High in the mountains of Da Nang, Vietnam, two colossal hands emerge from the cliffside, gripping a 492-foot shimmering walkway. Unveiled in the summer of 2018 at the Bà Nà Hills resort, the Golden Bridge captivated global audiences.
Looking like a scene pulled from a fantasy movie, it was designed to evoke giant hands pulling a strip of gold out of the earth. The structure quickly became a massive draw for international travelers and earned a spot on TIME magazine’s Top 100 World’s Greatest Places just months after completion.
Connecting the Peaks: The Engineering Reality
The practical purpose of the Golden Bridge, known locally as Cau Vang, was straightforward. It needed to connect a newly upgraded cable car station to the elevated Thien Thai Paradise Garden. Because elevation changes made the journey difficult, architects at TA Landscape Architecture were tasked with solving the topographical challenge.
Instead of a basic walkway, principal designer Vu Viet Anh and his team created a striking visual narrative. While the giant hands appear carved from ancient stone, they are actually constructed using a modern framework of fiberglass and wire mesh.
Designing for Environmental Harmony
When executing the project, the architectural team operated under strict requirements to avoid damaging the cliffside or the surrounding environment.
The designers modified the position of the giant fingers several times to ensure the optimal shape without disturbing the natural landscape. Vu Viet Anh stated his specific goal was to invoke the sensation of walking along a thread stretching through the hands of a god. This visual contrast immediately drew tens of thousands of visitors.
Driving Global Tourism to Da Nang
Following the global pandemic, the bridge played a major role in restoring Vietnam’s tourism sector. During the first six months of 2023, more than 3.5 million people traveled to Da Nang, marking a 116.6 percent increase from the previous year.
Most international tourists arrived from South Korea, Thailand, China, Taiwan, and India. A tourist from Hanoi, Vuong Thuy Linh, reported feeling like she was walking on clouds. Adrian Scholer, an Italian traveler, admitted he initially thought the footage on YouTube was computer-generated before seeing the physical structure.
An Unexpected Worldwide Sensation
Publications like The Guardian, TIME, Insider, and Huff Post rapidly covered the site, dubbing it a new wonder of the modern world. Despite the massive influx of tourists and intense media spotlight, the global reaction was unanticipated by the creators. Vu Viet Anh remarked that he was genuinely surprised by the amount of attention the project received.
While the architectural team immediately began planning their next projects upon the bridge’s completion, the Golden Bridge continues to draw crowds looking to traverse the gold thread.