Da Nang in 2 Days on a Budget (Daily Costs)
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2 days covers Da Nang’s beach and city core
This route covers My Khe Beach, the Marble Mountains, and Son Tra Peninsula’s Lady Buddha, with the Dragon Bridge’s fire show worked in if your dates land on a weekend night. It skips Ba Na Hills and the Hoi An day trip entirely, both need a full day of their own, see the 3-day itinerary to add Ba Na Hills on top of this exact core. Expect roughly 800,000-1,600,000 VND ($30-60) a person per day including a bed, meals, and transit.
Book these before you go
- Nothing for Day 1 or Day 2 here, both days run on walk-up tickets and Grab
- A room booked ahead if your dates land on the dry season’s beach peak (May-August), when My Khe strip rates climb
- If you want the Ba Na Hills cable car or a Hoi An day trip, plan for a longer stay, see the 3-day or 4-day itinerary
Day 1: My Khe Beach and the Marble Mountains
Start at My Khe Beach, free and swimmable most of the dry season, with cafes and water-sports rentals along the An Thuong strip if you want more than sand and sun. In the afternoon, Grab out to the Marble Mountains (entrance about 40,000 VND), climb the roughly 156 free stairs to Thuy Son or pay 15,000/30,000 VND for the elevator, and time Huyen Khong Cave for late morning to early afternoon light on its Buddha statue. Non Nuoc stone-carving village sits right at the foot of the mountains, free to walk through. In the evening, head to the Han River promenade; if it’s a Saturday or Sunday, the Dragon Bridge breathes fire and water around 9pm (verify current schedule).
| Day 1 cost (VND, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Bed | 200,000 | 700,000 |
| Breakfast | 20,000 | 50,000 |
| Marble Mountains (stairs / elevator) | 40,000 | 70,000 |
| Lunch | 30,000 | 80,000 |
| Dinner | 60,000 | 150,000 |
| Transit (Grab to Marble Mountains and back) | 100,000 | 160,000 |
| Day 1 total | 450,000 | 1,210,000 |
Day 2: Son Tra Peninsula and the city center
Grab or rent a motorbike out to Son Tra Peninsula’s Linh Ung Pagoda, free to visit, home to the 67m Lady Buddha statue and panoramic views over Da Nang Bay. The peninsula’s nature reserve is also Vietnam’s only remaining coastal rainforest, watch the roadside forest on the way in for the endangered red-shanked douc langur. Back in the city, spend the afternoon at the Cham Museum (a modest entrance fee, verify current price), the world’s largest collection of Cham sculpture. In the evening, eat Mi Quang, Da Nang’s actual signature dish, at a local stall rather than a tourist-menu spot on the beach strip.
| Day 2 cost (VND, per person) | Low | Higher |
|---|---|---|
| Bed | 200,000 | 700,000 |
| Breakfast | 20,000 | 50,000 |
| Cham Museum entrance (verify) | 40,000 | 100,000 |
| Lunch (Mi Quang) | 25,000 | 40,000 |
| Dinner | 60,000 | 150,000 |
| Transit (Grab to Son Tra and around) | 120,000 | 180,000 |
| Day 2 total | 465,000 | 1,220,000 |
Getting around on 2 days: Grab or a rented motorbike?
Grab covers both days without issue, upfront pricing and no license needed. A rented motorbike (roughly 80,000-350,000 VND a day) gives more freedom to stop along Son Tra’s coastal road, but only if you already hold an A1 license or an International Driving Permit with a motorcycle endorsement, a home-country car license doesn’t count. Full fare detail is in the Da Nang travel tips guide.
Book nothing but a room on this short a trip, everything here runs on walk-up tickets. If a weekend doesn’t line up with your dates, skip waiting around for the Dragon Bridge fire show and spend that evening at the Han River promenade instead, it’s a good walk with or without the fire.