Hai Van Pass by scooter
Twenty kilometres of bends between Da Nang and Hue, the sea on one side, the mountain on the other. Check the forecast: the pass takes cloud.
Duration
3 hrs – 6 hrs
Difficulty
●●●○○
Best time
Mornings, in clear weather
Open
Every day
Entry price
Free
The pass tops out at nearly five hundred metres and separates Da Nang from Hue. Its name means 'pass of the ocean clouds': the Truong Son range drops into the sea here and blocks the air masses, which makes it a genuine climatic boundary — it often rains on one side and not the other.
Since the tunnel opened in 2005, lorries go underneath and the pass road is almost empty. Twenty kilometres of bends with the sea below, an abandoned fort at the top, and American bunkers still in place.
Getting there
Highway 1A north of Da Nang: take the pass exit, not the tunnel, which is closed to two-wheelers. Luggage transfer services let you ride the pass to Hue.
What to bring
- Helmet
- Windbreaker
- International driving permit
Rules on site
The pass takes cloud without warning and visibility can drop to a few metres: check the forecast, and give up if it is socked in. Check your insurance covers riding a two-wheeler and that your licence is valid in Vietnam.
Other places in Da Nang
Marble MountainsFive limestone hills riddled with cave shrines, buddhas standing in the dark.
- Golden Bridge, Ba Na HillsA gilded walkway held up by two giant stone hands, at four thousand feet.
My Khe BeachTwenty miles of straight sand, the beach GIs came to on leave.
Ba Na Hills and the Golden BridgeThe longest cable car in the world leads to a mountaintop park and the bridge carried by two giant hands. Very busy: be there at opening.