8 Things You Should NOT Do in Central Vietnam (Da Nang, Hoi An, Ba Na Hills)

8 things you should not do in Central Vietnam — Da Nang, Hoi An and Ba Na Hills. Not dramatic, just avoidable: the e-visa dates, renting a scooter, packing medicine, a fixed Ba Na day, Hoi An's flood season, swimming, old-house doorways and unexploded ordnance. Each one from an official source, a dated news report, or our own camera.

Sources:
• US State Department, Vietnam Travel Advisory (Level 1), 24 June 2026 — travel.state.gov (e-visa, motorbike licence, prescription medicine, landmines and unexploded ordnance)
• VnExpress, 26 October 2025 — Hoai River floods Bach Dang street in Hoi An (~0.5 m)
• Nhan Dan, November 2025 — Hoi An floods again on 18 November, the third time in three weeks
• Bao Van Hoa, 18 May 2025 — Da Nang beach lifeguard hours and swimming advice
• Our own footage: Ba Na Hills, 24 January 2026 (Golden Bridge at 08:43 and 13:15, camera clock); Hoi An and Marble Mountains, 22 January 2026
• Some clips are from other filmmakers on Pexels; the Hoi An flood footage is VOA (November 2017, public domain) and the satellite image is EU Copernicus Sentinel-1 (27 October 2025) — all credited on screen and listed below

Rules change — check the official sources before you travel.

Questions about Vietnam? WhatsApp Vietking Travel: +84 924 567 333
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CHAPTERS
0:00 Eight things we'd tell a friend
0:32 1 · Don't book your visa to the exact day
1:23 2 · Don't rent a scooter
2:03 3 · Don't pack your medicine without checking
2:37 4 · Don't fix your Ba Na Hills day
3:31 5 · Don't plan Hoi An in late autumn without a back-up
4:20 6 · Don't swim where there's no lifeguard
4:56 7 · Don't rush through the door
6:05 8 · Don't pick up old metal
6:39 The eight, in one list
7:17 Ask us anything

Mai Tiến Tần — Founder, Vietking Travel
Licensed international tour operator No. 01-1082/2018 · Nearly 20 years running tours

He hosts this channel himself and speaks Vietnamese on camera (with English subtitles). The English narration is an AI-generated voice reading a script he approved.

Stock footage used (free licence):
• Hac Hai — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/the-dragon-bridge-of-vietnam-9791713/
• Anh Tuấn Lê — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/vibrant-aerial-view-of-riverfront-market-street-29329244/
• FLPhotography .li — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/video-of-passport-9207809/
• Tuan Vy Spotter — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/vietnam-airlines-boeing-787-takeoff-at-airport-37152651/
• HONG SON — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/passenger-jet-docking-at-vietnamese-airport-32724910/
• Toàn BDS — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/bustling-vietnam-traffic-on-sunny-day-33383214/
• Nguyen Truong Khang — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/pov-scooter-ride-through-busy-urban-street-36437094/
• khanhhoangminh — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/people-walking-down-a-street-with-rickshaws-and-bicycles-15815833/
• Towfiqu barbhuiya — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/pills-in-blisters-13048933/
• Tima Miroshnichenko — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/prescription-pills-and-tablets-7033769/
• K — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/traveler-holding-boarding-pass-at-airport-terminal-29576553/
• Anh Tuấn Lê — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/stormy-sunset-over-hoi-an-riverside-36670222/
• VOA Tiếng Việt — Wikimedia Commons (2017-11-06): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:H%E1%BB%99i_An_s%C6%A1_t%C3%A1n_kh%C3%A1ch_du_l%E1%BB%8Bch_v%C3%AC_b%C3%A3o_Damrey.webm
• European Union, Copernicus Sentinel-1 imagery — Wikimedia Commons (2025-10-27): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Devastating_flooding_in_Vietnam_(Copernicus_2025-10-27).webp
• TripAway 2Day — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/colorful-street-scene-in-rainy-hoi-an-39774338/
• vinh Văn Dương — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/aerial-view-of-dragon-bridge-in-da-nang-vietnam-31122602/
• Khanh Hoang Minh — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/scenic-beachfront-with-boats-and-city-skyline-37544838/
• khanhhoangminh — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/tracking-shot-of-fishing-equipment-on-da-nang-beach-8664220/
• Alex Nguyen — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/bi-n-m-khe-da-n-ng-19957788/
• khanhhoangminh — Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/video/lantern-festival-with-boats-on-a-river-at-evening-12742205/

#CentralVietnam #DaNang #HoiAn