After the success of our Dalat motorbike day tour, we’d been discussing the feasibility of another motorbike tour for a while. Vietnam is one of the most iconic countries in the world to experience from the back of a motorbike, and it felt like we couldn’t leave here without spending at least one more day in the saddle.
Once our eight days in Hoi An had come to an end, our sights were focused on the 120km journey north to the imperial city of Hue. Fortunately for us, this stretch of coastline is amongst the most dramatic and picturesque in Southeast Asia, with Hai Van Pass the centrepiece. With buses using a different route, and the trainline at a much lower altitude, a motorbike tour is the best way to experience the Hai Van Pass, with plenty of opportunities to stop and take in the view.
The motorbike tour also provides the opportunity to see the sights of Danang and several other stops along the way, meaning this tour is the ideal way to travel from Hoi An to Hue.
Click here for our guide to visiting Hoi An with kids
Click here for our guide to visiting Hue with kids
Click here for our ultimate guide to visiting Vietnam with kids
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What to expect on the Hoi An to Hue motorbike tour
A full day awaits so an early start is on the cards, with the motorbike crew collecting us from our accommodation in Hoi An at 8am. We appreciated the informality of the tour guides as they rolled to a stop outside our hotel in leather jackets, sunglasses, and vintage helmets. We immediately felt cooler just by association.
Safety briefings are brief, limited to checking the helmets fit and that you know where to rest your feet and put your hands. Smaller helmets are available for kids but remember that children must be aged five and above to take part in the tour. No additional equipment is provided (e.g. padded jackets or other protection), mainly because no-one else in Vietnam wears it. Make your own call on how much of an issue this is for your family but, in any event, make sure everyone is at least wearing long trousers and suitable footwear.
As we were making a one-way journey, we had to transport our backpacks on the bikes with us. The drivers wrapped the backpacks in plastic bags and stowed them behind us, which actually made for quite a welcome and comfortable backrest.
As always, we’d packed lightly for the trip and the kids had their small backpacks, so it was straightforward to transport them. If you’re travelling with huge backpacks or suitcases, it’s going to be more of a challenge. Where there’s a will there’s a way, so if you have your heart set on taking the motorbike tour but have packed too much stuff, it’s always possible to arrange for your luggage to be taken ahead in a taxi, but this will incur an extra cost of course.
We found the bikes really comfortable (at least for the first few hours) and felt totally safe throughout the day. The boys were especially relaxed and we could tell how happy they were as we left the busy streets of Hoi An, weaving in and out for traffic.
Marble Mountains
The five hills rising above Danang are known as Marble Mountains and are each named after an element (fire, wood, earth, water, and metal). We visited Thuy Son (Water Mountain) as part of the motorbike tour (entrance fee is included in the price of the tour). Of all the activities on the tour, this one is by far the busiest, with tour groups squeezing into the lift that takes you up the mountain.
During our visit, it was especially hot and it took a fair amount of stamina to keep climbing the steps and take in the views (although a very handy lift initially take you up the mountain). If you can manage to maintain your energy levels, the Non Nuoc Pagoda is set beautifully amongst the trees and there are several caves and grottos to explore, some requiring a tight squeeze to reach the top.
Several other temples are hidden around the site and the best way to approach a visit is to follow the general flow of tourists and linger whenever you see something of interest. At a couple of vantage points, you’ll have access to views across Danang, the ocean, and back towards Hoi An.
The route to the exit is generally downhill and you’ll meet your guides at the lower gate, handily placed for drinks and ice-creams.
Danang Dragon Bridge
There aren’t many cities that bid visitors farewell with a huge fire-breathing dragon, but Danang is one of them. The 666m long Dragon Bridge, built in 2013, has become a striking symbol of the city and makes for the perfect photo-opportunity before you leave the city and start heading north.
Drivers will stop on the side of the road and let you jump off the bikes for a few minutes for photos and soaking in the views. It probably won’t coincide with your tour but the bridge is closed to traffic on Saturday and Sunday evening at 9pm when the dragon comes to life and shoots long streaks of fire from its mouth. It’s quite the experience. Otherwise, the bridge is a fun place to say goodbye to Danang and view the river from up high.
It’s then a memorable moment when you sit back on the bikes, cross the bridge and take a right turn along the riverbank towards Hue. The next 15km of riding, alongside Danang Bay, are some of the most picturesque of the tour, with little traffic and only the breeze and gentle hum of the engine for company.
Hai Van Pass
Even if you’ve didn’t know its name, you’ve probably seen photos of Hai Van Pass. Translating into English as ‘Ocean Cloud Pass’, this 20km section of winding, cliff-hugging tarmac is one of the most glorious stretches of roads in the world, with views across the South China Sea to match. For many motorcycle aficionados, this area is almost a pilgrimage site, so it’s a real treat to experience it as relative novices.
What’s more, the vast majority of traffic (including sleeper buses travelling up and down the country) use the alternative National Route 1 (QL1A), which completely bypasses the pass. For this reason alone, the motorbike tour is worth the money.
From Danang, the pass slowly climbs up the side of the mountain, with wide smooth bends sweeping you towards the top. The view is a non-stop 10/10 and there are several viewpoints to stop at for photos and to catch your breath. The drivers are great at taking family shots and, trust us, this is one photo you’re going to savour.
There’s the option to stop at a café along the route, which is carved into the hillside, offering snacks, juice, coffee and stunning views. Anything you consume here isn’t included in the tour price. Keep an eye out for the occasional train making its way to or from Danang. This section of railway line is used by Vietnam Railways in all their marketing material and it gives you a good idea of the scale; the carriages rolling by hundreds of feet below you almost looks like those belonging to a toy train.
About halfway along the pass you’ll reach Hai Van Gate, which also marks the highest point of the pass. There are more cafes here but the main drawcard is the gate itself, dating back to 13th century. It was an important military post and strategic landmark in both Indochina wars. There’s not much shade but it’s a fascinating place to wander around and picture life here as a soldier. This is also the last time you’ll get views back towards Danang as you now begin to drop down towards the sea and the imperial city of Hue.
Thác Nhị Hồ (waterfall)
Lunch is taken at a tourist-centric restaurant but the food isn’t great and feels very mass-produced. It’s a slight let down but a decent chance to top up on food before you continue the tour.
After lunch we headed to a stunning waterfall (Thác Nhị Hồ). Click here for location. There’s a small area to get changed in (make sure you’ve packed some swimwear and towels in an easy-to-reach location in your backpack or, ideally, in a day bag). After the hours on the bike, it’s so refreshing to jump into the water and cool off.
Make sure you take note of any submerged rocks before jumping in but it’s fairly safe to swim around in and even jump in from the large rock in the centre. Our boys did this for ages and it was only when our guide started checking his watch that they agreed to come out and dry off. They loved it.
At the base of the waterfall, there’s an impromptu waterslide made from a smooth slope towards the water. Some people succeeded and others misjudged the velocity, so it’s best to supervise the kids during the first few runs. Us parents floated around in the near distance and ‘parented from afar’. It was a lovely spot.
Fishing village
The penultimate stop on the tour is a small fishing village with boats built from abandoned American equipment. It’s a laid-back place and didn’t seem to be on the tour group schedule, so it was a good chance to see traditional way of life and how local people still make a living from the sea.
The abandoned waterpark (Hồ Thuỷ Tiên).
The final stop was by far the most bizarre. We’d gathered from the guides that we were stopping at a waterpark, Hồ Thuỷ Tiên (click here for location), which had closed several years ago. Beyond that, we were slightly in the dark; why were we going to an old waterpark? As always in Vietnam, you just have to go with it and see where you end up.
Entering via a random security gate and down a narrow dusty track, we spotted a huge concrete dragon rising from a dry lakebed. As you do. It was a really eerie place, apparently the waterpark was opened to great fanfare but proved unpopular due to its distance from Hue. Tourists and locals never visited in great numbers and the owners cut their losses a few years ago.
It’s slightly unclear if visits are officially permitted but there was a not unpleasant atmosphere around the park, with a few other motorbike tour guides waiting for their customers to finish looking around. Aside from the concrete dragon, we didn’t spot any other relics from its days as a waterpark but the inside of the dragon was interesting to explore, although it did have a slightly haunted feel (plus a huge amount of graffiti).
We spent about thirty minutes trying to make sense of the place without much success. It was certainly memorable though and something we kept talking about over the next few days.
How to book the Hoi An to Hue motorbike tour
Click here to book online via Get Your Guide. You will then be contacted via WhatsApp to arrange pick up.
Final thoughts on the Hoi An to Hue motorbike tour
The tour ended around 5pm when we were dropped off at our hotel in Hue. Our bums were a bit sore and we felt weary, but we’d had a brilliant time. The Hoi An to Hue motorbike tour had shown us parts of Vietnam we’d have missed on a sleeper bus and we’d also completed another classic Vietnamese experience.
Simply from a logistical point of view, it’s a handy way of travelling between Hoi An and Hue, saving a change of transport in Danang and you’re taken door to door. But of course, it’s a lot more than that.
If you’ve not visited Danang yet, the tour ticks off most of the sights of the city and saves you making a separate trip from Hoi An. Then there’s the Hai Van Pass which must rank in the top-five stretches of road in Southeast Asia (or perhaps the world). The views from the back of the bike are literally ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ moments, and seeing the kids ride ahead with the emerald sea in the background is parenting paradise.
But above all, motorbikes and Vietnam feel like the perfect match. If, like us, you can’t ride them yourselves, a tour really is the ideal way to see this magical country how it was meant to be; from the back of a motorbike, wind rushing by, and happy kids leading the way.
You may also like to read:
Dalat motorbike tour: the BEST way to explore Dalat with kids
Hue with kids: taking it in manageable bitesize chunks
Hoi An with kids: things to do, tips, and where to stay