Город Нячанг

Nha Trang is more compact than people expect. Almost everything a visitor needs sits along one road: Tran Phu runs beside the water for about six kilometres, sand on one side and hotels on the other. Walking the central stretch takes about an hour.

The layout to keep in your head. Mid Tran Phu is hotels and public beach. One or two blocks inland is the backpacker quarter around Hung Vuong and Nguyen Thien Thuat. Restaurants, tour desks, motorbike hire, and markedly cheaper than the front. The north end, over the Tran Phu bridge, holds Po Nagar and Hon Chong. The south end is Cau Da port, where the island boats leave.

The most useful geographic fact: the city faces east, so the sun does not set over its water. A real sunset needs height or an island. The flip side is that sunrise over the sea is visible straight from the sand, and that is when Tran Phu beach is emptiest.

The 2 Thang 4 square and Tram Huong Tower is the easiest landmark. Most directions here are given from it. Cam Ranh airport is thirty-five kilometres south, forty-five to sixty minutes by road. If you come by train, the station is inside the city, a kilometre and a half from the water.

Onwards from here: Trần Phú beach, the Trầm Hương tower, Đầm market. First visit: start with the first-time list.