Duong Long Cham temple

Duong Long Towers (Tháp Dương Long) is a cluster of three Cham temple towers sitting between the hamlets of An Chánh and Vân Tường, also known by several other names over the centuries: Tháp An Chánh, Tháp Bình An, Tháp Vân Tường, and, among French colonial visitors, Tháp Ngà (Ivory Tower). The complex was built under the Champa king Jaya Indravarman, roughly in the late 12th to early 13th century, during the height of the Vijaya period of Cham civilization. It's widely regarded as one of the most beautiful Cham towers in Vietnam, largely for its striking fusion of Khmer and Champa architectural traditions.

Religious Purpose and Deities

The towers were built to honour the Bàlamôn (Brahmanism/Hindu) pantheon, specifically the three supreme deities of Hinduism: the North tower is dedicated to Brahma, the Middle tower to Shiva, and the South tower to Vishnu. Over time, kings who served the country with distinction were also honoured within the complex.

Heritage Recognition

In 1980, the Ministry of Culture and Information recognised Duong Long as a National Architectural and Artistic Relic. In 2015, the Prime Minister upgraded its status further, designating it a Special National Relic.

From central Quy Nhơn, follow National Highway 1A north for about 35km. At the traffic-light intersection in Phù Cát, turn left (onto the road leading toward Phù Cát Airport), then continue on National Highway 19B for about 15km. From there, follow Google Maps or ask locals for the final stretch to the towers.

Cars and motorbikes handle the route without difficulty, though larger buses (29 or 45-seater) can find one short stretch of the approach tricky. The towers sit on a small, easily walkable hill or mound.

The three towers - North, Middle, and South - stand in a straight line along a north-south axis, roughly 18m apart centre to centre, with their main doors all facing east. The overall layout follows classic Champa temple design principles - pilasters, door frames, a clear centripetal composition - but expressed in an unusually distinctive form, with the stacked, right-angled pilasters leading toward the doorway giving the floor plan an almost circular feel.

The Middle Tower

At 38.81m, the Middle Tower is considered the tallest brick tower in Southeast Asia. It has suffered significant damage: the front hall, false doors, and main archway have all collapsed, leaving only a few stone bars on the tower's body and, on the south false door, just the door pillar.

The South Tower

Standing 32.94m tall on a square base, the South Tower is generally considered the best-preserved of the three. Its false-door projection extends 0.76m and measures 14m wide, with the gap to the Middle Tower measuring about 1m between false doors. The walls use a stepped-corner technique projecting toward the doorway, with otherwise plain surfaces. The main door frame, made of sandstone, survives, though the false doors and arches on the west and south faces have collapsed.

The North Tower

The North Tower has suffered the heaviest damage of the three, with deep hollowing to its body that has been reinforced since 1984. It stands 31.76m tall, on a square base similar in size to the South Tower. Its main door has collapsed entirely, leaving only part of the upper archway and a handful of stone bars at the base of the frieze; the south-side false door, made of stone, survives.

Two Auxiliary Structures

West of the three main towers, two smaller brick structures survive. The first is square, measuring 7.88m east-west and 7.52m north-south, with a 3.16m front projection; its main axis runs through the corridor between the Middle and South towers. The second, similarly shaped but larger, measures 11.20m east-west and 9.72m north-south, with a 1.12m front projection, and its main axis faces the passage between the North and Middle towers.

Decorative Art

Thousands of sandstone blocks throughout the site are carved with flowers and foliage, deities in various poses and dance positions, and animals including the divine bird Garuda, elephants, the serpent Naga, monkeys, the lion-elephant Gajasimha, the demon-mask Kala, and the sea monster Makara. This blend of Cham brick-building technique with Khmer stone-carving and assembly is what sets Duong Long apart from most other, purely-brick Cham towers.

Duong Long is noticeably less touristy and crowded than sites like Tháp Bà Ponagar in Nha Trang, and most visitors find it easier to reach than Tháp Bánh Ít, though Tháp Đôi in central Quy Nhơn remains the simplest option if you just want to see a Cham tower without travelling far. The sheer height of the Middle Tower against an open sky, combined with the detailed stone carving at close range, makes this one of the more rewarding Cham sites in the country for architectural photography, especially in the soft early-morning or late-afternoon light.

• Entry costs 15,000 VND per person, cash only - no QR code or bank transfer accepted
• There's often no staffed ticket booth. If no one is around, some visitors have been let in informally by a local driver or found the gate simply unlocked - if this happens, the honest approach is to leave your ticket money on the stone table near the entrance before you leave
• A public toilet is available, but there's little else nearby besides a few local houses and small stalls - one coffee shop sits directly across the road, useful if you arrive early and need to wait
• There's no formal parking area, so it's worth visiting with at least one other person so someone can keep an eye on your vehicle
• Allow 35-90 minutes to see the full complex
• Wear low, flat shoes suited to walking on bare ground, and bring water
• A QR code is available on-site for visitors who want to scan for more background information