A friend of mine told me that I needed to go to Ba Na Hills during my journey through Vietnam. His description sounded magical and I highly value his opinion, but all the reviews on travel sites and blogs said that it was a super lame place and very expensive. I was completely torn on what to do and continued to vacillate throughout my trip and into the morning of my last day in Da Nang. Finally I decided, what the heck, I don't really have anything to lose. So I did a little bit of research and made a plan. I was traveling to my next destination in Central Vietnam that afternoon, so I had a time limit, but I did in fact have the entire morning and a small part of the afternoon to play with. I got up early and set out for a half-day trip to Ba Na Hills. About one hour after climbing into a cab outside my hotel, I had my ticket in hand and was ready for my next adventure.
Welcome to Ba Na Hills!
Ba Na Hills is a replica of a French village on the top of some hills in Central Vietnam. In order to get there, you have to take a cable car. (In fact, this is the only way to get there.) It just so happens that it's the world's longest cable car - about 5 kilometers long - so that was also a big selling point for me. I figured if the park was a bust, at least I could say that I had ridden the world's longest cable car, right?
The cable car station
Tourists dress differently for theme parks in this part of the world. I was definitely underdressed for the occasion!
The ticket was about $30 USD. It may have been expensive by Vietnamese standards, but I figured that would be worth it to ride the world's longest cable car! Then the park was just a bonus.
View from upstairs inside the cable car station. (I really liked the lamps!)
After I bought my ticket, I had to follow a bunch of signs, go down many hallways, and up and down stairs. It really started to feel like I was at Disney or some other theme park!
AND IT'S PINK! Cue another level of excitement.
When I finally reached the boarding area, I noticed that the cars did not stop for passengers to load. Rather, they slowed down, and we had to sort of trot beside it and hop in. We're not talking Divergent-level speeds, but it was still quite different than anything you would probably see in the States in terms of safety.
I had to board with a bunch of strangers since I was a single rider. As it turns out, I was way too slow when getting on, and I got nudged out of a "good" seat. I had to sit in the front with my back to the window. This actually turned out great for me because I had a perfectly unobstructed view all the way up the hillside, as I could easily turn around in my seat. We rose up and up and up, over the jungle, a waterfall, and loads of beautiful scenery.
Here we go! #letmetakeaselfie
Before boarding the cable cars, I had to choose a line. There were two destinations, but both signs were printed in Vietnamese. I had no idea which line to choose, and Google wasn't loading quickly enough to help me make my decision. As it turns out, one line went all the way to the "French" village on top of the hill, while the other line went to the pagoda a little ways down the hill. Luckily, I ended up having time to explore both places.
As the cable car approached the hilltop, I started to see this magical little castle appear above the tree line. I was trying to decide if it looked more like Disney or Hogwarts. Either way, I was instantly happy that I listened to my friend's advice and took the trip up to Ba Na Hills.
Hogwarts. Definitely Hogwarts.
I got off the cable car and exited the station. I found myself in this quaint little French-looking village. Ok, so I have never been to France (not YET, anyway...). But I swear, I kept waiting for the opening number of Beauty and the Beast to start. It was absolutely adorable. Magical, even.
"There goes the baker with his tray, like always..."
The tourists were mostly Vietnamese, but there were other Asian nationalities as well. I was pretty much the only foreigner/Westerner that I saw at the park, but I'm pretty used to that by now. I pretended that I didn't notice all the sneak-photos that were being snapped in my direction. This is something I'm also getting pretty used to. And speaking of photography: I must say, I was pretty amazed at the photography- and selfie-game at this park. People would take a minimum of 5-7 selfies or have full-on photo shoots, and if they had props like sunglasses, hats, or scarves, they easily took a dozen or more photos at each spot. And let's just say, there were a lot of photo-ops in this adorable little village, and these tourists covered all of their angles! I just love people-watching.
I mean, really. This view. (Even with the barren grass areas because of dry/hot season.)
There was a little spiritual tower and temple up a set of stairs. It looked quite pretty, so I went to check it out. This was actually my least favorite part of the village. It felt very fake to me, as I'm used to seeing temples and spiritual areas all the time in this part of the world. This one was, I don't know... off. I think it may have had something to do with the fact that there was no one actively praying or bowing or paying homage anywhere, which is what I am used to seeing. It didn't feel authentic. There were some very cool statues and a lovely little garden area, but I did not feel drawn to stay here for very long.
The views were quite pretty, though!
The hills of Ba Na Hills
After wandering for a bit, I walked back through the village. There were scheduled street performances, but I was in-between showtimes. It didn't really matter, since "Belle" was still playing on repeat in my head. I was convinced that Gaston would make his appearance at any moment. (He never did, sadly.)
What wasn't magical was the heat. All the reviews online said it was very cold in Ba Na Hills. The weather report predicted it would be 16 degrees Celsius, which is in the 60s Fahrenheit. Nope. They were wrong. All of them. I was dressed in jeans and a heavier shirt. I brought my running hoodie because I actually get cold these days when the temperature drops below 80 degrees Fahrenheit (#lifeinthetropics). I also wore my running shoes that day because they were the only closed-toed shoes that I brought in my suitcase for the trip. The temperature that day was actually around 30 degrees Celsius. I swear, I was melting. As I wandered around the magical village, I started to notice exactly how intense the sun was getting. Eventually it was all I could think about. I wanted to buy a dress or something in the souvenir shop, but they didn't exactly make things in Stefanie-length at this particular park. Instead, I decided to duck inside a restaurant to cool off a bit.
This definitely perked up my morning :-)
After my little coffee (and air con) break, I decided it was time to head down the hill to the pagoda area. I said goodbye to the quaint little village and went to the cable car station. It turns out that I had to take the little yellow cable cars down the hill, and then a little tram/train thing up to the pagoda area. It was a quirky but nice little trip.
(Random) views on my way out of the village.
The other cable car station.
These cable cars were a bit smaller than the pink ones that I rode up. I guess they didn't have to travel as far, so they didn't need to be as heavy-duty?
Views down below
My friend had described arriving at this mystical Buddha and pagoda in the sky. I was excited to see that I had finally made my way there.
The little "garden" between the cable car and train stations
And on to the uphill park of the journey...
I sat on the train since I was doing so much walking that day. Also, that girl was dressed way more adorably than I was. (Story of my day! Haha!)
The cable car and train ride took me to a little pagoda area with a giant Buddha. There were very good vibes in this place; nothing fake at all this time! I wandered around the peaceful gardens and admired the sweeping views. I even wound my way through a Harry Potter-type chess game (I TOLD YOU THIS WAS HOGWARTS), and spent a little bit of time in a meditation area.
I'm wondering if this changes every year? It is the year of the rooster on the Chinese lunar calendar, so I saw many roosters around Vietnam. I am still unsure if those installations are always up, or if the animal changes from year to year. This was a cute little exhibit, either way.
Loved all these peek-a-boo spots with the giant Buddha
This was probably my favorite spot. I don't really know why... it just is.
HOGWARTS.
I absolutely loved all the gardens and displays that were around. After awhile I stumbled upon this maze. I have never really been a fan of mazes, but I figured I would give it a try. I wrapped around a few times, but then I lost my sense of direction. It felt like I was in there forever, with the hot sun beating down on me. I started to feel the panic set in just as I found the exit. I haven't been so happy to leave a place in a long time! Luckily, there were more pretty flowers and quaint places in the surrounding area, so I quickly got over it.
My strategy of following someone kind of failed epically...
From the moment I came down the cable car, I saw a giant Buddha statue looking out over the hills. I finally stumbled upon it, and the temple nearby was really cool too. It was another Chinese-looking temple, and I loved the dragons.
These stories were on the base of the Buddha.
Loved this lantern peeking through the lookout.
I was planning to turn back after I explored the temple, but I found this grand staircase. I decided to follow it down. The road kept winding, so I continued to follow. It turns out that I accidentally walked back down instead of taking the train. I got some pretty sweet scenery on my accidental trek!
Lady Buddha. I liked her guardian.
I made it back to the cable car station a little earlier than planned, but since I had already explored all of the grounds, I decided it would be okay to head down a little early. As I was walking into the station, a man stopped and asked me to take a picture with him. This happens all the time, as people are fascinated by my height (there aren't many 6-foot-tall blonde girls walking around Southeast Asia!). I decided to say yes, but only if I could get a picture with him too.
#besties
As we made our way into the cable car station, I was very happy that I had decided to head down early. The cable cars were not running down the hill, so we had to travel back up to the French village (aka Hogwarts!) and then back down to the parking area. Five kilometers is quite a long way to travel by cable car, and I had the extra distance back up the hill. I sat with my new buddy and his friends on the ride. My new friend did not speak much English, but we managed to communicated that he is from Taiwan and is 27 years old, and I am VERY TALL. Haha.
I decided I had to grab one, since all the locals were doing it too! Some things do translate across cultures, and I guess hot dogs and parks go together no matter where in the world you may be traveling...
Goodbye Ba Na Hills, with all of your cuteness!
I made it down to the base of Ba Na Hills just in time for pick up. I had scheduled another driver to take me to my next destination that afternoon, and this taxi dropped me back at the hotel within 3 minutes of his arrival. Talk about good timing! Sometimes I have bad luck, but I do a little dance when the timing works out like this.
The driver helped me pack my bags in the car, and I climbed into the backseat. I smiled all the way to my next destination. What an adorable place... and to think I had almost missed that.
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