Hai Van Pass from Hoi An: car, motorbike, or easy rider?

The Hai Van Pass — "Ocean Cloud Pass" — climbs 500 m over the spur of the Truong Son range that separates Da Nang from Hue. It is the old road; almost all commercial traffic now takes the tunnel underneath, which is exactly why the pass is worth doing. On a clear morning you can see Lang Co beach curving away for 10 km below you. On a bad afternoon you can see about four metres.

The three ways to do it

Self-drive: read the licence part before you book

This is the one everybody pictures, and on the right day it is genuinely one of the great rides on earth. Two facts you should have before you rent, though, because rental shops will not volunteer them:

• To ride anything over 50cc legally in Vietnam you need a Vietnamese licence or an International Driving Permit issued under the 1968 Vienna Convention, with the A1 motorcycle category. IDPs issued in the US, UK and Australia are largely 1949-Convention documents and are not valid here.
• Without a valid licence, most travel insurance policies will not pay out for a motorbike accident. Da Nang hospital is excellent and an evacuation flight is not.

Easy rider: the ride without the driving

You sit on the back, a local rider does the work, and your bag is strapped between you. Expect $55–90 per person one way to Hue including stops. It is the best compromise if you want the wind-in-the-face version but do not want the licence exposure — and a good rider knows exactly where to pull over for the view that is not the one everyone photographs.

Downsides are honest ones: you are still exposed to weather for six hours, luggage is limited to what straps on, and a pillion for four hours is more tiring than it sounds. Families with young children cannot do this at all.

Private car: the boring option, and often the right one

A car does the pass in air conditioning, stops wherever you point, and puts your suitcases in the boot. Our Hoi An → Hue route price is $119 sedan, $139 SUV — a one-way transfer that happens to be a sightseeing day. The usual stopping pattern:

1. 1
   Marble Mountains

   Half an hour up the lift, caves and a pagoda inside the limestone. 40,000 VND entry, lift extra.

2. 2
   Lang Co Bay viewpoint

   The 10 km beach shot from the south side of the climb. Better light in the morning.

3. 3
   Pass summit

   French bunkers, an American-era pillbox, a lot of coffee stalls, and the actual reason you came.

4. 4
   Lap An Lagoon

   Oyster racks and mirror water on the Hue side. Skip if it is grey.

5. 5
   Elephant Springs

   Cold freshwater pools if it is hot and you brought swimwear.

That is roughly a six-hour day at a civilised pace. Doing it as a day return to Hoi An works too, but you will spend five hours in the car — most people prefer to end in Hue and stay the night.

The combination nobody tells you about

You do not have to choose. The most common arrangement among guests who want to ride: hire the bike or the easy rider for the pass itself, and put the luggage in a car that meets you in Hue. Some couples split — one rides, one goes in the car with a toddler and the bags, and everyone reconvenes at Lang Co for lunch. It costs a little more than either option alone and removes the single worst part of riding the pass, which is doing it with a 20 kg suitcase on your lap.

When to go

• February to May: the reliable window. Clear mornings, 24–30°C, low humidity.
• June to August: hot and hazy. Leave at 7am; by 2pm the tarmac is punishing on a bike.
• September to December: rainy season. The pass gets fog you can lose the road in, and October–November brings typhoon closures. A car is not a preference in November — it is the option.
• Any month: morning light is better on the Da Nang side, afternoon light on the Lang Co side. Start early either way.