Introduction
130km (81 miles) SE of Ho Chi Minh City
Just a hop, skip, and a boat ride from Ho Chi Minh City, Vung Tau is a popular playground for Saigon's expatriate community. It is sort of a low-luxe version of the usual beach resort, popular mostly for its convenience to the city. You wouldn't fly around the world to get there, but if you have an extra day or so in Ho Chi Minh and want some beach time, Vung Tau is a good choice short of going to the more picturesque Mui Ne Beaches (about 3 hr. by car) or on to Nha Trang.
Originally called Cape Saint Jacques by French colonists who once vacationed and sailed out of here, the small peninsula and town area today is just a port, but more and more vacation villas are popping up in the beachside hills in the surrounding area. The better hotels in Vung Tau City proper are geared to serving European and regional petrochemical workers -- offshore oil and gas deposits are mined, shipped to offshore refineries, and then re-imported for domestic...
more local info
-
-
Dinh Than Thang-Tam Temple
- Dinh Than Thang-Tam Temple reminds tourists that many of the local Vung Tau people are still from fishing families. This is no ordinary shrine...
-
- Attractions
-
-
-
Entrance to French tunnel
- The entrance to the old French tunnel system is an exciting find for tourists lucky enough to stumble across it. A surprising amount of tourists...
-
- Attractions
-
-
-
The old French lookout
- Most tourists don't see this. Even if they did stumble across it, it would be baffling. The view of the entrance to the Saigon River is a clue....
-
- Attractions
-
