Quy Nhon

In town, start with the beachfront promenade: it's wide, runs along most of the city beach, and has a shaded strip of palm trees next to the sunny side by the sand. Look out for the stone statues along it, each showing a different martial art (Binh Dinh is famous for its martial arts tradition). Long Khanh Pagoda, one of the city's oldest Buddhist temples, is a quiet half hour away from the traffic.

Most of what you come to Quy Nhon for is on the Phuong Mai peninsula across the Thi Nai bridge, 20–30 minutes from the center. Ky Co is the postcard cove: clear water, a short beach and a hill above it, about 25 km from town. Entry including the electric cart down to the beach was 170,000 VND (about $6.50) per person in April 2026. Go by boat from Nhon Ly, ride the road over the hill (steep, for confident riders only), or do what I did: a private car from the city to the Ky Co terminal cost 500,000 VND (about $19) return, with the driver waiting to take me back.

Don't skip Nhon Ly itself. It's a working fishing village on the way to Ky Co, and one of the most authentic places on this coast to wander around. Eo Gio, the "wind strait", is a few kilometers away, about 30 minutes by car from the city-beach hotels; it's a walking trail along the cliffs with a viewpoint over a narrow rocky bay. Entry is normally 50,000 VND (about $2); over the 2 September holiday in 2026 it was discounted to 25,000 VND. Most people do Ky Co and Eo Gio together in one morning.

Closer to town, Ghenh Rang is a headland of big boulders with Queen's Beach (Bai Hoang Hau / Bai Da Trung) below it, a little cove covered in smooth round stones. It's for looking, not swimming. The grave of the poet Han Mac Tu is on the hill above (10,000 VND). In the city itself, Thap Doi (the Twin Towers) are two 12th-century Cham brick towers in a small park on Tran Hung Dao street (20,000 VND, open roughly 7am–5:30pm). Banh It, 18–20 km northwest, is a group of four Cham towers on a hill with views over the rice fields and the best of the Cham sites around Quy Nhon. Hon Kho is a small island off Nhon Hai fishing village, reached by coracle or canoe in 10–15 minutes, with snorkeling over shallow coral.

By air. Quy Nhon's airport is Phu Cat (UIH), 30–35 km north of the city, about 40 minutes by road. Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet and Bamboo Airways fly from Ho Chi Minh City (about 1 hour 5 minutes) and Hanoi (about 1 hour 30 minutes). There are no regular international flights; a Seoul charter has been talked about for 2026. From the airport, a shuttle bus meets each flight for 50,000 VND (about $2), a Grab or taxi costs about 250,000–320,000 VND ($10–12), and local bus T7 runs hourly until 7pm for 18,000 VND.

By train. Get off at Dieu Tri, not Quy Nhon station. Dieu Tri is on the main north–south line about 10 km from the center; Quy Nhon station is on a short branch with only one or two trains a day. From Dieu Tri it's about a 25-minute Grab into the center (roughly 150,000–250,000 VND, $6–10). I came down from Da Nang by train: about 6 hours, around $13 for a soft seat, clean, reclining seats with plenty of legroom, a snack trolley, a decent toilet and an on-time arrival. I'd take the train over the bus on this route. Rough journey times: Da Nang 5–6.5 hours, Nha Trang 4–5 hours, Saigon 11–14 hours (the overnight SE4 is the handy one), Hanoi 21–24 hours. Book on dsvn.vn or 12Go; the timetable changed in May 2026, so check before you plan around a specific train.

By bus or limousine van. From Hoi An or Da Nang it's 5.5–7 hours, about $14–19 by limousine van (Cocovip, An Phu, Hoang Minh and others). From Nha Trang it's 3–5.5 hours for $10–25 (Futabus, Techbus). From Ho Chi Minh City, Phuong Trang (Futabus) sleeper buses take 12–14 hours for about 255,000–285,000 VND ($10–11). Book on Vexere or 12Go.

Stay along the city beach (An Duong Vuong and Xuan Dieu streets) if you want to walk to restaurants and the night market; it's the most convenient base for a first visit. The resorts are spread out along the coast south of town (Bai Dai, Ghenh Rang) and on the peninsula, which is great for a quiet beach stay but means a taxi or motorbike every time you go out to eat. Book ahead for June to August and Vietnamese public holidays, when domestic tourists fill the city.

Budget to mid-range: this is where Quy Nhon beats Da Nang and Nha Trang: you get noticeably better hotels for less money. I stayed at Sala Quy Nhon in early September 2026 for about $30 a night, with a rooftop pool and rooftop bar. Grand Hyams is in the same price range (from about $26–31 on Kayak in October 2026). Guesthouses a block or two back from the beach are cheaper still.

Mid-range: Fleur de Lys Quy Nhon is where I stayed in April 2026, at about $75 a night: a lovely ground-floor pool, a decent breakfast buffet with plenty of Vietnamese dishes, and a beautiful bar on the 18th floor. Seagull Hotel (489 An Duong Vuong) is an older 4-star right on the city beach. Crown Retreat Quy Nhon is a resort at Cat Tien, about 20 km north on the peninsula, roughly $78–95 a night on average.

Upmarket: Avani Quy Nhon Resort on Bai Dai beach, about 10 km south, runs about $120–155 a night (October is the cheapest month). Anantara Quy Nhon Villas has 25 pool villas near Bai Xep, 15 minutes from the center.

For longer stays, look at serviced apartments on the city beach. I paid about 420,000 VND (about $16) a night for a big modern apartment in the center with a full kitchen, a washing machine and a balcony over the beach. For two weeks that beat any hotel.

The easiest way to see the peninsula without a motorbike is a Ky Co + Eo Gio day tour: around $32 on Klook, or about $40 with Hon Kho island and hotel pickup added. Tours usually include the boat to Ky Co, entry tickets, snorkel gear and a seafood lunch. If you ride, rent a motorbike for 150,000–180,000 VND ($6–7) a day and do it yourself, starting early to beat the tour groups.

Inland, the Quang Trung Museum in Tay Son (about 45 km west, 50,000 VND entry) tells the story of the Tay Son brothers and puts on a Tay Son martial arts and drum show for an extra fee. Combine it with Banh It towers on the way. Further out, Cu Lao Xanh island is a 30–40 minute speedboat from Ham Tu pier (about 200,000 VND one way), but boats often don't run from November to January because of the swell.

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