Dong Hoi
Following the 1954 partition, Dong Hoi and its southern neighbour Dong Ha went from being at the centre of the country to frontier towns. Both suffered more than most during the American War – as the ruins and bomb craters throughout the area will attest. The fact that Dong Hoi has bounced back to become an attractive city while Dong Ha still retains a badlands feel surely owes a lot to being on the winning side.

It has a wonderful location with the Nhat Le River dividing the main part of the city from a beautiful sandy spit, with lengthy stretches of beach to the north and south of town. While most tourists head from Hanoi to Hué, Dong Hoi is the best spot to break up the journey. It’s also a much nicer base to explore the DMZ sites than Dong Ha – but it’s slightly further away, and being on the northern side you won’t find as many English-speaking drivers. From Dong Hoi you can easily make a day trip to the Phong Nha Cave.

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Getting there & away
Contents

Land
Bus
Buses to all destinations zip up and down Hwy 1A, including open-tour buses between Hanoi and Hué. It’s easy to leave an open tour bus in Dong Hoi, but more difficult to arrange to be picked up from here.

From the bus station (822 150; Ð Tran Hung Dao) you can catch services south to Danang (56, 000d, five hours, six daily) via Dong Ha (30, 000d, two hours), and north to Vinh (50, 000d, four hours).

It’s possible to get a bus to the busy Lao border at Lao Bao (40, 000d, three daily) and directly to the Lao city of Muang Kham­mouan (190, 000d, 11 hours, twice weekly, bookings Mr Thang 828 939) passing through the little used Cha Lo/Na Phao border crossing (7am-5pm) situated between Don Bai Dinh (Vietnam) and Na Phao (Laos). The buses leave from Dong Hoi at 6am on Mondays and Fridays, with the return journey leaving from Muang Khammouan at 7am on Wednesdays and Sundays. It is not possible to arrange a Lao visa at this border.

Car & motorbike
Dong Hoi is on Hwy 1A, 166km north of Hué, 95km north of Dong Ha and 197km south of Vinh.

Train
The train station (Ga Dong Hoi; 820 558; Ð Thuan Ly) is located 3km from Hwy 1A. Take Ð Tran Hung Dao until it crosses a bridge. A signpost directs you to take the next right, then take another right and then the station is directly ahead.

The Reunification Express heads to destinations that include Hanoi (202, 000d, nine to 12 hours, six daily), Vinh (80, 000d, 3½ to 9½ hours, eight daily), Dong Ha (38, 000d, two to 2½ hours, six daily) and Hué (65, 000d, 2½ to 5½ hours, eight daily).

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See more Viet Nam

About Hanoi Vietnam | Around Ho Chi Minh City | About Halong Bay Vietnam | Ba Be National Park | Ba Vi National Park | Bac Lieu | Bai Tu Long Bay  | Bo Nau Cave (Pelican cave) |  Beaches North of Nha Trang |  Ben Tre | Buon Ma Thuot | Ca Mau  | Dien Bien Phu | Dong Hoi | Ha Giang | Haiphong | Halong City | Ho Coc Beach | Dong Hoi | Kon Tum | Kim Quy Grotto | Lang Son | Lao Cai | Long Hai | Luon Grotto | Long Xuyen | Mai Chau | Mekong Delta | Mui Ne Beach | My Tho | Phan Rang & Thap Cham | Phan Thiet | Phat Diem | Phong Nha Cave | Phu Quoc Island | Pleiku | Quang Ngai | Rach Gia | Soc Trang | Song Cau | Tam Coc | Tam Dao  | Tay Ninh | Thay & Tay Phuong Pagodas | Tra Co Beach | Tra Vinh | Tuy Hoa  | Van Don Island  | Vinh Long | Vung Tau |