10:57:36 AM | 6/12/2026
Under the strategy to develop Da Nang into a high-quality tourism and service hub for the Asia-Pacific region in line with Politburo Resolution 43 NQ/TW, the marine economy has been identified as one of the city’s key growth pillars. Yet in a new phase of competition, the sea can no longer serve simply as a scenic asset. Da Nang needs more in-depth products that can turn its waterways into spaces for economic activity, cultural experiences, and high value-added tourism.
Within this shift, Viet An Group Joint Stock Company (Viet AnGroup) has pursued a notable direction: developing a premium waterway tourism ecosystem linked to the night-time economy, ecological responsibility, and cultural depth. The approach reflects broader efforts to raise the standards of marine tourism in Da Nang city.
Art, cultural, and music performances combined with lighting displays at the marina help elevate the visitor experience
Waterways become a new growth space
Government Resolution 82/NQ-CP on key tasks and solutions to accelerate tourism recovery and sustainable growth called for the development of distinctive tourism products that can extend visitor stays and increase tourist spending. For Da Nang, that challenge has become more urgent as the city enters a stage where competition is shaped by quality rather than natural advantages alone.
In 2025, Da Nang welcomed more than 17.3 million visitors, including approximately 7.6 million international arrivals. In the first quarter of 2026 alone, the number of visitors served by accommodation establishments continued to grow strongly, rising 15.3% year on year from the same period in 2025, reflecting the sustained appeal of the central coastal destination. At the same time, growth pressures have increased the need for more in-depth and differentiated tourism products.
The reality is that Da Nang already has strong advantages in resort tourism, accommodations, dining, and events, yet its on-the-water offerings remain underdeveloped relative to their potential. Visitors may spend days at beachfront resorts, but truly distinctive sea voyages, where they can view the city from offshore, experience the rhythm of the bay at night, or immerse themselves in river and maritime culture, still require more professionally developed products.
Against that backdrop, private-sector participation has become increasingly important. In waterway tourism, businesses are not simply investing in vessels. They also need strong management capabilities in areas such as legal compliance, maritime safety, docking infrastructure, environmental standards, operational services, and urban connectivity.
Under the leadership of General Director Nguyen Thanh Tam, Viet AnGroup has chosen not to pursue short-term gains, but instead to build with an ecosystem mindset. Starting with An Spa Sauna & Massage in 2018, the company expanded into the An Di high-speed boat service in 2019, followed by the Son Tra Marina complex in 2022 and the Aphrodite yacht in 2023.
Viewed separately, these are spa services, cafés, marina facilities, and tourism vessels. But when connected through a unified operating model, they create an integrated experience chain in which visitors do not simply “arrive at one destination and leave,” but instead enter a journey designed around wellness, cuisine, scenery, marine travel, and night-time experiences.
According to Nguyen Thanh Tam, premium tourism today is no longer defined solely by material luxury. “What travelers seek are emotions, personal impressions, and distinctive memories. A memorable voyage is shaped not only by a modern yacht, but also by how thoughtfully the entire experience is designed, so that even after leaving, visitors still remember the city from the perspective of the water,” he said.
That mindset has created a distinctive identity for premium waterway tourism. The greatest value lies not in an upscale dinner or the lights on a yacht deck, but in a carefully crafted emotional journey: the moment visitors step onto the pier, watch the Son Tra Peninsula at sunset, listen to music across the water, see the urban skyline reflected on the bay, and leave with a lasting memory of Da Nang that is difficult to forget.
During a wave-riding voyage around the Son Tra Peninsula aboard the Aphrodite yacht, visitors can fully admire the beauty of Da Nang’s coastal urban landscape
From the night-time economy to cultural experiences
Under the Government’s direction for developing the night-time economy and Da Nang’s tourism development strategy through 2030, the city cannot remain active during the day only to “turn off the lights” after 10 p.m. A modern coastal city needs new consumer spaces that are safe, sophisticated, visually appealing, and capable of encouraging visitors to stay longer.
From that perspective, Son Tra Marina and the Aphrodite yacht are more than simple service projects. They are helping expand the scope of Da Nang’s night-time economy, where the waterfront itself becomes a new consumption space for the coastal city.
An increasingly familiar sight for visitors is an evening on Da Nang Bay, when city lights reflect across the water as guests enjoy cuisine and take in views of Rong (Dragon) Bridge, the Son Tra Peninsula, and the coastal skyline from a yacht. This is no longer merely a “sightseeing cruise” service, but a shift from scenic tourism toward emotionally driven experiences.
At the same time, Viet AnGroup has begun aligning growth with environmental responsibility. The Son Tra Green model, launched in 2025 with a focus on green experiences and more environmentally friendly transportation, reflects growing awareness of the ecological limits of the Son Tra Peninsula, often regarded as the “green lung” of Da Nang.
According to Nguyen Thanh Tam, long-term marine tourism development cannot sacrifice the environment for short-term growth. “The sea, forests, and waterways are the city’s foundational assets. Once those assets are damaged, every competitive advantage declines. Premium tourism development therefore must go hand in hand with ecological preservation and the protection of cultural identity,” he said.
More notably, the company is researching ways to integrate practices associated with the Mother Goddess worship tradition of the Three Realms, particularly the Water Realm branch, into voyages along the Han River and Da Nang’s waterfront spaces. The direction holds considerable potential because while the city already has strong landscapes and infrastructure, it still needs products capable of telling distinctive cultural stories.
If implemented professionally and combined with sound, lighting, performance art, and spiritual elements within the yacht setting, the concept could create a new category of cultural experiences in which visitors not only see Da Nang from the sea, but also gain a deeper understanding of Vietnamese river and maritime culture.
At a deeper level, Viet AnGroup’s development journey reflects a growing trend within Da Nang’s private-sector economy: businesses are not only meeting existing demand, but also helping create entirely new service spaces for the coastal city.
Da Nang does not lack natural beauty. What the city needs are businesses capable of transforming that beauty into products with quality, identity, and long-term competitiveness. At the intersection of yachting, the night-time economy, culture, and ecological responsibility, premium marine voyages are helping shape a new perspective on Da Nang’s coastal tourism: not merely taking visitors out to sea, but bringing them into a journey that allows them to experience the city from the water in a deeper, more distinctive, and more memorable way.
By Long Thanh Tam, Vietnam Business Forum
