Po Nagar Cham Towers

Po Nagar Cham Towers is a well-preserved Cham temple complex on a hill overlooking the Cai River in Vinh Phuoc Ward, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa Province. Built between the 7th and 12th centuries by the Champa Kingdom, it honors the goddess Yan Po Nagar. The site features four remaining brick towers with intricate carvings, mandapa and inscriptions, representing classic Cham architecture and Hindu heritage, and remains an active place of worship and major cultural attraction.

Visitors can expect a hilltop complex of four red-brick Cham towers overlooking the Cai River and Nha Trang city. The site includes a lower mandapa (pillared meditation hall) and steep stone steps leading to the upper temple terraces. Inside the main North Tower is a stone statue of the goddess Yan Po Nagar. Visitors can explore carved exteriors, inscriptions, small shrines, courtyard areas, and occasional traditional Cham dance and music performances.

Built by the Champa Kingdom between the 7th and 12th centuries, with major construction in the 8th-10th centuries. The complex was dedicated to Yan Po Nagar, the mother goddess of the Cham people. Originally comprising multiple towers, only four remain today. Inscriptions in Sanskrit and old Cham record royal patronage, renovations by Cham kings, and its role as a major religious center of the ancient Champa civilization.

The towers are dedicated to Yan Po Nagar, identified with the Hindu goddess Bhagavati and revered as the creator of the earth and protector of the Cham people. The site remains an active place of worship for both Cham Hindus and Vietnamese Buddhists. The annual Thap Ba Festival (held in the 3rd lunar month, March-April) draws thousands of pilgrims for offerings, processions and traditional Cham rituals, reflecting the fusion of Cham and Vietnamese cultural traditions.