10 – 12 February 2023
Working at a corporate job has its perks. The free weekly lunches, the monthly team building allocation, the allowances, and of course, the company trips. The destination this year: Da Nang, Vietnam.
I’m not going to lie, I had no idea what to expect in Vietnam as I’ve been quite ignorant and just lumped it with the countries I thought I’d “figure out later.” Turns out, Vietnam had a lot to teach me in just three days.
Prepping for Da Trip
I had no clue what to bring for this trip. Following the advice of colleagues who went with the batch before me, I decided to bring 3 million VND (which I exchanged for 282 MYR) and a big bottle of sunblock in addition to the usual stuff.
The previous batch mentioned that the weather was extremely hot but the weather forecast said the opposite. So, I packed a set of hot-weather clothing and another set of cold-weather clothing, just to be safe.
Day Một – Vietnam, Here We Come
On Friday, the day we’d all been expecting had come. One thing I didn’t look forward to was waking up at 5AM just to get ready for the trip.
We started our journey at 7.30AM from the office in Kota Laksamana to KLIA2. During our journey, everyone was super psyched even though we didn’t get enough sleep. The roads were quite jammed but we didn’t care. We were going to Vietnam!
We reached KLIA2 at 10AM and checked in our bags and printed our boarding passes. Because we were early, we did a little bit of exploring in the airport (and I may have contributed quite a bit of money to the Sticky vending machine).
Once we landed at Danang International Airport, the pilot announced that the temperature was 28°C but it felt way hotter. We got our bags and boarded the bus to our stay for the next two nights: Melia Da Nang.
My friend and I were initially given the wrong room, but the hotel quickly fixed it and upgraded us to a better one. Cosy vibes overall, except for the bathroom door that didn’t lock. A minor yikes.
Hội An
That evening, we decided to explore Hội An Night Market. Our group of four (all girls) booked a Grab and started goofing off in the car, until we realised that the driver took us to the wrong place. He claimed the night market was closed (it wasn’t) and demanded an extra 40,000 VND to take us to the actual location.
Once we got there, though, it was beautiful. It had the vibes of Melaka’s Jonker Street night market but with a wider walkway and bigger river. There were many pretty lanterns around, on land and on the river. The food and clothes sold around the area were also pretty cheap.
We passed the gates of Bà Mụ temple, which looked absolutely magical under the moonlight. I stumbled upon HoKoChan Milktea and Coffee, where I had one of the best Saigon Milk Coffees of my life for only RM3. It was so good, I got a second cup.
Then, we met up with the rest of our gang, all of whom were getting a massage from a masseuse who spoke fluent Malay. After our not-so-pleasant experience, we decided to go back together. Thankfully, we had a friendly driver on our Grab back to the hotel room.
Day Hai – Ba Na Hills & Chill
The agenda for the day; Ba Na Hills. The hotel reception gave us an unexpected wake-up call at 6.30AM.
We got ready and headed down for breakfast. Pro tip: ask the waiter or waitress at the coffee bar to make the coffee instead of DIYing it because theirs taste so much better than the ones we attempted to make ourselves.
We took a one-hour bus ride to Ba Na Hills, passing beautiful paddy fields along the way. The weather was crisp, the views were incredible, and the cable car ride was next-level scenic.
Just in time for sunset, we reached the beach at 5:48PM. The waves at the beach’s hotel were violently hitting the shore, so the hotel staff strictly warned us: “No swimming!” But it’s all good because just watching the waves was enough.
Later that evening, some colleagues went out to the Sơn Trà Night Market, but a few of us chose to unwind at the hotel instead. We swam in one of the four hotel pools—the one facing the beach. It was pitch dark, but that somehow made it cooler.
Post-swim, we soaked in the bathtub and played card games. When hunger hit, we realised room service had stopped for the night. So, we tried our luck with GrabFood. The seafood we ordered—especially the oysters—was *chef’s kiss*. We also ordered coffee and tea from Luna Cafe. SO GOOD.
Day Ba – Bye For Now, Vietnam
We got a wake-up call from the reception so that we don’t oversleep and miss our bus to the airport. We had our breakfast at the hotel, and I took my sweet time soaking in every bite because it would be my last breakfast in Vietnam, at least for a little while.
After breakfast, we returned the room keys for checkout. The staff went up to check our rooms, and did it quickly, might I add. 10/10 service.
The bus headed straight to the airport after. There, I finished the last of my cash with a coffee at the airport’s Highlands Coffee, one of the only places there that accepts VND and not USD (which I didn’t have).
Final Thoughts
I think 3 days isn’t enough for me to properly explore Da Nang. But here’s a summary of how I feel after this trip:
- Food: I didn’t really enjoy the food. Maybe it was because we went to the touristy areas, but I felt like the food didn’t have enough ✨spice✨for my taste.
- Safety: I may not travel here alone because of the experience I had with pushy Grab and taxi drivers in both Da Nang and Hoi An.
- Traffic: Travelling alone with a rented car or bike is out of the question too because the traffic here is no joke! Speaking of traffic, crossing the roads here is an extreme sport.
- Cost: Everything here was surprisingly cheaper than I expected, especially the food.
- Weather: The weather is either super hot or super cold, no in between.
Overall, I’d like to come back again without the time constraint, but with a group of people. Vietnam, you were chaotic, beautiful, and unforgettable.
Here’s a TikTok with the highlights of my trip: