RushBijoux

I made a mistake letting my travel mate plan our upcoming holiday (I'm usually the one who does it) and she chose early Nov to visit Da Nang. We already bought tickets from budget airline so we can't change the dates.

Anyone living in / has been to Da Nang, please let me know how bad the weather is in early Nov. All the info I could find clearly state Sept - Jan to be the rainy season and I checked the dates we've selected on Accuweather and they were all rainy / overcast, so I am so angry at her.

Help me salvage this holiday, please. Any suggestion on activities on these months would be a great help since I assume beach-related activities would be a no-go.

Thank you.

crellston

There is no getting away from the fact that DaNang is not going to get great weather in Nov. It is not a place I would choose to stay anyway. The highway behind the beach between Hoi An and Da Nang now consists almost entirely of large beach hotels, many still under construction. Maybe it's a blessing in disguise!

Hanoi in the north and Saigon in the south will both have good weather. Maybe a few days in Saigon and some beach time on Phu Quoc and a trip around the Mekong Delta?

Alternatively, Hanoi is a wonderful city, great food, lots to see. Places like Mai Chau, Halong, Ninh Binh are within reach and are amongst the best sights in Asia.

You may find some inspiration on our blog @ https://accidentalnomads.com/category/vietnam/ lots of places to consider.

Fortunately internal flights in Vietnam are cheap and Da Nang is a major airport so it will be easy to get around.

Maybe it was meant to happen?

RushBijoux

Thanks for the uplifting note of your response. I'm still alternating between being completely livid and crying helplessly at the moment.

We've been to Saigon before and although we had a great time, we want to go somewhere we've never been, so probably Hanoi.

But before I even entertain that idea, is there really nothing that can be salvaged from Da Nang?

Kathie

No, all of the areas in central VN are likely to have torrential rains at that time of the year. There is usually flooding, severe enough to cause loss of life two out of every three years.

Either toss those tickets, or fly in and immediately fly our to elsewhere. We very much enjoyed our week in Hanoi.

crellston

"alternating between being completely livid and crying helplessly at the moment." may work with hotel managers when trying to get an upgrade, but neither work well with travel companions


I agree with Kathie, mainly because of the weather, but as I alluded to earlier, Da Nang and the section of coast down to Hoi An is being decimated by over delvelopment. We drove along that pat of the coast a couple of months ago and we really shocked by what had happened in the two years since we were last there.

There isn't a whole lot in Da Nang anyway. Some great seafood restaurants along the beach road, a mildly interesting Cham Museum and the Dragon Bridge in the city. Otherwise it is just the beach.

Dalat, Pleiku, Buon Ma Thot in the central highlands is fairly close to DaNang. Great for adventure sports, Montagnard villages, trekking etc. but frankly, if you haven't been to Hanoi, you really should just jump on a Vietnam Air or Vietjet flight up there.

How long do you have? What are you intersts? Info like this will help other to offer relevant suggestions.

RushBijoux

Kathie wrote: "No, all of the areas in central VN are likely to have torrential rains at that time of the year. There is usually flooding, severe enough to cause loss of life two out of every three years."

My friend booked the ticket and then chatted happily about picking out hotels. Whenever I'm planning a holiday, the first thing I'd Google is [destination] followed by the time period e.g. Da Nang in early Nov so I did just that and literally the first few results say exactly what Kathie wrote above. Sorry, I needed to rant, I just can't believe she made a rookie mistake like this.

We'll most likely toss the tickets out. I just hate that I'm wasting money over an unnecessary mistake like this, especially in this day and age.

Thank you so much for both your input, I think trying to salvage the situation would cause more headache, just gotta accept that the money's wasted and cut my losses.

Kathie

And I will bet that your friend earns something from this mistake. I think you are wise to take the loss and move on. enjoy your time in Hanoi!

CounterClifton

<i> Da Nang and the section of coast down to Hoi An is being decimated by over delvelopment</i>

Boy, isn't that the truth? Wall to wall walls, interrupted by the occasional grand entrance to some building or another. Hard to tell there is a beach on the other side for a long stretch there.



Agree that Danang is only limited in appeal even on a nice day. Hanoi is great though. (recommend La Siesta if you need a nice hotel) At least the tickets from DAD to HAN should be pretty reasonable.