Rough Guide to Vietnam - Jan Dodd [158]
Binh Chau Hot Springs
Binh Chau Hot Springs (064/387 1131, www.saigonbinhchauecoresort.com; 20,000đ) are 15km northeast of Ho Coc Beach, and the springs have been developed into a kind of theme park with the addition of a golf-driving range, tennis courts, sand volleyball court, billiards and ox-cart rides around the site. The sulphurous waters bubbling hellishly in the streams and wells here vary greatly in temperature. Old people soothe their aching limbs in the foot-soaking stream, while elsewhere visitors boil eggs sold on site to make up ad hoc picnics. For 30,000đ, you can bathe in the mineral waters of the “Dreaming Lake”, a communal swimming pool, but renting your own mini-pool (about 50,000đ per person per hour) is a more tempting option. There are also a sauna, massage and mud baths in the main complex, which features a range of accommodation (US$31–150) in villas and bungalows and a large restaurant. There’s no public transport to Binh Chau Hot Springs, but if you fancy spending a night or two there, call their Ho Chi Minh City office (08/3997 0677), and they will arrange a pick-up.
The south–central coast | Vung Tau and the coast road | The northeast coast road |
On to Mui Ne
Beyond Binh Chau, Highway 55 follows the windswept coast to Ham Tan, passing through cashew orchards with glimpses of huge sand dunes to your right. This route is so far off the beaten track that ox carts are almost as common as motorized vehicles. Occasional dirt tracks lead down to some fantastic stretches of deserted beach, where a few coracles pulled up beyond the tide level hint at human habitation. After passing Ham Tan, the coast road continues eastward; the landscape is beautiful, with remote fishing villages sheltered by coconut palms, and dragon-fruit orchards lining the road, which eventually veers away from the coast in the form of Highway 712 to join the unrelenting traffic of Highway 1 about 30km before Phan Thiet.
If you’re enjoying the coast road, however, it’s possible to branch off Highway 712 about 15km after Ham Tan and follow the coast all the way to Cape Ke Ga, where a lighthouse stands that was built by the French over 100 years ago. Tucked away in this unknown corner of the country, the Princess D’Annam (062/368 2222, www.princessannam.com; US$151 and over) comes as something of a surprise, with its fabulously-furnished villas and calming, minimalist decor: facilities include four pools, a spa, two restaurants and 24-hour butler service
Back on Highway 712, about 2km south of its junction with Highway 1 at Thuan Nam, is Ta Cu Mountain, home to Vietnam’s largest reclining Buddha (49m). It makes an interesting trek to climb the mountain, probably in the company of Buddhists on pilgrimage, though there is also a cable car (60,000đ return) that stops near the summit, leaving just a short climb. Resorts in Mui Ne can also arrange visits to the mountain.
The south–central coast |
The coastal road to Nha Trang
In reality, few travellers have time to meander along the beaches between Vung Tau and Mui Ne, and most hop straight on a bus from Ho Chi Minh City to Mui Ne, taking just a few hours to whizz across the coastal plain with the Truong Song mountain range looming on the left. By this route, the first whiff of the seaside comes at Phan Thiet, where brightly-painted fishing boats bob on the Ca Ty River, and from here it’s just 20km to the sands of Mui Ne, one of the country’s fastest-growing beach resorts. There’s another chance to take a dip in the South China Sea a little further north at Ca Na, and some superb Cham towers, the impressive Po Klong Garai Towers, near Phan Rang, where you can also enjoy a long sweep of often-deserted beach at Ninh Chu. North of Phan Rang, Highway 1 ploughs through sugar-cane plantations, salt flats and shrimp farms on its way into Nha Trang.
The south–central coast | The coastal road to Nha Trang |
Phan Thiet
The unassuming capital of Binh Thuan Province, PHAN THIET has little of interest for