Getting Around Nha Trang: Walking, Ride-Hailing, Taxis and Buses

By late afternoon, the brick sidewalk under the palms on Tran Phu fills with people out for a walk. Across the median, motorbikes stream north toward the Tran Phu Bridge and the odd cyclo creeps along the curb. Most of your trips around town will start or end on this road.

Where to, and how #

Our suggestion: stay within walking distance of the Tran Phu beachfront and only book rides for trips out of that area. For a short solo trip, an app-booked motorbike can be convenient; wear a properly fastened helmet. With three or four people, small children, wet swimsuits after the beach or heavy rain, take a car.

For full days out to Doc Let (Dốc Lết), Ba Ho (Ba Hồ) or Yang Bay, hire a car and driver at an agreed price. From Cam Ranh Airport, bus 16-2 runs about every 45 minutes, alongside bus 18 and taxis.

Photo: Leonid

Walking: Tran Phu and the streets behind it #

Around April 2 Square, Tran Phu has a wide seaside promenade with benches and shade. It is at its most pleasant early in the morning and after 4 pm. Turn inland onto Hung Vuong, Biet Thu or Nguyen Thi Minh Khai and you are among the restaurants, massage shops and tour desks.

Photo: ntt (P4ntt)

Use pedestrian crossings, follow any signals and wait until it is safe to cross. Once crossing, keep a steady course rather than changing direction suddenly; do not assume riders will steer around you. Cross in two stages only where there is a pedestrian refuge, and hold children by the hand the whole way.

Ride-hailing: Grab, Green SM and Be #

Yes, Nha Trang has Grab, with GrabBike and four- and seven-seat GrabCar. Green SM, called Xanh SM until April 2026, runs electric VinFast bikes and cars, and its cyan cars also stop when flagged down. Be lists Nha Trang among the places it offers beBike, beCar and beTaxi.

All three show the price before you book. The table lists Grab and Green SM's published base fares for Khanh Hoa (Khánh Hòa) province in October 2026, before promotions; both raise prices with demand, so expect more at busy times and in the rain.

Before booking, drag the pickup pin to your hotel entrance or a corner where a car can stop, and compare the fare for the same trip in both apps. When the ride arrives, check the plate number and driver's name against the app.

Setting up the apps: phone number and payment

Install Grab and Green SM before you leave home and check that the verification code reaches your current number. If you need a Vietnamese number for verification texts and driver calls, choose a SIM or eSIM plan that includes a local number, SMS and calls; a data-only plan will not provide those. Search by hotel or place name and pick the right result on the map rather than typing an address.

Grab lets you link an international credit or debit card and pay in the app. Green SM accepts cash, card payments on the in-car terminal and cards linked in the app, but we have not found a clear statement that cards issued abroad work in its app, so carry some cash as a backup, including small notes, and watch the VND20,000 and VND500,000 notes, which newcomers often mix up.

Showing the driver where you are going

Vietnamese addresses run house number, street, then ward (phường), for example 86A Trần Phú. Keep your hotel's name and address in Vietnamese, with the accents, as a note or screenshot, and ask reception to write it out if you are unsure; drivers read the accented version far more easily. For beaches and piers without a street number, show a screenshot of the map pin.

Three short phrases cover most trips with a street taxi or a cyclo: "Cho tôi đến [address]" (take me to...), "Bật đồng hồ giúp tôi" (please turn on the meter) and "Dừng ở đây" (stop here).

Metered taxis: hailing one or calling the company #

Besides Green SM, Nha Trang has traditional taxi companies such as Mai Linh and several local firms. Under Decree 158/2024, a metered taxi must use a meter that has been inspected and sealed, mounted where passengers can see it, with a device that prints a receipt. Fixed fares are allowed, but they must follow the price list posted in the car or in the company's app.

Once you get in, check that the meter is running. If the driver offers a flat price, compare it with the app fare for the same trip before agreeing. Skip cars without a company logo or meter that tout for passengers at piers, outside attractions or by the bars late at night. Keep the receipt and note the plate; if you are overcharged, call the provincial tourist support line on 0947 528 000, or +84 947 528 000 from a foreign number.

Buses: the seafront electric routes and the sightseeing bus #

Two VinBus electric routes run along Tran Phu to Vinpearl. Route 23 starts at the Ana Marina in the north and follows Pham Van Dong (Phạm Văn Đồng) past the Hon Chong area before joining Tran Phu. Route 16-2 comes in from the airport via Nguyen Duc Canh (Nguyễn Đức Cảnh) and Hoang Dieu (Hoàng Diệu) to Tran Phu. If you stay on the seafront, either is a cheap way to the cable car station.

VinBus's summer 2026 service notice lists route 23 at VND15,000 per trip, and guests using Vinpearl, VinWonders or Vinpearl Harbour services ride both routes free there and back. Since September 1, 2026, route 23 has run about every 40 minutes. From October 20, 2026, the VinBus app stops working in Nha Trang; routes, stops and live bus positions move to the VinBus section of the Green SM app.

Photo: Ilya Plekhanov

Other city bus routes cross the center too, but route numbers and fares differ from one website to the next; ask your hotel for the nearest route and read the map at the stop.

The open-top sightseeing bus

Nha Trang Bus City Tour runs single-deck open-top buses past the Oceanographic Institute, Tran Phu, Hon Chong, Po Nagar, Long Son Pagoda (Chùa Long Sơn) and the Stone Church (Nhà thờ Núi). A single loop on the day route (8:30 am - 4:45 pm) costs VND100,000; a four-hour hop-on hop-off ticket is VND150,000 and a 24-hour ticket VND250,000. The evening Fun Night Bus costs VND150,000, leaves at 7:30 pm and 8:45 pm from 86A Tran Phu and includes beer and soft drinks (October 2026 prices).

It suits a first-day overview of the city or a trip with grandparents; for Po Nagar and straight back, an app ride is simpler. Check the operator's service notices before heading to a stop. A double-decker open-top route along Tran Phu and Pham Van Dong was only approved in principle in May 2026; as of October 17, 2026, we have seen no launch announcement.

Late nights and rainy days #

From 10 pm to 5:59 am, GrabCar adds VND10,000 per trip, and Green SM Bike adds VND10,000 from 10:01 pm. Late at night around the backpacker streets, a car booked in an app is a safer choice than a motorbike taxi hailed on the street, especially after a few drinks; if you have been drinking, do not ride a motorbike yourself. Paying cash, hand over one note at a time and count your change, one of the habits for a late ride back.

In heavy rain, take a car: on a motorbike you get soaked and the road is hard to see. App fares can rise when everyone books at once, so order a little earlier than you need to leave.

Cyclos, electric carts and riding yourself #

A cyclo (xích lô) is better for a slow loop along the seafront than for getting anywhere. Choose a pedal cyclo rather than one fitted with a homemade electric motor, and agree on the fare, route and duration before boarding. Turn down offers to stop at a restaurant or shop on the way.

Electric tourist carts were ordered to stop operating on Nha Trang's streets from February 15, 2025. Decree 241/2026 now lets provinces decide where such carts may run, so their current routes and operating status need confirmation under the new rules; as of October 17, 2026, we had not seen a route announcement from Khanh Hoa.

Riding a motorbike yourself needs a license that is valid in Vietnam; which licenses qualify decides whether renting makes sense for you.

Getting around Nha Trang: FAQ #