It was built during the Vietnam war as Cam Ranh Air Base, operated by the US Air Force. Then it was given over to the Soviet then Russian Air Force on a rent-free lease, eventually becoming an international airport 10 years ago.

This whiz through Vietnam’s modern history before you’ve set foot on Vietnamese soil is followed by a picturesque drive to Nha Trang on good roads that meander along the coastline. Then you start to see the town, and at first my heart sank. The famous curve of the six-kilometre beach is lined with hotels, restaurants and bars, not quite kiss-me-quick territory but it didn’t look far off. The main road is fast and furious, and busy, busy, busy.

Oh dear, I thought as our taxi delivered us to the Novotel. This isn’t my cup of tea at all.

Then two things happened: First, the receptionist at the hotel couldn’t have been a nicer guy and our room was brilliant, with a large balcony looking out to sea and up and down the coast. Second, we went for a walk around the town and the charm of the local people plus the exuberance of its street life worked its magic.

We were in Nha Trang for a week in April and had just about every type of weather thrown at us, even though it was the dry season. It was hot and humid, then so windy I could barely stand, then a huge thunderstorm broke, and it rained and rained until the sun came out again.

So we did a bit of everything, too, from lying on the beach, to walking the back streets soaking up the atmosphere of the place, to light tourism, plus swimming, eating and drinking. If you just feel like doing nothing, the default in Nha Trang is to stare out at sea from the amazing bay, perhaps slightly spoilt by Vinpearl Land theme park recently built on an outlying island and connected to the bay by a cable car.

The night-time view here must have been spectacular before the brightly-lit Ferris wheel, amusement park, and neon name in enormous letters ruined the night sky! However, each to their own.

Colin and I like walking any town’s streets in the evening on holiday to look for somewhere to eat. That didn’t disappoint in Nha Trang, and via the night market we stumbled upon a couple of gems – Louisiane Brewhouse and the Sailing Club, both smart and on the seashore; Ganesh Indian restaurant on the seafront; and Lanterns Vietnamese Restaurant up a flight of stairs at 30A Nguyen Thien Thuat Street

I’m not keen on recommending restaurants, but give Lanterns a try. The food is good, the staff are friendly, and they feed local orphans regularly so your money goes to a good cause.

To walk off all this eating, you can visit the 8th century Po Nagar temple in Kauthara (a taxi ride from the seafront); the Catholic Cathedral of Christ the King (no tourists are allowed in during services); and Long Son Pagoda with its giant white stone Buddha. Strolling from the pagoda down to the seafront is a long-ish but nice way to see the town, too.

I must add, because I’ve mentioned our hotel and some restaurants, that we paid for our holiday and I think we came away feeling we’d had a good break in this beautiful country of Vietnam. I’d go back, which is a pretty good recommendation.

Top tip: Go prepared for lots of weather. If your hotel is on the seafront, you have a death-defying dash across a main road to reach the beach, but you’ll get used to it.