Bach Ma National Park From Da Nang: The Access Problem, Explained
Bach Ma is a cloud-forest national park about 60–65km north of Da Nang, roughly 1.5 hours, with a 1,444m summit deck, the 300-metre Do Quyen waterfall and the Five Lakes swimming holes. Entry is 65,000₫ (~$2.55) for adults and 25,000₫ for children, and the walking is the point. The complication is access. After typhoon damage in 2025, vehicles stop at Km12 and the rest of the summit road is on foot; motorbikes are banned on the summit road entirely; and the shuttle to the top runs 1–1.2 million₫ per group. That position is damage-related and can change, so re-check it seasonally before you build a day around it. Guided tours run $60–90 and are the format that absorbs the uncertainty. Best months: February to September.
The 2025 typhoon damage, and what it changed
This is the fact that decides whether the day works. Following storm damage in 2025, general vehicle access up the summit road has been cut at Km12, and beyond that point you are walking. The summit is at 1,444m and the road is long — this is not a short stroll to the top, and it changes a scenic drive into a serious walk. Anyone quoting you a casual drive to the summit deck is working from pre-2025 information.
Not discouraged — banned. Riding up is not an option regardless of your licence situation, which for once removes a decision rather than adding one. If you were planning to combine this with a Hai Van Pass ride, plan to park and walk, or book a tour.
The park-operated shuttle to the top is priced per group, not per person, at roughly 1–1.2 million₫ (~$39–47). For four people that is fine; for a solo walker it is the most expensive thing on this page by a wide margin. It is also the reason a guided tour at $60–90 stops looking expensive once you add up entry, transport from Da Nang and the shuttle.
Typhoon-related access restrictions are exactly the kind of thing that changes without any English-language announcement. Recent traveller reviews and the tour operators themselves are the fastest source of truth — if operators are still selling summit itineraries, the shuttle is running. This page states the position as of August 2026 and deliberately does not pretend it is permanent.
Bach Ma, priced against a 65,000₫ gate
Entry is cheap and everything else is not, which is unusual for this region and entirely a function of the access situation. The honest comparison is between doing it yourself with a car and a group shuttle fee, and buying a tour that already contains both.
| How | Price | What it involves | Time | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guided day tour with pickup | $60–90 per person | Transport from Da Nang or Hoi An, park entry, a guide who knows which trails are open, and the summit access sorted. The format that absorbs the post-typhoon uncertainty, which is worth more here than on any other trip on this site. | 8–10 hrs | WORTH IT |
| Private car plus the summit shuttle | car $50–80 + shuttle 1–1.2 million₫ per group | Full control of the timing and no group to wait for. It only makes financial sense with three or four people, because the shuttle is priced per group and the car is priced per vehicle. | 8–10 hrs | DEPENDS |
| Entry only, walking from Km12 | 65,000₫ adult · 25,000₫ child | The cheapest and the most demanding. You still have to get to the park from Da Nang, and from Km12 the summit is a long uphill walk. For fit walkers with a full day and an early start, this is the real Bach Ma experience. | Full day | DEPENDS |
| Motorbike to the summit | — | Not permitted. Motorbikes are banned on the summit road, so this is not a route around the shuttle cost. | — | SKIP |
| Bach Ma between October and January | Same prices | Cloud forest in the monsoon: rain, leeches, closed trails and no view from a summit deck that exists purely for the view. October alone gets 650mm of rain in this region. | — | SKIP |
| Than Tai Hot Springs instead | from ~450,000₫ adult | The nature-adjacent alternative 30km southwest, with hot mineral pools, mud baths at 250,000–300,000₫ extra and no access uncertainty. Better in the rain than out of it, and the easy answer with children. | 5–7 hrs | DEPENDS |
Prices checked August 2026. Access restrictions above date from 2025 typhoon damage and are the most volatile facts on this page — verify with a recent review or an operator before travelling.
A 300m waterfall, five swimming holes and a French hill station
Bach Ma was a French colonial hill station, abandoned, fought over and reclaimed by forest. What survives is one of the wettest, densest and most biodiverse places in central Vietnam.
The Do Quyen waterfall is the headline: a 300-metre drop, reached by a trail with a long staircase descent, and it is spectacular after rain and thin in the dry season — the exact opposite of the weather you want for the rest of the day. The Five Lakes are a chain of pools and cascades on the Hoàng Yến stream, and they are the reason to bring swimming things: cold, clear mountain water, and the best swimming on this page by a distance. The summit deck at 1,444m looks out over Lăng Cô, the lagoon and the coast on a clear day, and looks out over the inside of a cloud on most others.
The park is genuinely rich — pheasants, primates, hundreds of bird species — and it is one of the wettest places in Vietnam, which is what makes the forest what it is and also what makes the timing so binary. February to September is the window. Outside it, the trails are slick, the leeches are active, and the summit view that justifies the effort is not there.
Set expectations honestly: this is a walking day, not a viewpoint you drive to. Since 2025 that is truer than it used to be. If your idea of a good day out is a short stroll and a photograph, Sơn Trà gives you jungle, primates and a coastal panorama 9km from the beach, and Ba Na Hills gives you altitude with a cable car attached. Bach Ma is for people who want to be in a forest all day.
Bach Ma National Park, practically
Bach Ma tours, against a 65,000₫ gate
The park charges 65,000₫ to walk in and 1–1.2 million₫ per group for the summit shuttle. That second number is why a $60–90 guided day is better value here than on almost any other trip from this city — and why booking a format that already includes summit access is the safest way to handle a road that changed in 2025.
Bach Ma National Park FAQ
How much does Bach Ma National Park cost?
65,000₫ (about $2.55) for adults and 25,000₫ for children at the gate. The expensive part is not entry — it is the summit shuttle at 1–1.2 million₫ per group, plus getting to the park from Da Nang. Guided day tours with pickup run $60–90 per person and include all of it.
Can you drive to the top of Bach Ma?
Not since 2025. Typhoon damage means general vehicles stop at Km12 and the rest of the summit road is on foot, and motorbikes are banned on the summit road entirely. The park shuttle at 1–1.2 million₫ per group is the way up for people who are not walking it. Verify the current position before you travel — this is damage-related and it can change.
How far is Bach Ma from Da Nang?
About 60–65km north, or roughly 1.5 hours by road. It sits between Da Nang and Hue, on the far side of the Hai Van Pass, which is why some operators combine the two — though both are full days and the combination is a compression.
Is Bach Ma worth visiting?
If you want a walking day in a cloud forest between February and September, yes — the Five Lakes swimming holes and the 300-metre Do Quyen waterfall are genuinely good and there is nothing else like them near Da Nang. If you want a viewpoint you can drive to, no, and especially not since the Km12 restriction.
What is the best time to visit Bach Ma?
February to September. The park is one of the wettest places in Vietnam, and from October to January you get rain, slick trails, active leeches and no view from a summit deck whose entire purpose is the view. October alone brings around 650mm of rain to this region.
Can you swim at Bach Ma?
Yes, at the Five Lakes — a chain of pools and cascades on the Hoang Yen stream, and the best mountain swimming reachable from Da Nang. Bring swimming things and expect the water to be cold, which after a long uphill walk is the point rather than the problem.
Is Bach Ma good for children?
Not really, and less so since the access change. It is a long drive, a long walk from Km12 and a full day of trails with steep staircase sections. Than Tai Hot Springs at about 30km southwest, from roughly 450,000₫ an adult, is the family answer — or Mikazuki's indoor water park if the weather is against you.
Should you do Bach Ma or the Hai Van Pass?
Different days entirely. The Hai Van Pass is a road with viewpoints — 21km at 496m, doable in half a day from a jeep seat, and it has no access uncertainty. Bach Ma is a full walking day in a forest with a summit access question attached. If you only have one spare day, take the pass.