Two-Day Private Car Plan: Da Nang to the Alba Thanh Tan Hot Springs

Alba Thanh Tan is a hot-spring resort in Phong Dien, north-west of central Hue, about 30 km from central Hue according to public travel sites. Sun Travel’s rate table lists Da Nang or Hoi An to Alba Thanh Tan at about 125 km and 2 hours 30 minutes one way. Staying one night lets the first day go to the hot springs and the second add a heritage site nearby. This guide lays two days around those entries and notes what to confirm with the resort, because the price and hours of its services are set by the resort.

Driving entries from the rate table

The rate table does not say whether the trip goes through the Hai Van tunnel or over the pass, so dispatch confirms it when you book. According to the Da Nang city portal, the Hai Van tunnel is 6.28 km long, opened on 5 June 2005 and replaced the old pass road of about 21 km. The rate for this leg is on the page for a private car from Da Nang to Alba Thanh Tan hot springs. The two-day, one-night programme has no listed all-in rate, so a quote is prepared for your plan.

Day 1: Da Nang, Lang Co, Alba Thanh Tan

An illustration, not a fixed schedule:

• 8:00: the car collects you at your Da Nang hotel. With 2 hours 30 minutes of driving plus one stop, you reach Alba Thanh Tan around 11:30 to 12:00.
• One stop on the way: Lap An lagoon in Lang Co covers about 800 ha at the foot of Phu Gia pass near Highway 1A; see the guide to the Lap An lagoon and Lang Co stopover. A stop pushes back your arrival and should be added to the plan.
• Afternoon and evening: the hot springs and the resort’s activities. According to public travel sites, the resort has a farm, a highwire course, a zipline and a craft village. Bathing packages, game tickets and operating hours are charged by the resort, so ask directly; this guide gives no prices or water temperature because sources disagree.

Day 2: one heritage site, then back to Da Nang

Phuoc Tich ancient village in Phong Dien is often mentioned as a stop near Alba. According to Wikipedia and public newspapers, the village was founded in 1470, lies on the O Lau river, was ranked a national monument by Decision 832/QD-BVHTTDL of 3 March 2009 and has a traditional pottery craft. Visiting hours, tickets and whether you can enter the old houses are decided by the owners and the locality, so this guide does not quote them; ask before you go. Then the car returns to Da Nang; take the 2 hours 30 minutes of the rate table as a reference for the way back (the table has no opposite-direction entry), so leaving at 14:00 would put you in Da Nang around 16:30 to 17:00 after one rest stop.

If you want to go only for the day, see the guide to the Alba Thanh Tan hot springs from Da Nang, which covers a one-day trip. If you want to add Hue, see the Da Nang to Hue 2-day, 1-night itinerary.

Where the rate table has no figure

• The return leg, the driver’s overnight stay and a waiting car at Alba.
• Extra stops such as Lap An lagoon or Phuoc Tich.
• The real time by tunnel or pass.

These are not included automatically in a one-way rate and are set out in the quote. The base rate for each route includes fuel, road tolls and parking fees on the listed route. Accommodation, tickets and services at the resort are for you to book and pay for. The scope of longer rentals is on the page for long-term car rental with a driver.

What to send so the plan can be settled

• The Da Nang or Hoi An pickup; cars can enter the gates of hotels and resorts to pick up and drop off.
• The date you go, the date you return, the time you want to leave Alba and the drop-off.
• Whether you prefer the tunnel or the pass, and any stop you want.
• The number of passengers, anyone prone to car sickness, the number of suitcases and the 4-, 7- or 16-seat vehicle.