Located in the South of Viet Nam, 125 km away from Ho Chi Minh, Vung Tau is now considered the most popular destination for weekends from Ho Chi Minh. Vung Tau lies on a peninsula separated from the mainland by a gulf river called Co May river.
It is a common saying that Vung Tau is naturally endowed of beautiful beaches, mountains around the city and cool climate throughout the year. Tourists cannot miss the extremely beautiful shore, the old famous light house, the statue of Jesus Christ with outstretched arms, and unending of delicious food,…
It’s very easy and convenient to travel to Vung Tau from Ho Chi Minh. There are 2 easy and affordable ways to get to Vung Tau; by bus or hydrofoil, both of them are fast and safe. But taking hydrofoil is the best way to see the commercial maritime areas as the boat runs through the Sai Gon river towards the sea.
Vung Tau has very extensive beaches. Tourists often swim in Back Beach ( Bai Sau )and enjoy sight seeing in Front Beach ( Bai Truoc ). Moreover, the backpacker tourists nowadays recommend to visit Pineapple Beach ( Bai Dua )or Mulberry Beach ( Bai Dau) , Nghinh Phong Beach, …. Pineapple Beach is not large, enough for 20-30 people, with cool space and shady row of trees. On the other hand, there are plenty of hotels and villas atop the hill with sensible rental fees.
Vung Tau is not a particularly large city, but a completely beautiful and charming one. The countryside road along the coast will lead you too these famous sightseeing places such as: statue of Jesus Christ, Villa Blanche, Cloud lake, beautiful pagodas, …
On top of Tao Phung mountain, the enormous 28m figure of Jesus gazing across the East Sea with outstretched arms is located at the southern end of Small mountain. The two shoulders of the figure are balconies offering a splendid view of the surrounding landscape. It’s considered 1 of the largest sculptures in the world. It is definitely to put on your “to do” list.
You also should not miss the old lighthouse – 1 of the most famous lighthouses in Viet Nam. Along the mountain slope, the nearest we get to the top, the more natural landscape we can see. As well as the statue of Jesus Christ, it is a place in which we can contemplate all the panorama of Vung Tau city. It would be better to you visit the lighthouse in the evening, as a sparkled seacoast would appear in front of your eyes.
For these history lovers, the Villa Blanche is a good place to visit. Built by the French, the Villa Blanche is located on the slope of Big Mountain, along Tran Phu Street, at 50m above sea level. From its balcony there is a panoramic view of Front Beach and opposite the Villa at the foot of that mountain is Hai Nguu island with a stone rock shaped like a water buffalo wallowing in water. Next to Hai Nguu at the seaside was the helicopter yard. Today Villa Blanche exhibits hundreds of antiques collected from Cau Island-Con Dao and the cultural destination attracts hundreds of tourists every day.
Vung Tau is also famous for unique, attractive and interesting food. The city is quite small and easy to get around, so you can easily buy cheap and fresh seafood such as squid, crab, oyster, blood cockrel and so on.
Its location makes Vung Tau a nearby paradise for Saigonners. However, for well-travelled foreigners, expect a bit less. The beach is not all too attractive with litter lining the coast, and most of the sandy eastern beach has signage about dangerous swimming. However, with the advantage of proximity, as the travelers rush up to the coast to Mui Ne or Nha Trang. And the city policy, new administration, politics centers to Ba Ria, in order to further the development of tourist, we could expect more foreigners traveling to Vung Tau in the near future.
/// Written by Rainy Tran, Vietnam
