Da Nang

After having lived here for two months, I've got to say that this must be one of the worst places in Asia. The only reason I am still here is because I'm stuck due to the covid-19 situation. There is nothing to do here, except going for a walk at the beach. No events, no social life, no activities. Mind you, this has nothing to do with the current situation, it was the same before things got shut down because of the virus.

The locals don't really like foreigners and you can feel that often, even though the city wants to be a tourism destination. There is no mingling between locals and foreigners at all, because the city is divided by the river. All the locals live on the left side and all the foreigners on the right side. A few foreign guys date Vietnamese girls, that's it. That means you are living in a bubble with other foreigners which has nothing to do with living in Asia. The expat community consists to 90% of English teachers. It's really hard to meet people here who are actually nomads or are doing something else with their lives than teaching English. If that's your crowd, go ahead.

Pro's:
- Beach is beautiful
- Food pricing is decent

Con's
- This whole city starting from the airport to the beach is trying to take advantage of your tourist intentions, feels like everyone is trying to overcharge or scam
- Barely any english spoken here, hard to communicate
- Lot of construction because it is still developing

In summary:
Ok for a 2 days visit, skip living here long term

I previously wrote a very long review on Da Nang and wanted to update my experience after almost 1 month here. As mentioned, Da Nang is an up and coming place but is not for everyone. From my perspective the main pros and cons are as follows:
+ very affordable. Rent, food, and taking grabs around is very cheap.
+ beautiful area and surrounding. A lot of interesting day trips, especially with a motorbike.
+ good place to digital nomad in, plenty of coffeeshops and places to work. An expat scene too.
- You'll feel like a walking wallet. We've been ripped off by immigration, taxi drivers, restaurants, etc. Most of the restaurants in our area have fake reviews. You sort of have to be on your guard more than other places in south east asia.
- Its not pleasant to walk around here. Crossing the road is terrifying (you get used to it a bit) and there's construction everywhere so sidewalks are a mess.
- Still developing. At least where I live (My Anh), there is tons of construction (really loud). People selling various foods with loud speakers (Banh Bao!) into the late hours of the night (which gets old really fast. This area feels like a mix of tourist traps and construction sites. However, there are some gems to be found and once you're here for a week or so, there are plenty of good places to regular.

To summarize: While I had a very negative impression of Da Nang, i don't think it's such a bad place. Compared to a place like Chiang Mai, it is a much harder place to live as a DN, but you also may be rewarded with a bit more authenticity. There is something fun about living in a place that is changing at such a rapid place, but many downsides as well. Personally, I would probably advise waiting several years before coming to Da Nang until it's more developed. Or if you do stay, trying to stay in neighborhoods by the main city rather than near the beach, which feels more like a tourist trap under construction. In general, it's a reasonably livable city. You'll get some of the vibrant energy that makes Vietnam special, but without the convenience of a place like Chiang Mai or the culture and history of somewhere like Hanoi.

There's another long review here that's based on (1 week) but is very accurate.
Been here almost 3 months,
If you've lived around Asia, you'll find the Vietnamese to be louder and rude in comparison to Thailand / Korea / Taiwan.
Da Nang is a huge construction site, Vietnamese food is bland.
They tend to rip each other off, and foreigners aren't treated differently as well.
Do not pay Grab taxis here in advance (cash only, avoid credit cards) the locals like to "pick up" without actually picking you up.
Hoi an is near by, and its got a nice beach (An Bang)
In general, have to agree with the one week reviewer,


Da nang is relatively safe but if you've lived in Bangkok or Chiang mai in the past, you won't like it.

This is going to be a long review but hopefully it will be helpful. I understand this is my subjective experience after only a limited amount of time (1 week) in Da Nang and your mileage may vary. I could imagine some people really enjoying living here but for me it is not a great place to live and I decided to shorten my stay as a result.
To start, some good things about Da Nang: It is a very cheap place to live and I think you get decent value too. There are many coffeeshops to work out of and if you search you can find some nice spots to eat, drink, and hang out. There are things to visit in the surrounding area. The city itself has an interesting vibe, like the rest of Vietnam it is very vibrant, but also is in an extreme period of transition and it shows.

I have been living in the My An area of Da Nang (by the beach). I could imagine some people really enjoying living here but I personally do not like it here for a few reasons.

To start, some good things about Da Nang:
— It is a very cheap place to live and I think you get decent value too.
— There are many coffee shops to work out of and if you search you can find some nice spots to eat, drink, and hang out.
— There are things to visit in the surrounding area.
— The city itself has an interesting vibe, like the rest of Vietnam it is very vibrant, but also is in an extreme period of transition and it shows.

— The traffic isn’t so bad and roads are decent for the region.

— There is a decent expat scene and some nice people to hang out with, although this seems in isolation to the rest of the city.

However, there are many negatives, I’ll just list the two main ones for brevity:
— You will feel like a walking wallet and people will try to rip you off everywhere. We had some majorly inconvenient and expensive issues with the visa process, experienced blatant lying and short changing by taxi drivers, ridiculously priced items at shops. In our neighborhood, tons of the restaurants have fake reviews and terrible food. Basically, you feel like you need to be on your guard or you will be taken advantage of, which makes it not very enjoyable to stay here.
— Rapid Development Pains. Because Da Nang is developing so fast, there are a lot of rough edges, as one could expect. Construction is everywhere and makes it hard to walk around. To add to this, crossing the street in any city of Vietnam is quite a stressful experience. Most of the ATMs in the city seem to not work. There are random power outages in our neighborhood. The area we live feels like a depressing mix of construction lots and tourist traps.

To summarize: We had a very negative introduction to Da Nang, but after several days here, things did get a bit better. Compared to a place like Chiang Mai, it is a much harder place to live as a DN, but you also may be rewarded with a bit more authenticity. There is something fun about living in a place that is changing at such a rapid place, but many downsides as well. Personally, I would probably advise waiting several years before coming to Da Nang. Or if you do stay, trying to stay in neighborhoods by the main city rather than near the beach, which feels more like a tourist trap under construction.

Scenic beach + mountains, decent internet, excellent cheap food and a vibrant expat community makes this one of my favorite spots in SEA.

I've been here a couple times, living in HCMC right now. Compared to HCMC, there's alot less traffic and pollution. Beach is a huge plus. Locals are super friendly. Loads of Korean tourists. Nightlife is actually pretty decent given it's not an especially big city. I'd say there's a fair amount for a young single guy to do. Considering moving here. One of the other reviews mentioned the construction, that's everywhere in Vietnam. But it's easy enough to avoid it in Da Nang if you get a place closer to the river/downtown. I'm honestly surprised to see Da Nang hasn't taken off more with the remote working crowd. Way better than Bali. Yuck!

I have spend 2 months there but their is not a lot to do. The city is not very special. And the beach is ok for walking. But that is about it.

Wrote a really long review that disappeared. To summarize it: way too much construction going on here. Might be a nicer place 5-10 years from now.

One of the best places to live in Vietnam. I'm glad not many people have discovered this city yet :)