DON’T MISS THIS MUST-SEE IN DA NANG: LADY BUDDHA

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Lady Buddha (or more formally Linh Ung Pagoda) is one of the main sights in Da Nang. If you visit Da Nang’s beach you will see the huge statue sitting at the edge of the Son Tra peninsula from a distance. But is it worth going there or will you find just a boring statue?

Getting to Lady Buddha is a bit of a pain as it is quite a distance from the main beach and town area. So it may not be a surprise to learn that I did not get there during the first 3+ weeks of my stay in De Nang. However, after one aborted attempt, I finally managed to visit and my verdict is clear:

This is an absolute must visit – do not miss! It was one of my favorite experiences during my time in Vietnam.

What is the Linh ung Pagoda even?

Linh Ung is the site of the huge buddha statue, various temple buildings, gardens, and a beautiful pagoda (tower). This is not an ancient site – construction didn’t start until 2004 and it wasn’t opened until 2010. It looks like they are even now still working on and extending the area.

So if you are looking for old traditions and ancient buildings, you might be disappointed. However, the site is stunningly pretty, surrounded by nature, offers gorgeous views of both sea and city, and has a wonderful spiritual atmosphere.

Practical Info for visiting Lady Buddha

How to Get there

You have several options for visiting Lady Buddha:

1. On a walk/hike
   To be honest, I am not sure how realistic this is. I tried to walk there earlier during my stay but abandoned the idea when I reached the peninsula. Not only was I already exhausted after walking along the beach from my AirBnB but there was no more sidewalk. The road is fairly wide and I think you could chance walking along the side. But it didn’t look like that much fun to me. If there is a walking path through the hillside/nature I did not see it. And there were quite a lot of wild monkeys living there. Nice from a distance, but I didn’t want to get TOO close.
   Overall, I would say you can hike to Linh Ung Pagoda but it isn’t close enough for a little stroll from Da Nang’s center.
2. Drive up yourself
   If you have a car/scooter, that is the easiest way to get there. There are plenty of parking spaces at the pagoda and a drive from My Khe beach will take probably around 15 minutes.
3. Get a Grab
   This is the easiest way to visit Linh Ungh Pagoda if you don’t have your own vehicle. And this is also how I got there. The exact price for a Grab will depend on day, time, and of course your starting location. I went around lunch time on a Sunday and paid approx. 300,000 VDN for the round trip from the Dragon Bridge area.
   Getting a Grab back was very easy. There are plenty of cars waiting at the temple grounds so you won’t have to wait.
4. Take a Tour
   Lady Buddha is part of various tours, usually in combination with other attractions, like Marble Mountain or even Golden Bridge. I would recommend this option if you have limited time and want to see more than one attraction on the same day. Or of course if you prefer tours and want someone to guide you.

What to bring with you to the Pagoda

You don’t need to prepare much for this visit. I recommend you wear a sun hat and plenty of sun screen. As with all temples you are required to wear respectful clothes which generally means nothing too revealing, i.e. covered knees/arms/shoulders.

I don’t think this is seen too strictly for the outdoor areas and they do have robes you can borrow for entering the temples themselves. So I wouldn’t worry too much about it (but neither would I go there in a bikini!)

You are required to take off your shoes when entering the buildings so shoes that can easily be slipped on and off are a plus. There is also quite a bit of walking involved, including grassy areas and steps. So comfortable, non-slip shoes would be best. However, this is not Marble Mountain – you don’t have to be prepared for extreme sports either.

Finally, either bring some water or a bit of cash to buy something to drink there.

Best time to visit

Linh Ungh is currently open from 6 am in the morning until 9 pm. There is no entrance fee! Yes, you heard that right. Aside of your Grab/transportation/tour this visit is completely free. That made it easy to fit this great site into my budget.

Honestly, lunch time on a Sunday was probably not the ideal time. It was hot and there were quite a few visitors. I couldn’t push it off any longer (it was one of my last days in town) but if you plan better I would visit early in the morning to beat the heat and make it easier to take photos without loads of other tourists in them.

Avoid rainy/very cloudy days. Most of this site is outdoors and it will be muddy, slippery and gloomy in the rain. And of course you won’t have a great view of the city.

Finally, the ideal time would be after it has been dry for a couple of days (to avoid mud) and on a clear day. It was a bit hazy on my visit. This wasn’t too bothersome in person but I think the pictures would turn out better on a clearer day.

Amenities at Linh Ung Pagoda

There is a lot of open space and plenty (and I mean plenty) of benches/places to relax. Even on a busy Sunday afternoon it was easy to find a quiet corner. There are also several restrooms.

I found one souvenir shop (mostly temple/buddha related) as well as two places selling water/drinks/ice cream. The prices for water and ice cream were surprisingly low. Pretty similar to the prices in local grocery stores. Rather unexpected for a major tourist attraction.

How much time will I need

Like so often, this depends very much on what kind of traveler you are and what you want to get out of this visit. You can get a good idea of the grounds in 30 minutes and should be able to see all the highlights. Most tours allocate about 45 minutes for Lady Buddha and that should be enough to get a feel for it.

It took me a little over one hour to walk all over and check out the different buildings, gardens, gates etc. (I may have missed some). However, I stayed almost 3 hours as I also sat down and read. It is a great place to just sit and breathe.

Should you take a Tour or go on your own?

The answer to this is not as clear-cut as you may think. It will really depend on what you are looking for.

If you want to thoroughly explore Linh Unh and spent time soaking up the atmosphere, an independent visit is the way to go. You can come and go whenever and stay as long as you would like.

If on the other hand your stay in Da Nang is shorter and you just want to see this sight together with several others, a tour is an excellent alternative. Lady Buddha is usually combined with Marble Mountain and Am Phu Cave for a half-day exursion like this tour offers.

For a solo traveler, the cost of a tour will be about the same or even lower than taking Grabs between the attractions. If you enjoy meeting fellow travelers, want some more information about what you are seeing, and won’t need much time there anyway, a tour will work very well.

If you want to see all of Da Nang’s most famous sights in one day (and take all the iconic photos) you can even do a full day tour that includes Lady Buddha, Marble Mountain, Am Phu Cave and the famous Golden Bridge! I never made it to the Golden Bridge (but do admire the pictures I have seen) but did tour Marble Mountain and it is another must-see in the area.

My personal experience at Linh Ung

As I already mentioned, I took a Grab from my AirBnB and got dropped off in the parking lot between the Pagoda and the Temple Area after about 20 minutes.

I first went to explore the Pagoda area. Here I loved the great view of the Da Nang skyline (a bit hazy during my visit), the beautiful plaza, and various side gardens.

I loved the Pagoda. The only disappointment was that it looked like you can’t climb up to the higher levels. I did go down some steps to explore the beautiful and serene gardens. Some of them seem to be still under construction.

Around that time I started to feel dehydrated (yes, I again forgot to bring water). So I left the pagoda area and crossed the parking lot. Near the entrance to the temple grounds I found the souvenir shop and next to it a place selling drinks. I got a small bottle of water for 5,000 VDN. Great value. Very unexpected for a major sight (and quite a change from Marble Mountain which was lovely but a bit of a tourist trap).

Next I made my way to the temple grounds. I absolutely loved the main courtyard. It may not look that special but felt unexpectedly spiritual. I honestly had goosebumps!

Slowly I made my way towards Lady Buddha.

There are plenty of other things to see. On the way I found another absolutely gorgeous garden. I just love all the bridges!

Finally I did get to Lady Buddha. The statue was impressive. Again the only disappointment was that you can’t climb up inside for an even better view. For some reason I thought you could but I wandered around inside and walked all around but couldn’t find any steps going up. Too bad!

One thing I especially enjoyed here were the many statues and smaller details. So much work and effort must have gone into building this temple.

Finally, I still bought an ice cream and spent a while sitting on some benches (I moved around a couple of times) to read and people-watch.

Around 3:15 pm I made my way to the Grab pickup area (close to where I bought the ice-cream and water). I didn’t have to wait at all and soon was on my way back to town.

So was Linh Unh worth a visit?

Absolutely! I can’t believe I was even thinking of skippig it. It was probably my favorite thing in Da Nang (and if you read my blog you will know there are many things I loved in Da Nang).

I highly, highly recommend you go here if you enjoy spiritual places, gardens, great views of city and sea, relaxing, and admiring a multitude of art work.

For me, an independent visit was the way to go. I had as much time to soak up the atmosphere as I wanted and it was very easy and fairly inexpensive. However, if you are in town for only a day or two, a tour is probably the better option as you can combine the Pagoda with some other not-to-be-missed sights.