Nha Trang pronunciation (help·info) is a coastal city and capital of Khánh Hòa province, on the South Central Coast of Vietnam. It is well known for its pristine beaches and excellent scuba diving and is fast becoming a popular destination for international tourists, attracting large numbers of backpackers as well as more affluent travelers on the Southeast Asia circuit. It is already very popular with Vietnamese tourists. Nha Trang Bay is amongst the world's most beautiful bays. Tourists can participate in Sea Festival and August- Nha Trang Rendezvous Festival every 2 years. Nha Trang is the site of the Miss Universe 2008 Pageant to be held on July 14, 2008. It will be broadcast live on NBC Television on that date (which will be on the evening of July 13 back in the US.)


The city has about 300,000 inhabitants and is projected to increase to 500,000 to 600,000 inhabitants in the year 2020[citation needed] according to estimation of Nha Trang Administrative Board Statistics.

Historically, the city was known as Kauthara under the Champa. There's still Po Nagar Tower of Champa in Nha Trang now.

As a coastal city, Nha Trang's developed in marine science with Nha Trang Oceanography Institution. There's also Hon Mun marine protected area - one of four first marine protected area in the world admitted by IUCN. The famous French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Émile John Yersin (who discovered the Yersinia pestis bacterium) identified himself with Nha Trang's life for 50 years (people called him Ông Năm- Mr Fifth in familiar way), established the Indochina Pasteur Institution (Nha Trang Pasteur Institution now) to research bubonic plague and then died on March 1, 1943 in Nha Trang. A street in the city is named after him, there is a shrine located next to his tomb, and his house has been converted into the Yersin Museum.


Lying off Nha Trang is Bamboo Island, operated by the Sofitel Vinpearl Group. There is now a motorized chair lift system, reportedly the longest in the world, linking the mainland to the five-star resort and theme park on Bamboo Island.

Commercial flights to Nha Trang no longer use the city's municipal airport, but fly into the larger Cam Ranh airport, a former U.S. Air Force Base (built during the Vietnam War) located about 35 kilometers or 22 miles south of Nha Trang (see the Transport section below for additional details.)








in 2008, Nha Trang is in the international spotlight as host of this year’s Miss Universe competition but the local tourism industry is still able to welcome tourists of all descriptions.



More at ....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nha_Trang