses, sharks, turtles, and some rare indigenous underwater creatures. It is also a place where you can see preserved specimens, animal skeletons, local boats, fishing artifacts. One of the highlights of the museum is the skeleton of a humpback whale, which is at 18 meters in length and 18,000kg in weight. The museum is about a 10-minute drive from Tran Phu Beach, with an entrance fee less than 2 USD.

Colorful fish in the National Oceanographic Museum Of Vietnam

27. Conquer Ba Ho Waterfalls

Ba Ho Waterfalls is a great choice for tourists who love spots for hiking, swimming, picnics, fishing, or even jumping. Located 20 kilometers north of Nha Trang, the waterfall consists of a series of three tiers and swimming pools at the bottom of each. The first tiers can be seen after a 30-minute walk through the foliage from the entrance.

To reach the second and the third, you need to climb over large rocks. Then you will reach a clear lake surrounded by dense rainforest. Visiting this waterfall, you need to be fit enough and prepare proper shoes. To reach this waterfall, you can hire a bike or take part in a tour. The entrance fee is less than 1USD.

Ba Ho waterfalls

28. Immerse in Yang Bay

Located about 40 kilometers from the city center, Yang Bay is an Eco Park which is named after the largest waterfall in the park. On the way to the park, you will pass villages and mountains, rice fields, and tropical forests, so that would be a great experience. The park has three picturesque waterfalls which are Ho Che, Yang Kang Yang Bay. These three waterfalls in the park are beautiful with cool and clear water where you can swim.

Besides, the park has thermal springs, a small Zoo. Visiting the park, you will have a chance to see the animal shows, musical performances from a small local people called Raglai, taste a series of specialties of braised termite with medicinal herbs, tamarind roasted Yang Bay crab, and other dishes from ostrich, pangolin, wild boar, chamois…Entrance fee of the park is about 10USD including hot spring service. Opening time is from 8:00-17:00

Musical performance in Yang Bay eco-park

29. Visit Nha Trang Cathedral

Nha Trang Cathedral is the largest church in the city, not too far from the city center. It is a stone church with beautiful stained glass windows. Y

ou can see a lot of works influenced by French in this church like three cathedral bells, numerous statues of saints or 4,000 tombstones mounted on the sides… or a mixture between French and Vietnamese architecture such as a white neon-lit halo atop St. Mary’s statue, pink backlight on the tabernacle, red neon crucifixes and blue neon arches. The church is open daily from 5:00-18:30 for the local Catholic community and tourists. It is a good place to enjoy the beautiful architecture, take photos

Nha Trang cathedral

30. Go to Tri Nguyen Aquarium

A trip to Nha Trang is incomplete without a visit to Tri Nguyen Aquarium which is a unique aquarium designed with the structure like an aquarium in the fairytale. It looks like an ancient ship with the height of 30m, the length of 60m and the width of 30m, divided into 8 different floors: a fish lake on the first floor, souvenir shops on the second, a restaurant on the third, a cannon, and a mast on the deck of the ship.

Coming here, you will have a chance to explore the ocean bottom and contemplate the life of marine species, the companion of the mermaid, and much more. Being in Tri Nguyen Aquarium, you will feel like getting lost in a Palace with attractive and abundant flora and fauna.

Tri Nguyen Aquarium

Hope that the above top 30 things to do in Nha Trang is helpful for your planning to Vietnam. If you want us to help to arrange any tours to any places listed above, do not hesitate to contact us.

Jenny Tran

Image sources: Internet