Om beach - pride of nature - Phu Yen

As modem development continues to devour the natural world, more and more people look for antiques or a pristine destination to experience life in a way more similar to the way our ancestors lived. When mentioning famous beaches around the country, right away people think of Mui Ne, Nha Trang, Phu Quoc or Vung Tau. But these days, Phu Yen Province is more frequently mentioned by visitors and is listed in tours by local travel agents due to the province’s unspoiled destinations.

There are two ways to reach Om Beach, by land and by waterway. For the first way, from the center of Tuy Hoa city, National Highway 1A leads to Song Cau Town. From there, ask a local the way to Vung La, a fishing village in Xuan Phuong commune.

By waterway, boats can be hired from local fishermen in Song Cau town or Nhat Tu Son town. The boat ride is about 90 minutes and should cost VND100,000 per hour for a four-seat boat and about VND1 million for a bigger one.

In which, Om Beach is a stop that any tourist coming to Phu Yen Province should not miss in order to wallow in the temptation of nature. Belonging to Xuan Dai Bay, Om Beach is rather an obscure name to tourists in Vietnam, which is why it has resisted industrial development, human settlement or any services. The beach feasts visitors a totally brand-new feeling different from other beaches with a natural world separated with outside world by peace, silence and primitiveness. Om Beach is divided in two by an isthmus with the front beach boasts with an endless sandy beach under shade of coconut trees and the back beach hugged by two hills.

Just a meter or so under the salt water is sharp and jagged coral so swimmers must be careful to avoid injury. However, there is swimming and bathing in crystal-blue water and a chance to admire the colorful reef and schools of fish. More importantly, there are many giant rocks in diverse shapes near the beach that are great background for girls in bikinis to pose for many photos. Om Beach can be reached from the center of Tuy Hoa City by taking National Highway 1A to Song Cau Town. From here, ask a local the way to Vung La, a fishing village in Xuan Phuong Commune just 600 meters south of the beach. Boats can be hired from local fishermen at Song Cau Town or Nhat Tu Son Town about six kilometers south of the beach. The boat trip takes about 90 minutes.

Hon Chong Beach

Hon Chong is located on a stretch of rocky mass of land famous for the thousands of smooth rocks stacking on one another. There are two clusters of such rocks in the area called Hon Chong. The first is further out in the ocean and the second is located near an islet called Sat Thon. The cluster in the ocean is most impressive since there are large boulders stacking on one another seemingly out-of-balance, yet remaining stable.

There is a boulder as large as a small hill supporting another boulder as large as a small house at its peak. On the side facing the shore, there is an imprint of a large hand with five fingers clearly outlined. The locals call this rock Hon Chong or the Husband.

The cluster with the name Hon Vo or the Wife is not far away. The rocks in Hon Vo cluster are as large as those in Hon Chong, but the they are closer together. A somewhat romantic person explained that this name came about because the rocks here snuggle against one another.

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Cua Tung - The queen of beach

Located in the coastal district of Vinh Linh in the central province of Quang Tri, Cua Tung Beach is the nation's "Queen of Beaches", arousing the curiosity of many tourists to come and experience its beauty.
The one kilometre-long beach is not particularly long or wide, but the water is gentle and clear. Two underground rock formations, Mui Si and Mui Lai, encroach on the sea, creating a small bay that shelters the beach from strong waves and tides.

The beach is surrounded by a belt of basalt and stone mountains that resemble a huge comb passing through the hair of the waves. On the hill grow green orchards of jackfruit, pineapple, banana and custard-apple.

While the central region is known for its harsh weather, with dry winds from the southwest and major storms from the sea, Cua Tung Beach is protected by Mother Nature, out of the wind on most days, and the bay offers safe harbour for fishing boats.

The first foreigner to set foot here during the time of French colonialism saw the area’s potential for developing resorts. At that time, Vietnam was divided into three regions and the central region was known as Annam. Ernest Albert Briere, the governor of Annam from 1891-97, was one of those who fell in love with the place, and he built a palace here in 1896 to spend his holidays on the beautiful beach.

The palace was transferred to King Duy Tan (1900-45), the 11th king of the Nguyen Dynasty, who ascended the throne at age 7 and bridled at living in confinement in palaces under the control of the French. He travelled extensively around the country, and Cua Tung was one of his stops.

King Bao Dai (1913-97), the 13th and final Vietnamese feudal king, often traveled from his capital in Hue to Cua Tung to enjoy this amazing beach.

The Frenchman Andre de Laborde, who had a deep understanding of this land, described Cua Tung as a gentle sloping beach which is part of the green highland 20m above sea level. From the slope, people can see the changes in the colour of the sea and sky. Shades of blue change hourly under the sunshine, surprising anyone who has the chance to witness it.

The sea here is so shallow that a person can run about half a kilometre from the shore and the water will only be up to their chest.

Nearby Cat Son village is a short stroll along the beach. It has been famous for hundreds of years for its fish, drum-making, carpentry and mother-of-pearl inlay. Here, you can dine on cuttlefish, prawns, lobster, butterfish, mackerel, Chinese herring, and other kinds of seafood cooked in the local way.

To the south of the beach is the estuary of the Ben Hai River with Hien Luong Bridge just 10km from Cua Tung Beach. The bridge lies on the 17th parallel and formed the border between North and South Vietnam between 1954 and 1975.

This symbol of separation and loss in wartime is now one of the links between Vinh Linh and Vinh Gio districts in the province. Boarding a boat at the base of the bridge, travellers can see lush rice paddies, bamboo and casuarinas trees along the river banks. The slow rhythm of life, the whisper of the wind and the rippling of the water, all bring a feeling of peace.

About 30km offshore from the beach is Con Co Island, a 4- sq. km island with a coastline of about 8km and an average elevation of 5-30m above sea level. At the centre of the island is a 63m-high mountain which was a strategic position during the time the country was divided. Though it is isolated from the mainland by heavy winds, soldiers braved the strong waves and enemy attacks to carry food and weapons to the island.

Lush forests and fruit trees cover the island, including hardwoods with resin as red as blood. In autumn, the bang (Malabar almond) trees also turn red, making the island even more picturesque.

Since 1989, 4,000 coconut trees, symbolising the 4,000-year history of Vietnam, have been cultivated on the island. It is also the home of a small rattlesnake that is used to steep in rice wine to make medicine for treating backache and other ailments. Black and white sea cucumbers as big as a toe are found in the surrounding waters and make a good dish that also has medicinal properties.

Thinh Long beach

Thinh Long is the new beach of Hai Hau, Nam Dinh, located adjacent to the Quat Lam beach (which has the famous Nam Dinh), close to the Xuan Thuy National Park. Passing Nam Dinh City by National Road 21 to the town of Hai thinh, Hai Hau District, you will come to Thinh Long Beach. The beach here is long and the beaches of concrete as a small dike, the last yard is a small fishing village.. Where the bright morning, afternoon -  the small boats ashore to bring the fish, shrimp, crab provided for visitors. Thinh Long as well as other beaches of the North - muddy silt cool, but still there are many travelers want to feel peace.

Thinh Long has been developed as a swimming beach in recent years. This is a smooth sandy beach stretching for several kilometers to the sea in the shade of Casuarinas trees planted by the seaside. Seafood is abundant, inexpensive, and delicious. Thinh Long Beach is on the way to be coming a prime destination for sun seekers.

Arriving in Thinh Long, you will see a different air that is pure and quiet. Green fields with a lot of farm produce locating at the other side of the breakwater stretch as far as the eye can see. Standing on the slope of the breakwater filled with the row of casuarinas and sniffing the wind blowing to your faces, you will feel very cool and a salty odor will fondle on the surface of our skin. The sea is very deserted. The sand-bank is cleaned out with footprints. That is the chance to contemplate original works made of sand by sand crabs. You can look for a family restaurant in order to have lunch with seafood, especially the course of fried fish together with steamed rice. Although your lunch is simple and the caterer's behavior is over familiar, you will recognize their enthusiasm and hospitality. In the afternoon, after taking a rest, you should go around the sea. 02 ends of Thinh Long beach are 02 gathering areas for fishing. And the afternoon is the time when fishermen prepare for tomorrow sea voyage. The people here are very friendly and complaisant. You can learn the way to mend the net and the process of sea voyage, even you can be invited to fishermen's houses to spend the night and "have dinner with their family".