Hotel Intercontinental Danang - Natural bliss and sophisticated chic

Luxury resort in the middle of nature

At Pointus, we’re not necessarily luxury-goers in the classic meaning of it, but we do appreciate sophistication, elegancy and excellence… and we do like our pleasures well crafted !
So when the time comes to pick our next holiday destination, we run our Google friend thousand times over to find the hidden treasures that we believe will match our expectations.
Now with some outstanding hotel destinations covered in Java, Bali, Singapore, Shanghai and other places, featuring delicious food, paradise-inspired atmospheres and infinite pools, we were barely expecting to top our list in Vietnam.

That was until we found out about the Intercontinental Sun Tra Peninsula in Center Vietnam. The « hotel », which opened in 2012, makes the best of its isolated location 20 minutes away from Da Nang, Vietnam’s 4th largest city and a rising economic center. Da Nang itself is right in between 2 unavoidable tourism spots in Vietnam: Hue and Hoi An.

The InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort (a rather long name – for the sake of a shoter article, let us call it IC Danang) is nestled in a 100% preserved natural reserve called Son Tra, which reminded us very much of the landscapes we came across in Taiwan: lush forests cascading down stiff mountainsides all the way down to rocky and at times sandy beachsides. Pretty much extremely gorgeous. From what we could see, IC Danang was the only hotel constructed on this island, which makes it a very exclusive spot right there in the middle of mother nature.
As soon as you arrive, you call feel perfection awaits you. The mysterious and class atmosphere is well felt at reception, which overlooks majesticly the bay in which only the IC Danang resides.

Luxury room suites and amenities

The rooms are articulated in a number of houses, bringing a modern twist to traditional vietnamese architecture. All rooms are overlooking the sea, and start at no less than 70 m2, with an imposing private terasse. The hightlight of the rooms may well have been the bathroom, which stands out by its beautifully designed decor, and its « open shower » area neighborhing a hard-stone oval bathtub. The room is smartly equiped with all possible amenities, including a Bose soundsystem which allows you to play your own music, while the infinite, cosi bed will make getting up a daily challenge…

As the property is spread on 4 floors (beach, earth, sky, heaven) over a very wide land, there are 3 transportation possibilities: walking (good if in no hurry), electric buggies, and a funicular lift to bring you up and down to the main places. Now beach is probably where you’ll want to be heading the most, comprising:

• The exquisite Long Pool and its poolside bed
• The marvelous Long Bar, a perfect loungy space for evening cocktails
• The Gym
• The Beach, with its numerous activities (badminton, beach volley, kayaking, …).

Wide range of food choices

The IC Danang comprises 4 distinct options :

• Citron: a traditional-vietnamese, well decorated restaurant with rather soft prices. Strongly recommend the vegetarian pho that we ordered !
• Barefoot: a seafood and meat bbq restaurant, set by the beach in a very modern setting
• Long Bar: loungy bar where you can also enjoy some typical bar snacks
• Maison 1888: an upscale, french cuisine restaurant under 3 michelin star chef Pierre Gagnaire. Unfortunately we did not get to try it, but the prices suggest good value (around 100e for a full course menu)

These food options are qualitative and diverse, but we would have liked to have some other options outside the premises, which was not made easy by the remote location from the city.
To keep you busy if you ever get tired of just enjoying yourselves around the pools, IC Danang proposes a wide range of daily activities, ranging from yoga and trekking to oil mixology sessions.
Last but not least, chances are you’ll be leaving Danang by plane towards the North or the South… Well ladies and gentlemen, IC Danang has its own lounge at the airport, where you’ll be able to seat, sip and relax while waiting for your plane

Overall

We were very impressed with the IC Danang, but more importantly, we felt like we could have stayed there for an extra week at least, enjoying nature and the various pleasures of life. The atmosphere, the outstanding surroundings, the efficient and attentive staff as well as the delicious food make for a perfect stay for those looking to indulge in Vietnamese-infused luxury !