Quảng Ngãi travel guide
My Lai memorial, Mỹ Khê beach and boats to volcanic Lý Sơn
A river town on the central coast, used as a base for the Sơn Mỹ (My Lai) memorial, Mỹ Khê beach and the volcanic island of Lý Sơn. Come between March and August, before the September to December rains. Allow two days, three with a night on Lý Sơn. Prices are low, and many passports enter visa-free.
Quảng Ngãi sits on the Trà Khúc River on central Vietnam's coastal plain, about 2½ hours by road south of Hoi An. Money from the Dung Quất oil refinery has given the once-overlooked town riverside cafes and new hotels, but travellers mostly use it as a base for three things: the Sơn Mỹ memorial, Mỹ Khê beach and the volcanic island of Lý Sơn.
Sơn Mỹ, better known abroad as My Lai, is where American troops killed hundreds of villagers in March 1968. The memorial and museum stand in the countryside north-east of town, a short ride from Mỹ Khê, a long stretch of pale sand backed by casuarina trees.
Lý Sơn is the bigger trip. Garlic fields and fishing harbours wrap around the island's two extinct craters, Thới Lới and Giếng Tiền. Back on the mainland, the provincial museum on Lê Trung Đình holds Sa Huỳnh and Champa finds worth an hour. Thiên Ấn pagoda looks down on the river from its hill across the bridge.
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A sobering memorial, a long beach and an island of volcanic craters, all within reach of town.
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Best time to visit Quảng Ngãi
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Only 40-100 mm of rain a month and the steadiest sea for boats to Lý Sơn; highs climb to 34-35C from May to August.
October averages about 640 mm and November nearly 590 mm, with typhoons possible; boat crossings are often cancelled.
Highs of 26-27C, pleasant for town and the museum, though January can still be wet and the sea rough.
Lý Sơn boats depend on the weather, so keep a spare day in your plans and do not book a tight onward connection the day you return.
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Getting there
Chu Lai flights, Ga Quảng Ngãi and the Lê Thánh Tôn coach station
Quảng Ngãi is easy to slot in between Hoi An and Quy Nhơn because it sits on both National Highway 1 and the north–south railway. Trains stop at Ga Quảng Ngãi, long-distance coaches use the Lê Thánh Tôn station, and flights land at Chu Lai, a short drive up the coast. The closest airport is Chu Lai (VCL), about 40 km north near Tam Kỳ, with a limited number of domestic flights; a taxi or Grab from there takes roughly 45 minutes. Da Nang has far more flights and is about three hours away by road. Trains on the main line stop at Quảng Ngãi station on Nguyễn Chánh, a short ride from the centre. Long-distance coaches use two stations: the South station on Lê Thánh Tôn, close to town, and the North station across the river in Sơn Tịnh. From Hoi An, private cars and minibuses take about 2½ hours. For Lý Sơn, the boats leave from Sa Kỳ port, about 25 km north-east of the town.
- Chu Lai Airport (VCL)
- About 40 km north, roughly 45 minutes by taxi
- Quảng Ngãi station
- On the main north-south line, Nguyễn Chánh street
- Coaches
- South station on Lê Thánh Tôn, North station in Sơn Tịnh
- From Hoi An
- About 2½ hours by road
- Check which coach station your bus uses; the North station is across the Trà Khúc and a taxi ride from the hotels.
Where to stay
Trà Khúc riverside, Hùng Vương or a homestay on Lý Sơn
Where you sleep in Quảng Ngãi depends on how you split the trip. Town, along the Trà Khúc riverside or around Hùng Vương, has the restaurants and transport; Mỹ Khê puts you by the beach near Sơn Mỹ; a homestay on Lý Sơn saves catching an early boat back from the island.
- Trà Khúc riverside
- Hotels either side of the Trà Khúc bridge, with river views; aimed at oil-industry business visitors and busy midweek
- Quang Trung and Hùng Vương
- The two main streets, with most mid-range hotels and food close by; traffic noise
- Lê Thánh Tôn, near the South station
- Cheap rooms for early coaches; a dull part of town
- Mỹ Khê beach
- A few resorts and guesthouses by the sand, near the memorial; quiet at night and far from town food
- Lý Sơn
- Homestays and small hotels in the island's villages; booked out on summer weekends
Getting around
Route 3 to Sơn Mỹ and a taxi to Sa Kỳ port
Quảng Ngãi town is small, yet nearly every sight lies outside it, so plan on a motor vehicle. Grab cars and bikes, metered taxis and xe ôm are plentiful around the station and the main hotels, and a taxi is the simplest way to reach Sa Kỳ port for the Lý Sơn boats. Green city buses leave from the main bus station, and route 3 runs out along the road to Mỹ Khê past the Sơn Mỹ museum, though only about every 90 minutes in each direction, so check the return time. For Sa Kỳ port and the Lý Sơn boats, take a taxi or Grab, around half an hour. On Lý Sơn there are no public buses worth relying on; rent a motorbike or hire a xe ôm driver for the loop around the craters, the cave pagoda and the harbours. Around Cổ Lũy and the riverside near Mỹ Khê, a bicycle is the nicest way to explore.
- Grab, taxi or xe ôm
- Town, Sơn Mỹ, Mỹ Khê and Sa Kỳ port
- Bus route 3
- Along the Mỹ Khê road past the Sơn Mỹ museum, about every 90 minutes
- Motorbike or xe ôm on Lý Sơn
- Thới Lới crater, the cave pagoda and the harbours
- Buy return boat tickets to Lý Sơn early in summer, when weekend crowds from the region fill them.
Know before you go
What makes Quảng Ngãi worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- Lý Sơn's crater rims at Thới Lới, looking down on garlic fields and the sea.
- Mỹ Khê in the late afternoon, after the heat drops and local families arrive.
- Cycling around Cổ Lũy, the riverside commune near the beach with coconut groves and new riverside cafes.
Good to know
- The Sơn Mỹ memorial is a site of grief; keep voices low and photograph with care.
- Boats to Lý Sơn stop in rough weather, which is common from September to December.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Quảng Ngãi, month by month
Quảng Ngãi faces the South China Sea, and the central coast's heavy rains arrive in autumn, so check the month before booking the Lý Sơn boat. Tap a month for averages.
Climate figures are approximate long-term averages for Quảng Ngãi (Vietnam Institute for Building Science and Technology, via Wikipedia).
Sơn Mỹ, Mỹ Khê and a night among Lý Sơn's craters
Two days cover Quảng Ngãi well: the Sơn Mỹ memorial and Mỹ Khê beach on the first, then a boat to Lý Sơn island. The Sơn Mỹ museum sets out the events of 16 March 1968 plainly, with photographs, the names of the dead and footprints cast into the paths where village homes once stood.
It is heavy going, so plan nothing loud straight afterwards. Continue a couple of kilometres to Mỹ Khê for a swim and a seafood lunch under the trees, then cycle the lanes of Cổ Lũy in the late afternoon.
On day two, take a taxi to Sa Kỳ port for an early boat to Lý Sơn. Rent a motorbike on the island and ride up to the rim of the Thới Lới crater for the view over garlic plots and fishing villages. Visit Chùa Hang, the cave pagoda built into the cliffs, and Hang Câu, a sea cave beneath the cliffs. At the Hoàng Sa museum and the Âm Linh shrine, the island remembers its sailors who were sent to the Paracels in earlier centuries.
Sleep on the island if the sea is calm and watch the sunset from the harbour. Next morning, take a small boat across to Bé island for clear water, then catch the return crossing. Back in town, the provincial museum is a good wet-weather fallback.
Trà Khúc gobies, don soup and Lý Sơn garlic
Quảng Ngãi's two signature dishes come out of the Trà Khúc River. Cá bống sông Trà are small river gobies braised slowly in fish sauce and pepper until dark and sticky, eaten with rice. Don is a breakfast soup of tiny river clams, ladled with their broth over rice crackers or noodles at stalls near the markets.
The town also has its own bánh xèo, small crisp rice pancakes with shrimp, rolled in herbs and dipped in fish sauce. For something sweet, look for mạch nha Thi Phổ, a malt syrup from Mộ Đức district, eaten with thin crackers, and kẹo gương, a brittle peanut candy. Both are popular gifts.
On Lý Sơn, garlic rules. The island's small, pungent bulbs are sold everywhere, and restaurants serve gỏi tỏi, a salad of young garlic shoots, along with fresh seaweed, sea urchin and grilled squid. In town at night, the bánh mì stall on Phan Chu Trinh opposite the central park is a good late snack, and cafes around the station roundabout keep going all day.
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How we research our Quảng Ngãi travel guide
For Quảng Ngãi we cross-check the Sơn Mỹ memorial, Lý Sơn boats and train links against the city's Wikipedia entry and Vietnam Travel, the national tourism site, and take visa rules only from the official Vietnam e-Visa portal.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Quảng Ngãi.
Getting there
Take a Grab or taxi out along the Mỹ Khê road, or bus route 3 if the timing suits; it runs only about every 90 minutes.
General
From Sa Kỳ port, about 25 km north-east of town. Crossings are often cancelled in rough weather, mostly between September and December.
Yes, Chu Lai (VCL) is about 40 km north. Da Nang has many more flights and is around three hours away by road.
One night covers the craters, the cave pagoda and a boat to Bé island; take two if you want to rest or if the weather is uncertain.
Small gobies from the Trà Khúc River braised in fish sauce and pepper, Quảng Ngãi's best-known dish.
The South station is on Lê Thánh Tôn near the centre; the North station is across the river in Sơn Tịnh.
Artefacts from the Sa Huỳnh and Champa cultures and from the province's ethnic minorities, at 99 Lê Trung Đình.
A riverside commune near Mỹ Khê, once praised in poetry for its coconut groves and streams, now dotted with riverside cafes and good for cycling.
Quảng Ngãi town is small, yet nearly every sight lies outside it, so plan on a motor vehicle. Grab cars and bikes, metered taxis and xe ôm are plentiful around the station and the main hotels, and a taxi is the simplest way to reach Sa Kỳ port for the Lý Sơn boats. Green city buses leave from the main bus station, and route 3 runs out along the road to Mỹ Khê past the Sơn Mỹ museum, though only about every 90 minutes in each direction, so check the return time.
Timing & weather
About 8 km of fine pale sand, backed by casuarina trees, a short way from the Sơn Mỹ memorial.
From about March to August. Storms and high seas are common from September to December.
The best time to visit Quảng Ngãi is Mar to Aug. Dry and hot, with calmer seas for the Lý Sơn crossing.
- Dry season: March - August (Only 40-100 mm of rain a month and the steadiest sea for boats to Lý Sơn; highs climb to 34-35C from May to August)
- Rainy season: September - December (October averages about 640 mm and November nearly 590 mm, with typhoons possible; boat crossings are often cancelled)
- Cooler months: January - February (Highs of 26-27C, pleasant for town and the museum, though January can still be wet and the sea rough)
June is the warmest month in Quảng Ngãi, with average highs of 35°C, and January the coolest, with lows of 19°C. October is the wettest month, at about 644 mm of rain; March is the driest. Quảng Ngãi faces the South China Sea, and the central coast's heavy rains arrive in autumn, so check the month before booking the Lý Sơn boat.
Visa & documents
Citizens of a number of countries, including the UK and many EU states, can visit Vietnam visa-free for up to 45 days. All nationalities can apply for a single or multiple-entry e-Visa valid for up to 90 days on the official portal.
Health & safety
Vietnam is generally safe. Traffic is the main hazard, and bag snatching from motorbikes occurs in cities.
