Visit all the beautiful spots and eat all the delicious food in Phan Thiet

The coastal city of Binh Thuan attracts visitors thanks to its beautiful beaches, vast sand dunes and fresh seafood.

183 km northeast of Ho Chi Minh City, Phan Thiet city is a tourist destination in Binh Thuan province. This place has long been famous for its long stretches of white sand, clear water beaches nestled under tall coconut trees.

Besides the beautiful natural scenery, this land also attracts tourists from all over the world thanks to the diverse cultures of the Cham, Chinese, Kinh communities... Visitors can come here all year round, but the most ideal time is still summer, when the sweltering heat in urban areas will be soothed by the sea and sky here.

Move

From Saigon to Phan Thiet

Visitors can choose bus or train to get to Phan Thiet. Bus companies to Phan Thiet usually depart at 5am, departing from Mien Dong bus station or De Tham street (District 1). Ticket prices range from 90,000 VND to 130,000 VND, travel time takes 6 hours. Trains usually depart from Saigon at 6:50am or 5:30pm, from Phan Thiet at 6:10am or 1:10pm. You can buy tickets directly at Saigon station. Ticket prices start from 160,000 VND and up, travel time is about 4 hours.

In Phan Thiet

Buses usually drop off passengers at Phan Thiet bus station. There will be a shuttle bus to your hotel or resort. Some bus companies also offer pick-up and drop-off services at resorts in Mui Ne.

If you choose to travel by train, you should get off at Phan Thiet station instead of Muong Man (this station is further from the center). The train also sells bus tickets from the station to your accommodation for 30,000 VND per passenger.

To travel conveniently between attractions, you should rent a motorbike for about 220,000 VND per day (pay for gas yourself). To rent a motorbike, you can contact motels, hotels, resorts or some rental locations in the city center.

Accommodation

Accommodation services in Phan Thiet have developed strongly in recent years. Many luxury resorts have private beaches to serve the needs of tourists, mainly located in Mui Ne.

In addition, hotels, motels or homestays are also ideal choices for those who want to save costs. The quality of service of this mid-range accommodation service has also increased significantly.

You can go to Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street in Ham Tien Ward, where there are many places to stay with a variety of room rates. Or you can also go to the streets in the center of Mui Ne.

Eat and drink

When it comes to Phan Thiet cuisine, visitors will be amazed by the many attractive specialties, mostly seafood. Here are some suggestions:

- Fish cake noodle soup: The dish is not much different from other places. The broth is made from fresh, delicious fish, simmered until soft, so it has a sweet, fragrant taste. Depending on the restaurant, the chef will fry or steam the fish cake to eat with soft, white and chewy noodles.

- Banh can: The highlight that makes the flavor of banh can in this land different from many other places is that the cake is baked in a Cham ceramic oven. There are many different fillings such as shrimp, squid, eggs. The dish is quite simple to prepare, suitable for breakfast.

- Fish salad: This dish is easily found in coastal seafood restaurants. People here often use suot fish, mai fish or mackerel to make salad. The sour, spicy, crispy, fresh taste of the dish combines harmoniously with sea fish.

- Sand lizard: This animal is often grilled as an appetizer when drinking beer. Many places also process it into salad.

In addition to the popular dishes above, you can find grilled rice paper with shrimp paste, hot pot, snail salad, grilled squid teeth, Ham Tan grilled sausage, rice vermicelli with pig intestines, quai vac cake, re cake, fried fish with fat, cob fish...

Guests can also walk around the markets to choose fresh seafood to bring home to cook and organize outdoor parties. You will have more experience exploring the local life at the markets, saving costs and being more proactive with your menu.

Sightseeing

Phan Thiet's "tourist map" is divided into four main areas: the city center, Mui Ne, Mui Ke Ga and Hon Rom. Starting from one of these four locations, you can choose to explore other famous landmarks in Phan Thiet.

Phan Thiet city center is located on National Highway 1A, with bustling entertainment and culinary areas on both sides of the Ca Ty River. In the afternoon, this area becomes bustling thanks to the cool air, visitors can stroll and enjoy the cuisine.

Mui Ne is also known as the "Western Village" of Phan Thiet. This is a place that welcomes many foreign tourists. Once here, you cannot miss the clear blue sea water or the experience of welcoming the early morning sunlight through the coconut trees swaying in the sun.

In addition to the blue sea, the vast sand dunes stretching endlessly are a destination that no tourist can miss when they have the opportunity to visit Mui Ne. It is estimated that the sand has more than 18 colors that change according to the day and hour, creating a magical natural picture. Those who love sports can play sandboarding or speed on the sand dunes.

Not far from Mui Ne is Hon Rom. The beach is more than 17 km long with clear blue water and no reefs, which is the highlight of this area. The experience that attracts visitors to Hon Rom is watching the sunrise and sunset on the flat sandy beaches.

As for Mui Ke Ga, this place attracts tourists by its wild and simple natural beauty, along with the life of the local people. Here, visitors can also swim, sunbathe and participate in campfire activities, outdoor parties, etc.

Taking photos to check-in with the lighthouse that is over 100 years old or climbing 184 steps to the top of the lighthouse, taking in the vast space will be an experience you should not miss.

Here are some notable stops

Sand Sculpture Park: located right in the city center, created by foreign artists.
Ta Cu Mountain: is a suitable place for adventurers when having to climb more than 1,000 steps.
Duc Thanh School: is a school established by patriotic scholars of Binh Thuan in 1907. The school still retains many intact relics to serve tourists. This place was also the school where President Ho Chi Minh stopped and taught before entering Saigon.
Po Sah Ina Tower: is a cluster of Cham towers that are still relatively intact with unique architectural art.
Doi Duong Beach: less noisy, located next to the center of Phan Thiet city.
Bai Rang: is the most beautiful beach in Phan Thiet city, famous for its dense coconut groves.
Bau Trang: makes visitors surprised when they see the lake sparkling silver under the bright sunlight, pink lotus petals appearing and hiding behind the green leaves creating a poetic natural scene.

Hon Ghenh: is where you will see Mui Ne stretching on one side, and Hon Rom on the other. Here, you can dive to see the coral.
Suoi Tien: has a landscape of white and red sand mountains intertwined on one side, and on the other side are bushes with dense leaves and shady coconut trees.
Ong Dia Rock Beach: stretches out on the sea with large and small rocks of many different shapes.
Phu Quy Island: is the most remote island district of Binh Thuan province, the island has a wild and beautiful landscape but tourism is not yet developed.
Cu Lao Cau: is a deserted island in Phuoc The commune, Tuy Phong district. This place appears like a large warship, surrounded by tens of thousands of rocks with many colors and shapes.
Co Thach: famous for "The rock beach with the most shapes and colors in Vietnam".
Ganh Son is about 5 km from Co Thach, in Chi Cong commune, Tuy Phong district. Early morning or late afternoon is when the sea is calm, from the cliff, visitors can observe the whole scene of fishing village activities.
Hang Pagoda: built in the first half of the 19th century, named Co Thach Tu. The pagoda is located in a cave on a hill over 64 m high, in Binh Thanh commune, Tuy Phong district.

Note

- Prepare a jacket and umbrella when visiting the sand dunes; wear light clothing when participating in outdoor activities; wear modest clothing when visiting religious buildings.

- If you go to the island, you should pay attention to:

The cruise ships run on a fixed schedule every month, so visitors should book in advance because tickets sell out very quickly. You can check the cruise schedule on the Binh Thuan Department of Transport's website, in the announcement section.
There are only 1-2 departures each day, if you miss the departure time, you will have to wait for the next trip the next day.
Because the sea route is difficult to travel, the ship staff will provide nylon bags to prevent seasickness before departure. People with a history of motion sickness should take medicine and prepare many nylon bags, healthy people can also get seasick if the sea is rough.

- In summer and holidays, Mui Ne is very crowded, visitors should book rooms in advance or avoid traveling during peak times.