Am Phu (Hell) Cave at the Marble Mountains in Da Nang: Ticket Prices, Opening Hours and a Complete Visiting Route

What Am Phu Cave Is and Where It Is

Am Phu Cave is a limestone cave at the foot of Thuy Son, the largest of the five peaks of the Marble Mountains scenic area in Da Nang. The main entrance to the scenic area is at 81 Huyen Tran Cong Chua Street. According to press reports, it is the largest and most complex cave among those here, with a vault up to about 45 to 50 m high in places and an interior cooler than outside, at around 18 to 20 degrees C.

The cave combines natural terrain with the work of stonemasons from the Non Nuoc village, who placed bridges, carved statues and built scenes to retell the Buddhist idea of cause and effect, good and evil. That makes Am Phu a more visual destination than a pure stalactite cave, and a good fit for anyone who wants to understand more of central Vietnam’s folk beliefs.

The Marble Mountains were ranked a Special National Monument in 2018, and the scenic area’s cliff inscriptions (ma nhai) were added to UNESCO’s Memory of the World Asia-Pacific Regional Register in 2022. Because it is a monument of special value, please treat it with care: no carving or drawing on the rock, no breaking off formations and no climbing outside the paths.

Inside the Cave: What You Will See

At the cave mouth stands the Am Duong (Yin-Yang) Bridge, which in the story crosses the Nai Ha River and splits the water into two parts, the side of life and the side of death. Two statues, Mr Thien (Good) and Mr Ac (Evil), guard the entrance. Deeper in are the Giai Oan stream, where walking through symbolises washing away grievances, and the scales of justice placed before the altar to weigh merit and sin.

The two paths inside the cave

• The path down to the underworld: turn right and pass through narrow rock gaps to the bottom of the cave, where the gates of hell and stone-statue scenes of punishment are set out, such as boiling in oil, sitting on a bed of spikes and being tied to a bronze pillar. The sources give different numbers of levels and gates (VOV mentions 12 hell gates), so you do not need to count them.
• The Path to Heaven: turn left and follow a precarious corridor along the cliff; at the end an opening looks out over Tam Thai and Linh Ung pagodas and the whole Marble Mountains. This stretch is worth doing if you are used to climbing stone steps.

The cave also holds shrines such as Phan Quan Dien and Minh Vuong Dien and many marble figures fitted into the natural shape of the rock wall. Go slowly and read the explanation boards on the spot, because the scenes follow an order from the gate of the underworld to the realm of heaven rather than being arranged at random.

The name Am Phu is tied to an anecdote: King Minh Mang sent soldiers into the cave with torches but the torches kept going out, so he gave it this name. The articles all describe this as a legend that has not been verified, so treat it as a story that adds to the visit rather than as historical record. What is more certain is that the bridge and many of the figures in the cave were made by artisans of the Non Nuoc stone village; the articles do not state when each feature was built.

Am Phu Cave and Thuy Son Ticket Prices

Visiting fees are set by Resolution 24/2016/NQ-HDND of the Da Nang People’s Council. Resolution 85/2022/NQ-HDND (issued 15 December 2022, effective from 1 January 2023) only adjusted how the revenue is allocated, so the rates below are still the ones applied under the documents. The elevator fee is not part of that resolution; the figure of about 15,000 VND (~$0.6 USD) per trip comes from current tourism information, so confirm it at the counter.

Example budget: two adults and two students entering both Am Phu and Thuy Son without the elevator pay 54,000 VND ($2.2 USD) for Am Phu plus 100,000 VND ($4 USD) for Thuy Son, a total of 154,000 VND (~$6.2 USD). Bring small notes and a student card if you want the reduced rate, and check the price board at the counter again because fees can be adjusted by a new document.

Opening Hours and the Best Time to Go

The scenic area is open from 7:00 AM to 5:30 PM daily, and the ticket counter closes about half an hour earlier. To see both Am Phu and the caves on the mountain without feeling rushed, enter between 7:00 and 8:30 AM or before 3:00 PM; if you arrive after 4:30 PM you may only have time for one site.

• Early morning: cooler, fewer people and dry steps if it did not rain the night before. This is the best choice if you are travelling with older relatives.
• Late morning (about 10:30 AM to 1:00 PM): usually the window when sunlight falls straight into Huyen Khong Cave most beautifully, but it shifts with the season and without sun there is no beam. If photos matter, put Huyen Khong in this window and see Am Phu before or after.
• Rainy days: the steps and cave floor are slippery and there are no sunbeams; wear shoes with good grip or reschedule if heavy rain continues.

Suggested 2 to 3 Hour Route

1. Step 1: Buy tickets at the main counter. Buy the Thuy Son and elevator tickets there too, rather than waiting until you reach the elevator station, because if you are short of a ticket you have to walk back down.
2. Step 2: Am Phu first (20 to 30 minutes). The cave is at the foot of the mountain, so do it while you are fresh; walk both paths, the way down first and then the Path to Heaven.
3. Step 3: Elevator to the middle level. From there climb the stone steps to Huyen Khong Cave, with its skylight in the cave ceiling, and then on to Tam Thai Pagoda on the mountainside.
4. Step 4: Viewpoints and the way down. Stop at the points that look towards the sea and the river, then descend by the steps or go back to the elevator.
5. Step 5: Call at the Non Nuoc stone village (about 30 minutes). The road at the foot of the mountain is where the stone-carving workshops are concentrated; see our guide to the Non Nuoc marble carving village if you want to learn about the craft and how to shop for stone goods.

Tips for Different Visitors

Families with small children

Children under 6 enter free, but the stone-statue punishment scenes are quite vivid and the cave is fairly dark, so consider walking the entrance hall and then leaving if a child gets frightened. Some steps are worn smooth, so hold a child’s hand going up and down.

Older visitors and anyone with weak legs

Go in the morning, use the elevator both up and down, and skip the Path to Heaven along the cliff. Remember that the elevator only reaches the middle level, so stone steps remain up to Huyen Khong and Tam Thai.

Entering the pagoda areas

Dress modestly, take off hats and keep quiet. Do not photograph altars head-on or statues where people are making offerings, and do not carve or draw on the rock walls; this area is a Special National Monument with many old cliff inscriptions that must be left as they are.

If you plan to come during a major festival of the scenic area, read our guide to the Quan The Am festival at the Marble Mountains, because visitor numbers and timings on those days differ from a normal day.

Getting There from Da Nang and Hoi An

The Marble Mountains sit on the coastal road linking Da Nang and Hoi An. From central Da Nang it is about 9 km, 20 to 30 minutes when traffic flows, and from Hoi An about 20 km, around 30 minutes. That means you can stop at Am Phu on the way out or back without reshaping your whole itinerary.

For guests in Hoi An who only want the Marble Mountains, the Hoi An to Marble Mountains private car costs 280,000 VND ($11 USD) one way for a 4-seat car, 330,000 VND ($13 USD) for a 7-seat car and 500,000 VND ($20 USD) for a 16-seat van. For guests who want to combine three stops in half a day, the Da Nang to Marble Mountains and on to Hoi An package (about 4 hours) costs 780,000 VND ($31 USD), 890,000 VND ($36 USD) and 1,380,000 VND ($55 USD) for 4, 7 and 16 seats.

The listed fare covers fuel, road tolls and parking; if there is an exception, we state it before you confirm the trip. Admission tickets are not included in the car fare, and you buy them yourself at the counter. See the Da Nang and Hoi An car price list to compare other routes.