Da Nang has become an attractive tourist destination for visitors from both home and abroad, but the city has a marked shortage of night-time entertainment activities.  To solve this problem, the newly-approved night market, which will be developed by the DHTC Da Nang Co Ltd on the eastern bank of the Han River, is expected to develop as a special new tourism product in the city.

According to local travel agencies, there are both advantages and disadvantages about the siting of the night market on the eastern bank of the river. 

The architectural design of the market

The chosen location boasts spaciousness which will allow for many interesting cultural events as well as the market stalls, entertainment places, eating and drinking areas, and other facilities. 

However, the new night market on the eastern bank of the river is a long walk away from the popular Bach Dang Street riverside promenade on the western bank, which could discourage visitors to both.  In addition, there is a shortage of support services there to satisfy the visitors’ demands.  These key reasons could make this new site less attractive to visitors.  As a result, local travel agencies need to further promote the market amongst local residents and visitors.

The architectural design of the market as proposed by the DHTC Da Nang Co Ltd has been applauded by the city’s authorities.  In addition to the developer-owned stalls at the market, there should be involvement by local tourism service and souvenir providers and other businesses.  However, preferential policies for local businesses to get involved are still modest, and this has made them reluctant to participate in this project.

The city’s tourism sector will learn from the experiences of Viet Nam’s neighbouring countries in building night markets such as those in Cambodia’s Siem Riep, and Thailand’s Bangkok and Pattaya.  This should help to turn the city’s new night market into a special tourism product in the near future.