The largest fishing center in the Central region
In the mornings at Tho Quang fishing port and harbor (Son Tra ward, Da Nang), the atmosphere is always bustling. Hundreds of fishing boats from central provinces such as Quang Tri, Quang Ngai, Gia Lai, Dak Lak... connect to dock.
After being invested in upgrading and expansion, this place has become one of the modern fishing centers of the country. The project to upgrade and expand Tho Quang fishing port phase 2 was inaugurated at the end of 2025 with a total investment of about 250 billion VND, meeting the standards of a type I fishing port, capable of receiving hundreds of large-capacity fishing vessels per day and serving more than 100,000 tons of seafood per year.
Infrastructure is invested synchronously including wharves, seafood trading areas, wastewater treatment systems, internal roads and auxiliary works. The fishing port is also equipped with a system for managing and monitoring fishing vessels, tracing the origin of seafood, contributing to controlling IUU fishing.
According to Deputy Director of the Department of Fisheries - Fisheries Resources Surveillance (Ministry of Agriculture and Environment) Nguyen Quang Toan, Tho Quang fishing port is not only a place for seafood trade but also a storm shelter for tens of thousands of boats every rainy and storm season.
However, the port is located close to residential areas and coastal tourist areas - an area considered the "core of development" of Da Nang. Before being renovated, this place was once an environmental pollution hotspot; in the period 2020-2025, it collected waste from more than 18,000 ships and boats and treated more than 33 tons of domestic waste.
New planning and development opportunities
At the Da Nang City People's Council meeting at the end of February, Da Nang City leaders said that they had oriented the renovation of Tho Quang area to transform it into a tourist port, in line with the strategy of developing a high-class service - tourism urban area.
Accordingly, the function of fishing port and boat harbor will be studied for relocation to the south of the city. Two locations being considered are Hong Trieu area (Duy Xuyen commune) or Tam Quang (Nui Thanh commune), where there is a large land fund and favorable natural conditions for developing a new fisheries logistics center.
If this plan becomes a reality, Tho Quang area may be planned into a marina, urban area and coastal tourism service, similar to the model of modern tourist ports in the world. From a planning perspective, expert Le Hong Son - Vietnam Association of Architects believes that relocating fishing ports from the urban core is a common trend in many coastal cities.
If invested methodically, the yacht port in Man Quang Bay can become a new highlight, suitable for the direction of building Da Nang into an international financial - service - tourism center.
Concerns about livelihood
Behind the planning story are many difficult problems, first of all the seafood supply for the Da Nang market. Currently, most of the seafood serving tourism and consumption in the city is brought in from Tho Quang fishing port.
If the port is relocated dozens or hundreds of kilometers away from the center, the supply chain may be affected: Transportation costs increase, the time to bring seafood into the city is prolonged, while the "fresh" factor is an advantage of Da Nang's seafood.
Fisherman Tran Hung Buu (Son Tra) worried: "The ship returning to Tho Quang can be sold immediately. If the port is moved far away, fuel costs, time and even trading and fishery logistics activities will be disrupted.
Tho Quang Seafood Service Industrial Park, over 50ha wide, currently concentrates many processing plants, cold storages and export enterprises, creating jobs for thousands of workers.
Therefore, planning needs to be accompanied by harmonious livelihood solutions for people.
