Tu Van Pagoda (the Shell Pagoda) Nha Trang

Tu Van pagoda stands in Cam Linh ward, Cam Ranh, about 37 km south of central Nha Trang. People call it the Shell Pagoda because most of what you see is assembled from seashells and coral: walls, towers, grottoes, whole arched passages. The monks gathered the material and built it up themselves, which is why the place looks like nothing else in the province.

The two parts most people come for are the Bao Tich tower: a shell tower of about 39 m in the middle of the grounds, and the passage the pagoda calls the eighteen levels of hell, several hundred metres of tunnel lined with shell and coral rock. It is dark and narrow, the steps are uneven and the coral surface is rough; go slowly, and have your phone light ready.

There is no ticket and no guide, which means you look after yourself. It is a working place of worship, so cover shoulders and knees, keep your voice down, and ask before photographing anyone at prayer. At midday the courtyards are hot and the coral surfaces hotter, so the morning is the comfortable time.

Because it is down by Cam Ranh, the pagoda fits best on the day you fly in or out, or onto an afternoon at Bai Dai. Riding down from Nha Trang purely for this and back again is most of a half-day on the road. Worth knowing so the distance does not surprise you.

In the same group: Long Sơn pagoda in the city and Ponagar towers. On the road out to Cam Ranh, Bãi Dài.