The Golden Bridge Da Nang was something we never imagined we would be able to see with our own eyes. When our Sri Lanka plans changed last minute, we booked flights to Vietnam. It didn’t hit us until we were looking at things to do in Vietnam the day before our flight, that we realized we could visit the famous Golden Hand Bridge.
This is our experience of visiting something made famous by Instagram. We knew it would be busy, but we seriously underestimated how busy it would be.
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What is the Golden Hand Bridge
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What is the Golden Bridge in Da Nang?
Many people refer to this bridge as the Golden Hand Bridge or the Hands of God Bridge. The Golden Bridge in Da Nang is a new addition to the ‘theme park’ Sun World in Ba Na Hills. Located in Da Nang, it is a short drive from the town of Hoi An. The Da Nang hands bridge sits at the top of Sun Worlds cable car. This particular cable car holds 4 Guinness Records.
When you exit the cable car station you can see the curving golden bridge and the hands that support it. Once across you continue into the gardens and maze of Sunworld.
Da Nang To The Golden Bridge – 5 am Wake Up Call
Sun world is a 45-minute drive from Da Nang, up into the Ba Na Hills. As a result, this meant we had to order a taxi to pick us up at around 5:20 am. Our main reason for going to Sun World was to get a good photo on the bridge without anyone else in the background. If we were going to accomplish this, we needed to be on the 7 am cable car up to the bridge.
Our taxi pulled up at 6:15 am outside the ticket office of Sun world and it dawned on us, that we wouldn’t be the only people trying to get this photo. Another couple had parked chairs outside the ticket office to be the first people in the queue. After scouting some more chairs, we did the same thing and waited until we could see life behind the window. We knew now that this was certainly going to become a race. Olly happened to look through the window and luckily a staff member spotted him and agreed to sell us tickets before anyone else. Game on.
TRAVEL TIP – You have to pay for a ticket to the whole park, to get to the Golden Bridge. Therefore entrance will cost £25 per person.
How To Get To The Golden Bridge in Da Nang
If you don’t want to get up early like us and worry about how to get to the Golden Bridge in Da Nang, then you can take a tour with Klook. This Bana Hills and Golden Hand Bridge Tour is extremely good value for money, as it included your transport and a lot more activities after you leave the Bana Hills Bridge.
Getting The Perfect Photo On The Golden Hand Bridge
Little did we know, the real fun was only beginning. After we had paid for our ticket, we ran to the cable car station. The other couple joined us and we all spread out trying to find it. None of the signs was in English and it wasn’t too clear where to go. We saw a bride who had brought her ticket online marching towards the gate. It was at that moment we learned it is quite easy to outrun a bride.
First in the queue and we could feel the tension building. In addition to the other western couple, there were 4 brides in the queue with us waiting to get onto the first cable car. They had their glam squads, and we had our tripod, in other words, the race was on.
Once the bell rang at 7 am, they let us through and we all ran. We and our new allies had jumped in the first cable car and sat there very happy with ourselves. As the cable car started to move we saw a bride run past us and dangerously jump into the car in front. After that, we knew we had been beaten at our own game.
Once We Were At The Top Of The World
The cable car up to the top was breathtaking. The world’s longest single wired cable car did show off its legacy as we scored through the valley. As soon as we got to the top, we all ran like crazy to the bridge.
Seeing the hands in real life was pretty amazing but that didn’t matter at this moment. Groups of brides were already on the bridge and we ran past them to the end of the bridge. We managed to take some photos and even get our drone out. The only awkward thing was another couple had turned up in the same outfits as us. Equally with their drone next to us, taking the same photos.
We have now photo-shopped them out of our photos. However, it gave us a moment to reflect on what we were doing.
[ Left image is 7:15 am, Right image is 10:15 am]
A small crowd had formed on the bridge at 7:30 and due to this, the guard approaching us couldn’t find us. Instead, he found the similarly dressed couple and told them they were not allowed to fly their drone here. We got the shot we were after and packed up, relieved that it was over.
Heading South to Hoi An? Check out our Hoi An Travel guide here.
What Else Is At Ba Na Hills Sun World?
After you have walked across the golden hand bridge you will come to the gardens. There is a beautiful display of Vietnam’s amazing flowers and some larger-than-life sculptures. It Is here you will also find a maze!
Once you find the second cable car, you can explore the fake French town they have created. It even comes complete with its very own Starbucks, very French right? There are lots of overpriced coffee shops and hundreds of tourists everywhere. The ticket to Sun world also includes free rides on the Toboggan, which is over as quickly as you can say Toboggan.
There is another cable car and a Buddha but apart from that, there isn’t much else to do here. On our way out we found a section of the park inside one of the buildings with rides and games. You can pay to enter their very own waxwork museum too. We got a look at Steve Jobs from the outside, which was enough for us to keep on walking.
By that time it was 10 am and it was becoming unbearably busy. Even though this park was huge, it felt like we were back on the London Underground in rush hour.
The Golden Hand Bridge In Da Nang – Is It Worth It?
If anyone was to ask us if The Golden Hand Bridge in Da Nang is worth it, we would say no. We admit it was amazing to see this beautiful sculpture in real life. Finally seeing something you’ve only ever seen online is a great feeling. That being said, we didn’t enjoy our time here a little bit.
We got here at 6:30 am and left at 10 am due to the crowds. From 9 am the golden hand’s bridge was unbearable and there were hundreds of people everywhere, we couldn’t move. It was so crowded we got into arguments with several people for trying to push us out of the way.
Our main aim was to take photos so we accomplished that. If you are on a budget and like your personal space, miss this one out completely. The entire park is very overpriced and so is everything inside.
However, if you are like us and seek out the perfect photo opportunity then we would say approach with caution. We knew what we got ourselves into here, but we have amazing photos to show for our efforts. It will be busy, prepare yourself for how busy it can be.
Location | Trip Advisor Reviews | Ticket Prices
Golden Bridge In Da Nang FAQ
- How to get to Ba Na Hills? You will have to take a taxi. It costs around d800,000(£26) return trip.
- How much is the golden hand’s bridge entrance fee? £25 per person
- Which cable car takes me to the golden hand bridge? Hoi An Cable Car takes you right outside. (On the left as soon as you walk in)
- What’s the best time to visit the Golden Bridge Da Nang? Every day is busy but at 7 am cable car is advised.
- Is there WiFi at Sun World? Yes, free WiFi in public places.
- Can you fly drones at Golden Bridge Da Nang? We did but a guard told others you are not allowed.
- What’s the weather like? In the mornings it can be foggy but it’s super hot once the sun is out.
- Average Coffee Price at Sun World? d75,000 (£2.50) average City prices of coffee are £1.
This blog post was completely our own experience and own opinions. We understand not everyone will agree with us and hey, you might even get lucky and have a brilliant time. We didn’t have the most enjoyable day due to how busy it was, so we are sharing our experience.
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What Camera Gear Do We Use
- Primary Camera: Panasonic G80
- Go To Lens: Panasonic 12-60mm
- Tripod: Manfrotto Adventure Tripod
- Camera Bag: Manfrotto Backpack
- Underwater Camera: GoPro Hero 8
- Drone: DJI Mavic Pro 2
- Power Bank: Anker Power Bank
- Hardrive: WD 1TB hard drive
Hello Milly and Olly,
thank you for your blog post and beautiful photos. I know, sometimes it is really hard to make the perfect photo – it means to wake up before others and be prepared. Do you use a drone to capture some of the photos? Is there permission to use drones?
Author
Thank you ! Yes we do use a drone. We don’t you are allowed but we weren’t aware of that until we saw someone else being warned for their one. Hope that helps !
Really you were running to make a photo only? Sounds like you didnt even stop and appreciete the moment of being there.