Vung Tau amusement park and cable car. Vietnam

The island's territory is covered with dense tropical forests. The nature and landscapes here have not yet been spoiled by signs of civilization, so the impression of isolation from modern life is created. A visit to the island gives a complete picture of the diversity of flora and fauna of South Vietnam. Suffice it to say that more than a thousand species of plants, about a hundred species of animals and about one and a half thousand species of marine life are found here.

In the waters between the islands of the archipelago you can find dugongs - very rare marine mammals that can make sounds and cry like a person. It is dugongs that are the reason for the appearance of legends about sea mermaids.

Between April and November, green turtles come to the island to lay eggs in the coastal sand. The green (or soup) turtle is the largest of the sea turtle family. Its length can be up to 1.4 meters, and its weight reaches six hundred kilograms. It got its name because of the olive-green color of its shell. At some point, this species of turtle was on the verge of extinction, but thanks to the creation national park About 60 thousand little turtles begin their lives today on the beaches of Con Dao.

Beaches of Vung Tau

In the town of Vung Tau on the shore there are many villas that, before the 1975 revolution, were owned by the wealthy class. Now they have boarding houses, sanatoriums and restaurants. This resort offers vacationers a wide range of recreational opportunities: hot sun, clear blue sea ​​water, a beautiful beach and very cozy cute cafes.

And for those who like more active or even extreme recreation, there is the opportunity to conquer the Vung Tau mountains. Or ride through the streets of the city, renting a bicycle, and take a trip to memorable places. Among them, it is worth looking at a unique statue of the figure of Jesus blessing the South China Sea. This is a great rarity - a Christian shrine in the heart of Vietnam. You will definitely find something to your liking and get a lot of impressions.

What sights of Vung Tau did you like? Next to the photo there are icons, by clicking on which you can rate a particular place.

Thich Ca Phat Dai Temple

Thich Ca Phat Dai is a Buddhist temple located in the coastal Vietnamese city of Vung Tau. The splendor of the complex is represented by the combination of religious buildings and natural landscape. Conventionally, the monastery can be divided into three tiers, on the first of which there are well-groomed flower beds, on the second there are temple buildings, and on the third there are numerous sculptural groups depicting scenes from the life of Gautama Buddha - his birth, renunciation of the world, enlightenment, sermons and transition to nirvana.

The total area of ​​the temple is about 6 hectares, the height of the main pagoda is 19 meters. The latter often hosts various religious events. At the entrance there is the main statue of Gautama Buddha sitting on a lotus, which is about 10 meters high. The white color of the sculpture contrasts perfectly with the mottled green color of the garden around it.

Thich Ca Phat Dai Temple attracts many tourists and pilgrims from all over the world.

One of the many architectural attractions of the Vietnamese city of Vung Tau is the Statue of Christ, located on the top of a small mountain. It was erected in 1974 and is currently the largest image of Christ in the Asia region. The height of the structure is 32 meters, and the length of Jesus' hand is about 18.4 meters.

The monument is installed on a huge 4-meter pedestal; next to the statue of Christ there are figures of the 12 apostles. Inside the building there is a spiral staircase consisting of 133 steps. The statue of Christ in Vung Tau is reminiscent of the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. A stone staircase consisting of 800 steps leads to the monument. Every year many tourists come here to enjoy the grandeur of the sculpture. It is surrounded by a luxurious garden, impressive with its lush vegetation.

The most popular attractions in Vung Tau with descriptions and photographs for every taste. Choose best places to visit famous places of Vung Tau on our website.

Individual and group

Vung Tau is extremely poor in attractions: you can see all the most interesting things in half a day. We noticed that all the interesting places to visit in Vung Tau are on the mountains. Still, impressive views are the main value of the city.

Almost all tourists come here mainly to climb this statue and take great photographs. I would say that this is the only worthwhile attraction of Vung Tau: Jesus hugging the sea is an almost complete copy of the world famous statue of Christ the Redeemer on the mountain in Rio de Janeiro.

The statue is located on a mountain; to get to it, you need to overcome more than 900 steps: 811 climbing the mountain and another 129 inside the statue itself. There is nothing complicated about this, and it does not require physical training, but it is quite difficult to do it in the heat. To prevent tourists from fainting while climbing, climbing it was limited to the hottest hours: from 11:30 to 13:30.

On the way up, you come across nice viewing platforms with biblical-themed sculptures and benches for relaxing.

The height of the Jesus statue is 32 meters, which is only 6 meters lower than the twin statue in Rio. And the views are similar: of the city, sea and beach.

Entrance to the observation deck is completely free, but you must follow the dress code: covered shoulders and knees, no hats or bags. You can only go up with a camera.

On the shoulders of Jesus there are 2 observation decks, but they are so narrow that only 3-4 small people can be on each of them at the same time. The shoulders of the statue are equipped with sharp spikes so that desperate amateur photographers do not risk their lives in pursuit of the best shots.

Considering that every person wants to spend more time on Jesus’ shoulder, a large queue of people wanting to enjoy the views accumulates on the narrow staircase inside the statue:

From the observation deck you can see another attraction - the lighthouse:

The famous view of Jesus' face looking out over Hon Ba Island and the Temple of the Woman is only accessible from Jesus' left shoulder:

All photos from the statue of Christ:

Hon Ba Island and Woman's Temple

The same island that Jesus looked at on the mountain. All guidebooks include this attraction, but it cannot be called a must-see. However, the interesting thing is that you can only get there a couple of days a month, when the tide is high and a path to the temple appears. If you are lucky enough to be in Vung Tau during this limited time, you can walk along this path.

Hai Dang Lighthouse

It is located on the mountain next to the statue of Jesus. This lighthouse is clearly visible from the shoulders of Christ, and the pedestal is clearly visible from the lighthouse.

Previously, excursions were allowed inside the lighthouse, but now it is closed for visits. However, there are stunning views of Vung Tau from here, so you can take a ride to the lighthouse:

Villa Blanche (white palace)

The former residence-palace of the Governor General of Indochina during the French colonial period. Located on a mountain with magnificent views of Vung Tau. You can go inside and admire the interiors and treasures of the Governor General or stroll through the green park around.

Virgin Mary statue

Another religious attraction of Vung Tau is the Catholic Church on the mountain and the statue of the Holy Virgin Mary. A white statue peeks out from the green trees: beautiful.

The height of the statue is 25 meters, almost like the statue of Jesus. Steps lead up the mountain from it, and at the top there is a huge Catholic cross. On the way up there are various sculptures on biblical themes.

Sky park amusement park with cable car

The only entertainment place for children in Vung Tau. Located on the mountain, you need to get there by cable car.

Sky park has a water park, attractions, a mini-zoo and a lake. There is also a large Buddha statue on the mountain, similar in appearance.

Entry price: 300,000 dong for an adult and 150,000 dong for children's ticket. The cable car and all attractions are included in the ticket price.

There are many pagodas in Vung Tau, most of them we saw during. But it’s not interesting to go into all of them, they are very similar to each other. So we saw the Quang Am Pagoda only from the embankment:

Temple of pure nirvana

And we decided to go to this pagoda: we were attracted by the fascinating name. This is one of the biggest Buddhist temples in Vietnam.

There are 4 floors, each of them can be climbed. On the first floor we see a statue of a reclining Buddha:

And from the third there is a picturesque view of the sea:

Guidebooks do not write about these attractions. We ended up here by chance during our walk around Vung Tau. We decided to see the part of the cape that juts out into the sea. It turned out that there is some kind of observation deck here, and it is very popular among the Vietnamese.

The end of the cape is a green hill with beautiful views. And near the cape we found a destroyed hotel-restaurant, which is also popular among the Vietnamese

Platform over a cliff

We managed to find out the name of the former hotel - Khu du lịch Mũi Nghinh Phong. It was built in 2004, the initial investment was about 6 billion VND. The area of ​​the complex is about 1000 sq. m. meters, capacity - up to 600 guests.

It was interesting to walk through the destroyed hotel rooms and restaurant halls, imagining what it all looked like before a strong storm destroyed the building on the cliff.

Vung Tau- a city in the south of Vietnam, the closest resort to Ho Chi Minh City and at the same time the oil capital of the country. We were in Vung Tau for only a few days as tourists, so in this article I talk about this city with from the point of view of an ordinary tourist, and not a winterer/long-liver. Of course, in a few days we did not have time to learn most of the nuances and even really feel the atmosphere of this rather large city. In this article I will share useful information about how to get to Vung Tau, what to use to get around the city, a little about Vung Tau hotels, attractions and beaches, whether it is possible to vacation in Vung Tau and, of course, there will be our review of this city.

Evening walks along the Vung Tau promenade

Vung Tau city

Vung Tau is a city on the coast of the South China Sea, located in the south of Vietnam, 100 km from Ho Chi Minh City on Cape Saint Jacques. The city of Vung Tau is a large commercial and industrial center, there are workshops for the production of branded clothing, which are supplied to our stores, and oil production is carried out nearby in the sea. The city is home to several oil refining companies and the Russian-Vietnamese enterprise Vietsovpetro, which employs oil workers from the CIS countries under contract.

There in the sea in the background beautiful sunset oil platform visible

By the way, in Vung Tau there is a Russian microdistrict where families of Vietsovpetro workers who came to work under a contract live, there is a Russian school there, there are shops with Russian products, etc. We have not been to the Russian microdistrict of Vung Tau, but I heard that you can get to its territory only possible with passes.

Thanks to oil production and refining, the city of Vung Tau has become one of the richest cities in Vietnam: there are many luxurious villas, wide roads, well-groomed parks, and expensive restaurants. Compared to Nha Trang and Ho Chi Minh City, the city of Vung Tau seemed more expensive to us.

Wide and almost empty roads

The city of Vung Tau itself is located on a peninsula and is blown by winds almost all year round. A promenade stretches along the sea for many kilometers, which would be ideal for walking, if not for the almost complete absence of any shade.

Vung Tau has a luxurious multi-kilometer promenade along the sea

How to get to Vung Tau

The city of Vung Tau is located very close to Ho Chi Minh City and getting from it is not difficult. You can take advantage of the numerous buses and minibuses that run between cities, or take a pleasant mini trip along the river on a rocket. Details here:

The city has a small Vung Tau airport, but it only accepts small planes, so you need to fly to the neighboring one.

Transport in Vung Tau

In the city itself we did not see public transport. Perhaps it exists somewhere, but it’s definitely not as popular as in Nha Trang :) The distances in Vung Tau are quite long and you can’t get by without transport, so you’ll have to rent a bike or bike or take a taxi.

Renting a bike in Vung Tau will cost more than in. For example, in Nha Trang you can rent a bike for 100,000 VND per day or 50-60 dollars per month, and in Vung Tau from 150,000 VND per day, and more often 200,000 VND and from 100 dollars per month. If you come to Vung Tau for three months or longer, then it is more profitable to buy a simple bike for 250 - 350 dollars. By the way, while walking around the city I never saw the signs Bike for rent. Perhaps you should ask your hotel about rent.

Taxis in the city are inexpensive and, like everywhere else in Vietnam, are metered. For some reason, we decided not to rent a bike, because looking at the map it seemed to me that everything was quite close. Oh, how wrong we were. We both took a taxi and walked, but it would have been much easier and more convenient to rent a bike and move around on it. By the way, traffic on the roads in the city is light, and the road along the sea is almost always empty. Such chaos on the roads as in Nha Trang has not been observed.

Traffic in Vung Tau is not as bad as in Nha Trang, there is not much transport

Vung Tau Resort

Now a few words about the Vung Tau resort. Some advertisements call Vung Tau quiet, romantic, family resort. Well, what can I say... I wouldn’t call Vung Tau a resort. The town is cute, but clearly not intended for a beach holiday. The city is located in the Mekong River Delta and all the dirt that this long river carries with it (and we’ve been here for two days!) flows into the sea next to the city beaches.

Although local tourists (Vietnamese) love to come to the Vung Tau resort, especially on weekends and holidays. Still, here is the closest beach to Ho Chi Minh City. And compared to Ho Chi Minh City, Vung Tau is somehow nice and cozy :) Even if you don’t swim in the sea, here you can simply take a break from the bustle of the big city.

After the noisy Ho Chiin, Vung Tau seems so quiet and cozy. New Year's theme in the city

Since I have already touched on the topic of beach holidays, I’ll tell you a little about the beaches of Vung Tau, of which there are several. As I already said, the beaches of Vung Tau are not very suitable for swimming, for the following reasons:

• Dirty sea, muddy water
• Strong waves
• Perceptible ebb tides
• Beach landscapes are not at all pleasing to the eyes of sophisticated tourists

The sea in Vung Tau is, to put it mildly, not very clean...

Although the locals swim! At sunset, one of the central beaches of Vung Tau was simply filled with swimming Vietnamese! And during the day on a weekend, the Vietnamese love to sit on the beach in large crowds and drink beer.

Our and European tourists or long-livers prefer to swim in the pools on site beach clubs or use the sea for surfing and kitesurfing. There are many surfing and kite schools in Vung Tau (including those with Russian-speaking instructors), the constantly blowing wind helps good skating. One of the popular places where Europeans and Russian speakers gather is Vungtau Beach Club opposite Sammy Hotel.

Main beaches of Vung Tau:

1. Front Beach (Bai Chuok). The beach is located in the southwest of the city in a bay between two mountains and is located very close to the center. The beach itself is dirty, there are many fishing boats nearby. There is a cozy and very well-kept park along the seashore. Nice place for walking and watching sunsets, but not for swimming.

The front beach is located almost in the city center. There are always a lot of Vietnamese swimming here
Front beach of Vung Tau. There are rarely waves on this beach, but the sea is very dirty
Fishing boats very close to the beach
In a park near the beach. There is a large children's playground nearby
These are the cats. If only they could catch rats :))
It's good to watch sunsets from the Front Beach

2. Back beach (Bai Sao). Located on the opposite side of the cape. A very long beach (about 8 km), which is subject to strong tides and in winter there are always big waves, so this beach is a great place for kite riding. There is a long embankment and a green strip of park along the sea. Despite the vegetation, during the day there is almost no shade from the trees; you walk under the scorching sun.

The back beach is much more like a "beach" in my mind. If I really wanted to, I could take a swim here :)
There is a strong low tide on the beach
Quite a good landscape. And there are almost no people. And this is on a weekend, on weekdays the beaches of Vung Tau generally die out :)
Vung Tau is Vietnamese resort, for rent on the beach here they rent out a chair under an umbrella, not a sunbed. Rent ~ 50,000 VND
Across the road from the beach there are a bunch of hotels for 25-30 dollars a night
Back Beach or back beach in Vung Tau
An embankment stretches along the sea, and across the road from the sea there are hotels
The embankment is beautiful, well-groomed, but there is absolutely nowhere to hide from the scorching sun...
Dolphin in the park near the beach

3. Mulberry Beach (Bai Zou)

4. Pineapple Beach

5. Beach in Long Hai – the beach is located outside the city, about 30 km from Vung Tau. According to reviews, this is the most swimmable beach in the area.

Weather in Vung Tau

The air temperature in Vung Tau is approximately the same all year round +/- 30 degrees. As I already said, the city is located on a peninsula and is blown by winds from all sides. We were in Vung Tau in December and during the day it was simply unbearably hot, but we had already forgotten that such heat can happen :) But in the evening I walked along the embankment in a blouse, the breeze was blowing cool.

The rainy season in Vung Tau occurs during the summer months, while the dry season lasts from approximately November to April. But we must understand that now the climate on earth is changing so much that it is very difficult to predict the weather. This year, even in December it rained in Vung Tau.

There are many hotels in Vung Tau, room rates start from $10 per night weekdays and from 15 dollars on weekends and holidays. But you need to understand that for 10 dollars you will get a very scary number, but I still advise you to focus on the cost of 20 dollars.

If you plan to visit Vung Tau on weekdays, then you don’t have to book a hotel in advance, but find it on the spot. The main thing is to know where to go, because... I repeat once again – the distances are long! It’s not like a hotel on a hotel and a restaurant on a restaurant, and if you don’t like one, you can easily go to another :)

If your visit to Vung Tau falls on weekends or holidays, or you, like us, do not like to run around and waste time looking for a suitable hotel in order to possibly (!) save a couple of dollars, then I advise you to book a hotel to Vung Tau in advance.

In which area of ​​Vung Tau to choose a hotel depends on your goals: I advise you to consider the three areas that I have schematically marked in the photo below.

• Vung Tau hotels near Front Beach promenade
• Hotels in the center near the lake
• Hotels near Back Beach

The Vung Tau area is convenient to stay in if you come to the city for tourist purposes for a few days

Vungatau hotels that I considered for us

Since I booked a hotel in Vung Tau at the very last moment (we didn’t know exactly when they would give us our passports), and even for the weekend, the choice of hotels was quite narrowed. We ended up staying at Cong Doan Hotel Vung Tau.

Pros of the hotel

• Great location
• Very spacious room
• Clean bed linen (yes, cheap hotels in Vietnam don't always have clean bed linen!)
• Room cleaning
• Quite quiet
• Breakfast included

Cons of the hotel

• The hotel is old, the room needs renovation
• Ants in the bathroom
• Meager breakfast: choice of fried eggs or Pho Bo soup and tea. Coffee for an additional fee! And this is in a country where coffee grows!
• The staff hardly understands English language(but this is generally a problem with Vung Tau, the locals’ English is very bad...)
• There is construction going on nearby! But she didn’t bother us, the windows of our room faced the opposite side

The hotel we stayed at in Vung Tau. At first glance it resembles our Soviet holiday homes :) On the left is a construction site
Huge room in an inexpensive hotel in Vung Tau: two double beds, wardrobe, table, chairs

More expensive hotels in Vung Tau

Where to eat in Vung Tau: shops, cafes, restaurants

If you live in Vung Tau for a long period and rent an apartment with a kitchen, then there will be no problems with food. There are several large supermarkets in the city: Lotte Mart and Coop Mart, markets with fruits and vegetables, a large fish market in the city center (we lived right next to it), which invites you to buy sea delicacies: crabs, squid, shrimp, oysters, mussels :)

There was a large fish market next to our hotel. Eh, it’s a pity that there was nothing to cook with. The selection of seafood and fish there is simply huge! The photo shows the entrance to this market

We were in the city for only a few days and tried to eat in cafes and restaurants. And with this we have big problems: we couldn't find anywhere to eat deliciously!

There are several options for eating and/or drinking in Vung Tau:

1. At lunchtime, tables are set up on the streets and a bunch of cheap cafes for the Vietnamese start opening, where you can get a large piece of meat with rice for only 16,000 dong! Everything is fresh and looks quite appetizing.

Vietnamese cafes along the road with very cheap food

2. In the evening, a bunch of coffee shops open, during the day there are also places where you can drink coffee, but mostly these are Europeanized places, like . But small private coffee shops open only in the evening.

3. There are many pubs where foreigners gather to drink beer and play billiards. There is food there too, but it's mostly burgers and fries.

Bars where foreigners gather in the evenings
Sports bar and hotel on the promenade near the sea
Another beer club

4. Restaurants where Vietnamese tourists cook their favorite soup.

5. Fast food like Lotteria and others.

6. A cafe with chairs along the road on the embankment, where they only serve drinks and some snacks, such as sausages on a stick or ice cream.

Cafe where you can drink juice and eat ice cream

We don’t eat during the day, so we didn’t go to cheap Vietnamese cafes that are open only during the day, but it’s not so easy to find where to drink coffee during the day! But in the evening, when I don’t feel like coffee at all, but want a piece of meat and a glass of beer, mini coffee shops open everywhere at every turn!

Locals they have dinner on the embankment with food they brought with them, and then go to a bar or coffee shop for drinks. Most pubs in European style empty in the evenings. We went to one such bar, ordered beer and some food, but the food was completely tasteless!

Then we decided to look for a tasty and cute place through Tripadvisor. But, as it turned out, there are very few reviews of cafes and restaurants in Vung Tau on TripAdvisor, mostly tourists recommended David Pizza, but we don’t really like pizza, although we happily ate it in the recommended establishments in and have not yet gotten bored :) We also read about Ukrainian restaurant in Vung Tau, but it turned out to be very far from us.

Tripadvisor and Vinsky recommend this place: the Italian owner is married to a Vietnamese woman

Based on Tripadvisor's recommendation, we went to one of the Vietnamese restaurants near our hotel. The prices are low, but I didn't like the food! The food here is completely aimed at the Vietnamese, who like to add various sauces to their dishes, including fish (!) - I almost felt sick when I saw a liter jar of fish sauce on the table.

Cafe opposite our hotel. At 5 pm it was completely empty. We thought we'd take a little walk and come back here for dinner. At 7 pm the place was no longer crowded with noisy Vietnamese. Let's go look for another place...
During the day we noticed one cafe, even took a photo of the menu, and in the evening we returned and it was already closed...
Menu Vietnamese restaurant, where we had dinner once. I must say that all the tables were occupied by Vietnamese. But we didn't like the food...
I ordered soup but couldn’t finish it. There was some kind of sauce in it... I hope it wasn’t fish sauce :)) By the way, before this we ate Pho Bo in Ho Chi Minh City at a place for locals, and it was just super!

In general, we were starving in Vung Tau :) By the way, there are almost no shops in the center and we had to walk around the city quite a bit to buy cola and cookies! But if you rented a bike and the issue of food would be immediately resolved, at the end there is a Lotte mart with a food court.

Sights of Vung Tau, what to see in the city

Many European tourists come to Vung Tau not for beach holiday, and to see the sights of Vung Tau. I can’t say that there are many of them in the city, and we didn’t try to see them all.

In general, every year I want to go sightseeing less and less, but I just want to take a leisurely stroll around a new city, drink a cup of coffee in a cafe with beautiful view, return to the hotel in the heat of lunchtime, relax, and then go out on the evening promenade, have a delicious dinner, walk a little more and relax either in a nearby bar or in your room while watching a movie. And I don’t care at all that I won’t see another temple, statue or park :) But let’s return to the sights of Vung Tau.

- the most famous landmark of the city. The statue is built on high mountain Nuino in the 70s of the last century. To climb the statue of Christ itself and take pictures of the city from the balcony on the shoulders of Jesus, you first need to make a difficult climb up the mountain and overcome almost 900 steps. Cost of visiting: free. More detailed information here:

2. Temple of a woman on the island of Hon Ba. The small island is located almost next to the shore; at low tide you can walk to it. There is a functioning temple on the island, built in 1881.

The small island of Hon Ba, which becomes a peninsula at low tide

3. Lighthouse in Vung Tau. The ancient lighthouse of Hai Dang is located on a small mountain. There is nothing particularly noteworthy about the lighthouse itself, and, as far as I know, they are not allowed inside the lighthouse itself at the moment. But the views from the mountain are wonderful; it’s good to watch the sunset here. You can get to the lighthouse by taxi or by bike. But I don’t recommend going on foot, although I know people who climbed to the Vung Tau lighthouse on foot.

4. Cable car and amusement park on the mountain in Vung Tau - Sky Park or Ho May Park. There is a statue in the park big buddha, attractions for adults and children, a small mini zoo, a lake and, of course, an observation deck with an excellent view of the city and the sea. Cost of visiting the park ( cable car included) 300,000 VND for adults and 150,000 VND for children.

Vung Tau has a cable car that takes tourists to the amusement park on the mountain
Cost of visiting the amusement park, opening hours and park layout

5. Home of pure nirvana – one of the largest Buddhist temples in Vietnam, there is a statue of a reclining Buddha.

6. Villa Blanche or White Villa.

7. Statue of the Virgin Mary.

8. Quan Am Pagoda

Chùa Từ Quang Pagoda

Vung Tau reviews

Well, now our review of Vung Tau. I will say right away that this city did not make such a strong impression on me and did not sink into my soul as or. The city is nice, clean, but not atmospheric. I will list some features of Vung Tau.

There are very few foreign tourists in Vung Tau, we didn’t see any Russian speakers, but they are clearly there somewhere, it’s not for nothing that the city has a Russian microdistrict and the largest Russian diaspora in Vietnam.

Problems with tourist cafes. More precisely: there are cafes, but most of them are completely empty, and I don’t like to have dinner in empty cafes. There are also many bars where food only offers some snacks.

There are no stores like 7 Helen or A-Mart in the center. We only saw a couple of stalls with water and some small items, but they all close quite early.

In the center we found only these small tent shops. There you can buy water and some small items. They close early

But there are a lot, just a lot of pharmacies. When I first arrived from Kyiv to Lviv, I was also amazed why there were so many pharmacies in the city?

Local Vietnamese drink coffee or cook Hot Pot in the evenings :)

The locals hardly understand English, but are very friendly.

There are many expats in the city with Vietnamese wives.

An excellent multi-kilometer promenade along the sea, well-kept parks and recreation areas.

Long distances! Living in Vung Tau without a bike will be problematic.

Prices are higher than in Nha Trang and other resorts in Vietnam.

Lots of rich Vietnamese, good cars, expensive bikes. Local girls are beautiful, well-groomed, stylishly dressed.

Rats. There are a lot of rats in the city. And if in Nha Trang I see rats only in the evening near the trash can (the same as in Moscow or in), then in Vung Tau rats run around the central park in broad daylight. I treat rats calmly: let them run around, the main thing is that they don’t touch me :) But for those who think rats are just a wild horror, they shouldn’t go to Vung Tau!

Well-groomed path in the central park. But even during the day there are rats running around it... they don’t have enough cats!

Gorgeous sunsets.

Vung Tau is the most authentic Vietnamese city, you can really feel the life of real Vietnamese people here, who get up early, sit down to have lunch at exactly 12 noon, and relax for several hours after lunch. Once I went for a walk at lunchtime, and I walked around the city completely alone: ​​empty roads, empty cafes... People, awww... And closer to sunset, movement began, local residents went for a run/walk on the embankment.

Conclusion. Is it possible to holiday in Vung Tau? It’s good to come to Vung Tau for a few days for tourism purposes, but in my opinion, there’s nothing to do there for more than 3-4 days. Well, or stop at long term in a normal apartment (and apartments here are rented out mainly under long-term contracts, this is not Nha Trang, where it’s not a problem), buy a bike and join real Vietnamese life :)

Vung Tau photo

Monument in the park
Every evening locals play games
Front Beach promenade in Vung Tau
Front Beach embankment: people in the sea, boats in the sea :)
There are very few people. Out to evening walk and were surprised at the absence of people and tourists
Hotels on the embankment across the road from the sea
Cafe with sea view
Cats. By the way, in southern Vietnam there are very few living seals, there are dogs, but there are no cats...
Somewhere in the center of Vung Tau. Nearby there is a street with tourist shops, you can buy tea/coffee, etc.
Vietnam gets ready for Christmas and New Year
New Year's paraphernalia
Catholic Church in the center of Vung Tau
She's in the night light

Vung Tau Map

On the map I marked attractions and some beaches

Vung Tau (Vietnam) – large city near Ho Chi Minh City. It is considered the oil capital of the country, because large processing plants are located there. Among them there is also a Russian-Vietnamese concern, which is partly why you can find shops with Russian products in Vung Tau.

Is it possible to relax in Vung Tau?

Vung Tau on the map of Vietnam should be found in the southern part. The city is located on the coast and tourists come there to sunbathe on the beaches and swim in the sea. In addition, it is convenient to get to Vung Tau by domestic flights, because the city has its own airport. However, this resort is not very popular among foreign tourists; mostly Vietnamese vacation here. Vung Tau is in great demand among them, and at the height of the beach season it can be crowded.

A city that is the oil capital of the country cannot be poor. Accordingly, Vung Tau has good infrastructure. There are wide equipped streets, well-groomed squares, and many beautiful modern buildings. There are no problems with shops and catering establishments in Vung Tau. True, most cafes and restaurants offer only Asian cuisine, but isn’t it exotic that tourists come to Vietnam for? If you prefer European cuisine, your best bet is to dine at a pizzeria; they are also present in Vung Tau.

The beaches of Vung Tau are quite well equipped, as is other infrastructure in the city. Here you can rent a sun lounger and an umbrella, there will be a cafe nearby, and beach vendors walk along the coast offering souvenirs. Here are the most important beaches of Vung Tau:

• • Bai Chuok (Front Beach). Located in the center, there is a large park nearby, where it is nice to walk in the shade of the trees if it is too hot.

• Bai Sao (Back Beach, Rear Beach). The longest in the resort, the length is about 8 km. Most of the hotels are concentrated around it.
• Bai Zau (Mulberry Beach). Not very popular with vacationers, as it is located far from tourist spots. However, it is sheltered from the winds and there are fewer waves.
• Bai Zia (Pineapple Beach). Also not very crowded and also with more calm sea near the shore.
• Long Hai. This beach stands apart in Vung Tau, because it is located outside the city. You will have to get there by taxi or rented transport (for example, the most popular in Vietnam - a bike). The journey will take about 20 minutes, however, according to most tourists, it is worth it: the beach is the cleanest in the resort.

And cleanliness, unfortunately, is not the quality that distinguishes the beaches of Vung Tau. If you are traveling to Vietnam to spend most of your time swimming and sunbathing, it is better to choose, for example, Nha Trang or Phu Couc. You can definitely find the cleanest beaches there.


The sea in Vung Tau can also be disappointing. Oil production in the region does not contribute to the cleanliness of coastal waters. Of course, no one dumps waste from the oil industry into the sea; this is prohibited by law, but still the water off the coast cannot boast of cleanliness. In addition, the location of the coastline in Vung Tau provokes the formation of waves. Swimming here is not always comfortable. But for lovers of water sports - here! It is guaranteed that you can windsurf at almost any time of the year.

What to do in Vung Tau?

If you decide to relax here, you won’t be bored. The weather in Vung Tau is typical for the south of the country; there are also wet and dry seasons, so it is better to buy a tour here from November to April. However, the climate in this resort is mild; temperature changes in air and sea water are insignificant throughout the year. And if you're interested excursion holiday, you can profitably relax in Vung Tau at any time.

The most interesting sights of the resort city:

• • Jesus statue. She looks a lot like the other one famous statue, located in Rio de Janeiro. Jesus Christ is also depicted with outstretched arms, and the height of the Vietnamese statue is slightly inferior to the Brazilian one (32 meters versus 38). There is a staircase in the statue, along which you can climb to the very top, where there are observation platforms.

• • Hai Dang Lighthouse. The snow-white lighthouse building on a high hill attracts attention in itself. There are observation platforms at the top. And next to the lighthouse there is a field with ancient cannons left over from the time the French captured this part of Vietnam.

• Temple of the Reclining Buddha. It is considered one of the most beautiful in the country. The 12-meter tall Buddha Statue is made of wood with intricate carvings. Besides her, the temple has many interesting exhibits: other statues, mosaic paintings, a bell tower.

And if you want to take a break from sightseeing and have a little fun, Vung Tau has a large amusement park with a cable car.

Vung Tau is not the best popular resort in Vietnam due to the turbulent and not too clean sea. But there is a mild climate and many attractions. Maybe it's worth planning a trip to Vung Tau for a few days?

A small town in the south of Vietnam. Here they extract oil and fish, play golf, ride kites on the waves and gambling on greyhound racing. The city of Vung Tau is clean, well-groomed and rich. There is everything here: luxury hotels, expensive mansions, and small cozy houses of poorer people. There is also a Russian microdistrict in which about a thousand oil workers from all over the CIS live, who work under a contract at the Vietsovpetro enterprise. We visited Vung Tau twice and lived here for a total of four months. Today everything is about what is worth seeing in this city. (UPD 10/03/2013)

Attractions in Vung Tau: what to see

Vung Tau is not in the tourist epicenter. Most often, tourists from Ho Chi Minh City go straight to Phan Nh Thiet or Mui Ne for a beach holiday. In Vung Tau there is simply no good beaches, but there is something to see. Buddhist pagodas of extraordinary beauty, huge Catholic statues, the pantheon of Grandfather Ho (the late leader of Ho Chi Minh City) - all this not only coexists in one city, but also manages to bloom and smell in socialist Vietnam.

Saigon-Vung Tau hydrofoil rocket

A hydrofoil “rocket” travels to Vung Tau from Saigon (the old name of Ho Chi Minh City) along the river and then across the sea. The walk is only an hour and a half. There are four companies that provide water transportation: Petro Express, Vina Express, Greenlines, Mekong. Rockets are sent several times an hour from 6:30 to 16:45. You need to arrive 15 minutes before departure to redeem them at the ticket office. Reservations allow you to select the seats you want to sit on directly on the website. The nose of the rocket rocks less than the tail. I advise you to take an anti-sickness pill before the start.

The address of the pier in Ho Chi Minh City from which the missiles depart is 10B Ton Duc Thang,Dist.1, HCMC. It is located opposite the Magestic Hotel (it is better to remember this if the taxi driver does not immediately understand where you need to go).

A ticket costs 200 thousand dong ($10), on weekends and holidays - 250 thousand dong.

Regular bus Ho Chi Minh City-Vung Tau

Another way to get from Ho Chi Minh City to Vung Tau is regular bus. It takes about 2.5-3 hours, but it all depends on the time of day, and therefore on traffic jams in Saigon. The bus station is located in Saigon on Pham Ngu Lao Street. A ticket costs about 5 dollars.

You can also go from Ho Chi Minh City to Vung Tau by taxi for 60-80 dollars.

There are many budget hotels and guesthouses in Vung Tau ranging from 10-20 dollars per night. Search by location. The best place is closer to the beach. Almost all the hotels there are located across the road from the beach. There are also many cafes and cafes where you can eat. From other places you will have to take a taxi to the beach. A one-way trip can cost from 1.5-2 dollars to 5-6.

About a thousand Russian expats live in Vung Tau and work under contract at an oil production company. They live in a Russian microdistrict surrounded by high fences. Five-story buildings with small two-room apartments were built there. They are provided free of charge for the duration of the contract. People are allowed into the town only with passes. There are shops with Russian sour cream and buckwheat, a school and a church.

Don't believe what most travel websites say. Vung Tau - no beach resort. Yes, Saigon residents come here on weekends to sit on the shore in small armchairs, sipping beer and eating fried seafood. But what is good for a Vietnamese may not be a joy for a European experienced at resorts.

Why are the beaches in Vung Tau bad?

In winter, strong winds blow and waves appear on the sea (good for kiters, but bad for swimming),

A lot of garbage is washed onto the beach by the waves. Yes, it is collected periodically, but this is an endless process,

The sea is not transparent, since sea water in this place mixes with river water from the Mekong. In addition, strong waves raise suspended matter from the sand,

Not here beautiful scenery. The beach is a narrow strip of sand lined with chairs for sitting. The only shade is under the umbrellas that stand above those same chairs (which cost money - about 1.5-2 dollars).

In Vung Tau there is practically no public transport. We saw a couple of buses, but these were rather the exception to the rule. Local residents move around the city on scooters and motorcycles, and less often in cars. Tourists take taxis or rent bikes. By the way, if you are planning to live in Vung Tau for a long time, then it is better not to rent a bike (rent is 120-150 dollars per month), but to buy it. For example, a Honda Stream with about 20 thousand km mileage and 125 cc cost us $350. The purchase takes ten minutes. There are many used bike shops where the owner will simply give you a purchase receipt with your name on it and give you a registration certificate.

Vung Tau is a fairly wealthy city with several large hospitals. You need to find out which of them work with international insurance companies in advance and before your trip. In 2012, we were not able to use our insurance, although there is an International SOS hospital in Vung Tau. The Moscow insurance company stated that it does not work with them and we need to go with the sick child to Ho Chi Minh City. Thank God, everything worked out. We went to the hospital on our own, within half an hour our daughter’s temperature was brought down, a general blood test was done and antiviral treatment was prescribed. All this cost us $7. An appointment with a doctor usually costs 100 thousand VND ($5). More details about the treatment, as well as coordinates on the map, are in a separate post.

White jesus christ statue- 32 meters in height. This is taller than a nine-story building! Does it really remind you of Rio de Janeiro? By the way, the monument in Vung Tau is only 6 meters lower. But it also stands on a mountain and can be seen from many points in the city.

If you are in Vung Tau, be sure to visit the park near statues of the Holy Virgin Mary. You can also climb up to the monument. It's not that difficult. The Vietnamese do this every day in the form of sports activities. Maybe that's why they're all so fit?

Residents of Vung Tau also like to go for evening jogs near Pantheon of Ho Chi Minh City. Yes, yes, yes, grandfather Ho is a saint in one of the religious movements. But people come to the park near the pantheon not only to pray, but also for evening jogging with beautiful views.

Amusement park on Mt. You can get there by cable car. Or somehow take a detour, but only locals know the way. In addition to various living creatures in cages, there is a lake and a small waterfall, several attractions, restaurants with beautiful panoramas and a huge Buddha statue.

Another reclining Buddha, also of impressive size, is in Thich Ca Phat Dai Pagoda. This favorite place recreation for local residents. Finding it is not so easy, so I advise you to use a map.

If you go to this pagoda, try to stop by the fishing port on the way. It's stunningly beautiful there at sunset. In addition, this is where they sell the most.

White Villa, also called Villa Blanche. Former imperial residence. You can stroll through the small palace, which has now become a museum. The villa is located on the mountain, and with observation deck there are beautiful views.

City park on the embankment. Very beautiful place, where it’s not hot even at noon. The park has many flowers, decorative bushes in the shape of animals, many statues and a children's playground. Local residents have picnics right on the lawn.

In addition, if you stay in Vung Tau for a long time, be sure to go on foot to Hon Ba Temple. This is a pagoda on an island, the narrow road to which is open only a few days a month at low tide. There is no architectural value in the temple, and there is nothing special to see on the island, but this rather long journey through the stones is interesting in itself. Moreover, there is always a chance that you will not have time to get back and forth by fishing boat before high tide.

Vung Tau is good for interesting excursions. There is excellent shopping here in many shops and shops. There are also large shopping centers.

You can, for example, learn kitesurfing. Or try yourself as a fan at the dog races that take place every Saturday at the stadium.

Golf lovers also come to Vung Tau. Actually, playing golf all over the world is very expensive. And in Vung Tau, almost anyone can afford to take a couple of trial lessons.