7 of the Most Thrilling Adventure Experiences in Vietnam

[Active Travel Asia]

As much as a destination for culture, history, and great food, Vietnam offers some amazing adventure and ecotourism possibilities. And here are seven of our favorites!

Canyoning/Abseiling Down waterfalls in Da Lat

Most people come to Da Lat, “the City of Lovers” to chill, but for adventure seekers, Da Lat has a plenty of activities to get your heart racing, inclusive of canyoning, scrambling, zip lining, jumping and swimming. Among them, canyoning is the most attractive for travelers. 

Usually canyoning here includes various separate abseils down from different parts of Da Lat's large waterfall complex, with challenge levels increasing gradually. Canyoning and abseiling allow you to discover the wonders and mysteries of nature in its purest form. During a canyoning trip you'll experience a lot of challenges, such as rappelling down the waterfalls, taking a zipline across the falls down the river, sliding down the waterfall,  and hiking through the jungle. Don’t worry if you haven’t done any of this before, as you will be accompanied by canyoning professionals and expert guides during the whole trip. You just need a brave heart and adventurous spirit!

A Spectacular Cable Car Ride in Ba Na Hills

Ba Na Hills is a giant recreational complex some 35km southwest of Da Nang city, and a cool escape from the heat of the coast. It is located on a mountain overlooking the Hai Van Pass, Son Tra Peninsula and Marble Mountains (on a clear day). Ba Na Hill Station is famous worldwide for the Golden Bridge (a pair of giant hands lift a 150-meter long bridge), an iconic wonder off Vietnamese architecture. It also possesses an impressive cable car system, so long (11,587 meters) it logged four Guinness World Records. During a cable-car ride you get a chance to contemplate the spectacular scenery of the dense forest cloaking the mountain, which is home to over 500 species of plants and 250 types of animal. The cable ride is a great hit for travelers who come up here at night to admire the lights of Da Nang twinkling far below. 

 

Kitesurfing in Mui Ne

One of southern Vietnam's most attractive beach destinations, the capital of Binh Thuan province is four hours away from Ho Chi Minh City. Once a quiet fishing village, Mui Ne has become a water sports mecca, most notably for kitesurfing, whether you are an experienced kiteboarder or a complete novice. There are two seasons here, with good wind conditions for 70 percent of the year. Two wind directions prevail with mainly southerlies in the summer season, which runs from May to October. In winter, from late October to the end of March, it switches to northerly with stronger and more consistent winds.

 

Exciting ATV Rides Over the Sand Dunes of Mui Ne

Those oceanic winds so great for kitesurfing have also sculpted Mui Ne's famous dunes, and you can book ATV tours in town (sunrise is a favorite time of day for this).Unfortunately, these days the dunes can be crowded with tourists - but don’t be too put off by this, as there are a lot of them to wander around, and veering off the beaten path can take you to your own epic adventure while everyone else throngs the higher dunes.

 

Paddling a Bamboo Basket Boat in Hoi An

Just 5km from the ancient town of Hoi An, Cam Thanh is a serene and picturesque fishing village with warm, hospitable people and a unique seven-hectare ecosystem of water coconut trees.Local fishermen will show you how to paddle their thung chai (round, woven-bamboo coracles) as well as catch purple crabs. You might also get to join a thung chai race and learn how to make traditional bahn xeo pancakes.

Biking the Fertile Mekong Delta

Referred as the “rice bowl of Vietnam”, the Mekong Delta is blessed with a diversity of cultures and traditions as well as rice paddies and tropical fruit orchards. A Mekong cycling trip is the best option to explore the quintessence of this region, biking past the paddies and orchards as well as the houses, schools, temples and markets clustered around them, with rice, herbs, joss sticks and anything else that requires drying spread out on the edges of the thin ribbons of roadway. These lanes are too narrow for cars to negotiate, so small motorbikes, cyclists and pedestrians rule the road.

 

Squeezing Through the Tight Cu Chi Tunnels

About an hour and a half from Ho Chi Minh City, these are a byzantine maze of underground passages, chambers and booby traps used by both Viet Minh and Viet Cong guerrillas during Vietnam-US war of the 1960s and earl 1970s. Here you can squeeze through these tight passageways and learn how people lived and performed daily activities like eating, sleeping, going to school, getting medical attention, and more.

Of course, words and a couple of pictures don't do all these things justice. So put them on your Vietnam bucket list and contact us for more details!

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