📍Mercure Danang French Village Bana Hills: An Honest Review. (2024.)

Hotel de Paris. – French Village.

The building our room was in was the Hotel de Paris, which is right next to the Sunworld Globe and the church.

✔️ Pros.

• The entire building continued the 19th-century French gothic theming and was adorned with photographs and news articles clippings about various influential French people and their prolific influences over French culture.
• Superb location, close to the heart of the action.
• The condition of the hotel was immaculate.
• Restaurant and reception on the first floor.
• On an upper floor, there was a photographic history of the French Village and how it evolved from a home away from home for the French during the French occupation to the world-class amusement park it is today.

❌ Cons.

• Soundproofing – See More Below.

Our Room. – Deluxe King.

✔️ Pros.

• I loved the moody and atmospheric old-fashioned French romanticism feel the room gave off with its purple colour scheme, dark furniture with elegant details and velvety textures.
• It wasn’t a conventionally rectangular dwelling, which I always enjoy, particularly when the decor suits the space as flawlessly as it did with this one.
• The room was generously spacious and the large combined wardrobe and storage wall unit provided adequate space for our belongings.
• I loved that the bathroom was more of an extension of the bedroom, rather than an entirely separated area, providing seamless and sophisticated flow between the two spaces.
• The bathtub was divine and had dual-function taps while the shower could be used three ways: as a rain shower, handheld shower and a tap.
• I liked the artwork. It’s a running joke that I’m not often a fan of the wall art, but the black and white photograph of Gustav Eiffel complimented the room and the French theme so nicely, adding even more charm to an already exquisite space.
• Everything was spotless.
• It had a full-length mirror that was in a good place near the door, perfect for checking yourself just before leaving.
• The location of our room was excellent. We were right next to the Sunworld Globe and had amazing views of it and the exquisite church that was behind it. We were also able to see a street performance and the distant light show from our room.
• Hotel de Paris also had a restaurant, cafe and bar.

❌ Cons.

• With much of the furniture next to the window, it was slightly annoying getting to the window to enjoy the view.
• I loved the bath and its location within the room, but I didn’t like that you couldn’t capitalise on the view while bathing even though it was right next to the window. I guess they don’t want anyone accidentally flashing the folks walking around outside!
• No soundproofing!

It REALLY needed soundproofing. This was by far the worst thing about staying here. Sunworld Ba Na Hills is such a beautiful place to explore with unforgettable experiences and the Mercure French Village is an incredible accompaniment to that but we could hear everything outside!

It was especially bad because we were right next to the main thoroughfare, so even though the park had closed to day visitors, there were still many overnight guests roaming around the Sunworld globe and the noise from them was permeating through walls and closed windows like there weren’t any.

You could also hear people strolling down the hallway, but the most obnoxious was that very early in the morning, hotel workers outside were walking past with empty luggage carts… on cobblestone pathways, and we could hear every single rattle! So while I absolutely loved Sunworld and just about everything else from our stay at the hotel was world-class and can’t recommend everyone come and visit enough because we loved this place so much, I also strongly advise bringing earplugs and maybe even some earmuffs to put over your earplugged ears because the sound coming into the room while we were trying to enjoy some downtime and sleep was very unpleasant.

However, with that said, I would imagine that the rooms in the other buildings wouldn’t be as noisy because they are further away from the main area compared to where we were and very quiet at night, so that might be something to consider requesting when booking, but who knows when and where the workers will be walking by with carts, so earplugs, folks. Don’t forget them.

Indoor Swimming Facility.

• Heated pool.
• Hot tub.
• Cinema.
• Wading pool.
• Kids water slide.
• Water polo net.
• Basketball hoop.
• Shop.

✔️ Pros.

• Uniquely a fully indoor pool. It was the only one like this out of the many hotels we stayed at in Vietnam. That was good because Sunworld is up in the mountains where it’s cooler. We even had to wear jackets roaming around the amusement park at times, the only time we ever needed to while travelling throughout the country.
• The French theming also continued inside.
• The pool temperature was pleasant, and we stayed in for a long time without feeling cold.
• We loved that there were more options for things to do than just swimming in the pool and thoroughly enjoying throwing the ball over the net and into the hoop.
• The hot tub was excellent. Hot and bubbly.
• The wading pool and cinema were in a different section around the back, so each section felt more private and less busy if there were many people.
• It’s only available to accommodation guests only and not all visitors to Sunworld.
• There is conveniently a shop within the facility, so if you forget something, like swimmers, goggles or something like that, you don’t have to go back to your room to retrieve it.

❌ Cons.

• The pool is not connected to any of the accommodation dwellings.
• We wanted to use the slide, but it was for kids only. 🙁
• It’s a bit dark. Not overwhelming so, but that could have been because it was an overcast day when we went and was not letting much ambient light in. Still, the indoor lights weren’t providing as much illumination as I felt there should be, especially for the kids’ wading area around the back.

Restaurants.

• A prolific number of restaurants and bars.
  • La Crique – Worldwide Cuisine – Buffet Within Hotel de Paris. –
  • Cafe Postal – Cafe/Car & a la carte breakfast – Within Hotel de Paris.
  • La Taverne Bar – European Pub/Karaoke – Hotel de Paris.
  • La Cote d’Azur – Asian Cuisine – Buffet – Next to Hotel de Nice.
  • L’Etable – French & Vietnamese Cuisine – Within Hotel de Marseille.
  • Le Grenier Lounge – Gaming/ Reading Bar – Above L’Etable Restaurant, Hotel de Marseille.
  • Le Troquet Du Coin – Cafe.
  • Maison Du Roi – Western and Asian Cuisine.
  • Cafe La Terrasse – Cafe.

La Crique Restaurant. – Hotel de Paris.

✔️ Pros.

• The buffet breakfast was included.
• There was a decent selection of food for the buffet breakfasts, lunches and dinner from cuisines around the world.
• Offers plenty of seating, which were reasonably spaced apart.
• It was within our accommodation building, so it was very easy for us to get to.
• There were some dietary symbols to differentiate what dishes contained what allergens.

❌ Cons.

• It showed whether food was vegetarian, but didn’t show whether it was vegan.
• Sometimes the “hot” dishes weren’t very hot.
• The food was okay.

Other Sunworld and Hotel Pros & Cons.

✔️ Pros.

• Absolutely magical grounds. Sunworld Ba Na Hills is magnificent, especially the French Village section where the hotel is. Staying here also includes admission to the theme park. (not including cable car cost.)
• It is expansive and there is no shortage of phenomenal things to do and see, such as:
  • The spectacular Golden Bridge, one of the planet’s newest architectural marvels and a must-see for anyone visiting Da Nang. Guests staying at the hotel are granted early access to it before the day visitors can see it!
  • Enjoy a scenic ride to the top on the world’s longest single-line cable car. (extra cost but discounted for hotel guests.)
  • We loved riding the alpine coasters and other amusement rides.
  • There are tonnes of games in the Fantasy Park arcade, which are all also included.
  • It also has a few other exhibits, such as the Wax Museum (extra cost) and dinosaur animatronics.
  • The gardens at Le Jardin D’Amour are exquisite.
  • You can have tea at the Ling Chua Ling Tu Temple.
  • The views from the observation tower nearby overlook the French Village and are magnificent.
  • Magnificent views literally everywhere. Seriously, this place is a postcard every which way. I’ve never taken so many photos of one place in my life, and that’s truly saying something.
• The temperature is much more pleasant up here, offering a fantastic break away from Vietnam’s infamous heat and humidity. There were times we even had to wear jackets because it was a little on the chilly side!
• There is also a guests-only games room, offering ping pong, a foosball table and darts.
• We happened to be there while there was a festival going on and got to enjoy some street performances. One of them was right outside our room!
• As guests, we could enjoy seeing the spectacular French Village at night.
• They also have night shows.

❌ Cons.

• While staying at the hotel includes entry to Sunworld for all the days you’re staying there, it doesn’t include the cable car journey to get there.
• The cable cars restrict when you can leave and arrive.
• Golden Bridge is only open during daylight hours. Even though they offer hotel guests the opportunity to see it before day visitors, it would be nice if they had the option of seeing it right as the sun is rising, which is the most beautiful time of the day and at night, offering a range of experiences.
• It’s also crazy busy, even when it’s only open for hotel guests, so the earlier the better.
• Oddly, one of the alpine coasters is an extra cost, while the others are included in the entry…
• While most of the things to do in Fantasy Park are free, some aren’t such as the Wax Museum.
• Many of the tea options at the Ling Chua Ling Tu Temple weren’t available.
• The games room is detached from the accommodation dwellings and feels old, out of date, and out of place compared to everything else. It needs some love to revive the look and feel of it.
• The spa was closed during the COVID-19 pandemic but never reopened (We visited in August 2023.).