An unforgettable escape | Ba Na Hills French Village at Da Nang, Vietnam

Admiring the views

A part of my heart was left in this little French Village at Da Nang, Vietnam. It was called Ba Na Hills and this location was something right out of a fairy tale, or at least in my opinion where dreams come alive.


The refreshing weather, beautiful skies and the unreal French architecture that surrounded the place made it feel like you were being transported to a whole other destination, and the funny thing is that when you walk around the area- it was reminiscent of something right out of a beloved childhood tale of Beauty & The Beast; but just with a little touch of magic.

The sights

So how do you get to this beautiful location, you ask? Well if you are taking Air Asia from Kuala Lumpur, route yourself to Da Nang (KUL-DAD) which is a 2 hour and 35 minute flight and take a cab from the Da Nang International Airport to Ba Na Hills which is approximately 40 minutes away.

Transportation | Cable Car

Taking the cable car ride up

Next up, wait in line for a cable car from the Ba Na Hills Ground Station, and take it up to the peak (Morin Station), thus finally making your way into the Ba Na Hills French Village. An interesting fact about the Ba Na Cable Car though, is that it is the longest non-stop single track cable car system with a total length of 5,801 meters.

Upon going up

The price

It also has over 201 cabins in total, which means in can transport 3,000 people per hour, so you needn't worry about exhausting long queues. The view is also beautifully incredible so if you are going early, do remember to take note that the first ride going up is at 7:30am and the last ride ends at 8:45pm.

Ticket Entrance Price:

• 2 way ticket to Ba Na Hills Resort- includes 90 complimentary games: validity 1 day at Fantasy Park

• 600,000 VND per adult (RM114)

• 500,000 VND per child (height: 100-130cm)

• Free Admission for children below 100cm

Ba Na Hills

The view from the room

Upon coming up to this venue, the little kid in me squealed in delight because not only was this place breathtakingly beautiful, but because as a tourist destination, it completely blew me away with the fact that you can experience all 4 seasons in just one day.


You would probably know how the schedule for this would work but just in case; Spring would be in the morning, Summer & Autumn would be at noon and Winter would be in the evening.

French Architecture all around

Now this destination is located at the very top of the Bana Mountain Range, which is 1,487 meters above sea level, so come prepped with a good coat or jacket. The temperature during the day is below 20 degrees around the year, and as night falls, it gets even colder.

The main focal point

From the hotel

This place is also quite vast and there are plenty of choices on where to eat as well as multiple gift shops around to buy a souvenir for a loved one at home. However a good time to go would be during the midst of October to February as there would be much less of a crowd, however if you are planning of going sometime in April onwards, do expect more people to be visiting the destination.

In front of Mecure Hotel

In terms of what you can do here, festivities are constantly going up and about almost every single day. You would see performances at every corner of the street, even fire dancing, portrait and body painting being done near the fountain. So all in all, there is certainly a carnival type form here that is totally enjoyable.

Heading to visit the garden

Taking the Funicular

In terms of the other places around the mountain that you can visit, you can also take a quick ride down below to visit Le Jardin D'Amour Garden, the Debay Wine Cellar and Linh Ung Pagoda through the Funicular. It retails at 100,000 VND (approximately RM19) and you get a complimentary Debay Wine Cellar Tour with it. Its is not a very far from the French Village and the view from where your would be at is breathtaking.

At the entrance

Exploring the garden

The decor

The picturesque chess set

A quick tip that I would suggest is to bring your camera to this amazing place at the Le Jardin D'Amour Garden. It has a huge build up at over 8,206 meter square and has multiple smaller gardens with different picturesque themes in between. A favorite of mine was the chess set, and it you are a photographer, you would be able to capture some pretty amazing moments here.

The wax museum

If you are an enthusiast of wax museums, you can head over to the first and only wax museum in Vietnam in Bana Hills. The price is 100,000VND (RM19) per adult or if you have kids, it will be complimentary, but only for those below the height of 130cm.

Steve Jobs

Take a picture with Einstein anyone?

Jack Sparrow

This place displays over 49 hand crafted Italian wax figures such as Steve Jobs, Einstein, Lady Gaga, Hugh Jackman, David Beckham and more. You can also grab your camera here for a fun and memorable photo with them as well.

Lodging

At the square

In terms on where you would want to stay if you were looking to make this a nice and sweet trip, a really nice locale would be the Mercure Hotel, because it is right in the middle of the square where you would be able to see everything on what was going on during the day.

Our room key cards

The rooms

There are 494 rooms in total, fully equipped with tasteful European furnishings. The room itself is quite decent, full of light and has a very comfy and warm atmosphere. I was quite fortunate that mine was located right in front of the square so I had the complete experience of taking a look at all the festivities that were going on below.

The lobby

The refreshments corner

However, if you would like to fully explore the hotel, you can also head out to check their 4 seasons swimming pool which has temperature control that will allow you to control the temperature that you swim in. As for check in, it is at 2pm at the main foyer where else check out at 11am.

Eateries

The atmosphere

So once you have settled in, there are plenty of options to go around on where you would want to dine in, but a good place that I would recommend would be at the L'etable Fine Dining Restaurant that has a beautiful indoor space as well as an outdoor terrace courtyard where you would be able to tuck in.

Taking a look at the menu

The 5 Course Dining Menu

This particular restaurant serves Vietnamese Asian cuisine and each of its dishes are exceptional, both in taste and presentation. We had the 5 course menu, which on its description will be listed below for reference.

The 5 Course Menu at L'etable Fine Dining Restaurant

• Course 1: Crispy seafood spring roll with chili fish sauce

• Course 2:  Beef Salad with baby cress, onion, tomato and shrimp cracker

• Course 3: Crab meat soup with Da Lat asparagus and sesame oil

• Course 4: Beef stewed with lemongrass and chili, served with baguette or fresh noodles

• Course 5: Cream Caramel with Da Lat strawberry

Crispy seafood spring roll with chili fish sauce

Beef Salad with baby cress, onion, tomato and shrimp cracker

Crab meat soup with Da Lat asparagus and sesame oil

Beef stewed with lemongrass and chili, served with baguette or fresh noodles

Cream Caramel with Da Lat strawberry

A favorite of mine had to be the dessert just because the texture of the cream caramel was made with such a delicate consistency that it could just basically melt in your mouth. The sweetness of this was just right, plus the way it was served was very well done. All in all it was a great dish by the restaurant.

The architecture

Looking back, this is the one place that I would really go back to just because the vibe of the place is just so different from the ones that I have been to before. It was a fresh take on the unique French architecture and the whole atmosphere felt simple and romantic at the same time. So cheers to Air Asia for allowing us to explore this unforgettable place, it is certainly an experience that I would never forget.

On overall

In the meantime, for those of you who are planning on a vacation to Da Nang and would like to check out this place, the details will be listed below for easier reference. This destination is a wonderful venue to take your loved one to for a nice getaway, so if you are planning on a surprise, a minimum 2 night stay here would make your visit well worth your while.

Details | Ba Na Hills, Da Nang City, Vietnam

• Contact: +84 (0511) 3791 999

• Website: Ba Na Hills

• Facebook: Ba Na Hills Mountain Resort

• Instagram: @banahills

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