6 fun things to do in Mui Ne, Vietnam

Mui Ne, Vietnam. ‘Where’, you say? It’s no surprise that you may ask.

As an Australian, certain places are on our radar, or we have at least heard of them through their growing popularity over the years as word gets out. Mui Ne is not one of them.

This little beach township first popped up on a Google search for “beaches near Ho Chi Minh City”, with the desire to experience city, beach and any other surprises in between, but also being restricted by distance because of time. Nine days in total to be precise, and allowing four days for the beach.

The tiny beachside town, just over 200km up the coast from Ho Chi Minh City is actually named Ham Tien, with Mui Ne village itself at the Eastern end of the beach

 

Things to do when you’re not lounging by the pool.

Mui Ne is relatively small, so you may find yourself wondering what else is in the nearby area, apart from the beach and the single main street. Well, there are a few unique experiences to be had.

The Fairy Stream

Fairy stream. If there were ever such a magical sounding place, then surely it would be a place to discover. Well, it’s conveniently located just up the road from the main strip of tourist hotels and restaurants and is on the way to the fishing village of Mui Ne. It is possible to meander along the road until you reach it, but you can make a stop there via tuk-tuk on the way to the fishing village.

Tip: The entrance to the stream is not well signposted, and you can miss it easily. Consider hiring a tuk-tuk to get you there as I did. Depending on where you are staying, it could be a bit of a distance to walk there, let alone find it.

Venture in through the sparsely equipped ‘café’ and down some concrete steps into the fresh shallow stream. Alighting barefoot from the last stair into the shallow creek, you will find that it is more of an underwater walking path than a stream. You will be greeted with a soft sand underlay as the clear water engulfs you up to your ankles.

The majority of the journey is only a few centimetres deep. As you set off along the watery path beneath the overhanging bamboo and yucca trees, you will emerge into a network of partly submerged boulders. This landscape changes yet again as you become surrounded by steep faces of the red sand mini canyons that form the surrounding area.

 

Quad Biking in the White sand dunes

There is a mini Sahara Desert in Vietnam, and you can use it as a fun park!

Around 30kms out of town, arrive at the White Sand Dunes where you can hire a quad bike or be transported to the top of the mounds for toboggan rides down the sheer slopes. We have ridden quad bikes extensively in a few different countries. Still, these vehicles come with a driver, as these dunes are steep and dangerous for the inexperienced driver, which is most people. It’s exhilarating fun, zooming up, down and around the dunes while destroying the peace and quiet for the non-bikers.

The smooth, windswept dunes contrast with the bright blue sky, both elements are expansive and complement each other like a work of art. Conclusion; It’s too much fun jumping into this scene and using it for your own private session of extreme sports fun.

Red Sand dunes

The Red Sand Dunes are located on the outskirts of the fishing village and are a smaller, more orange version of the White Dunes. There are no ATV’s here, just some gentle slopes that are easy enough to walk over for some glorious views.

 

Mui Ne fishing village

A quick stop at the fishing village will allow you to overlook the hundreds of boats being repaired and maintained on the beach and tethered in the water, ready to go out and gather the next haul. On the main street, the viewing point has some steps leading down to the beach. Here you can wander down the stairs and among the fishermen to marvel at the different styles of traditional boats still in use.

Note: A convenient way to visit the white and red sand dunes, the Fairy Stream and a quick overview of the fishermen at Mui Ne would be to do a half-day tour, organised through your chosen accommodation. Ours cost around $35 USD, which we considered to be quite a bargain.

 

Windsurfing

Surely the Mui Ne area must be the windsurfing capital of Vietnam, as the winds can be torrential on the beach some days. It is not entirely unpleasant though for any onlookers, as the view of what seems like hundreds of kites reaching down the coast for miles is a wondrous sight.

There are plenty of hire shops that can provide lessons if you feel the urge to be airborne. An introductory class (where you don’t fly, but get a full rundown on technique and safety) will cost you somewhere around $100. It’s expensive but excellently thorough – and you can say that you learned the basics of it in Vietnam.

Mineral Mud Baths

If you want to unwind – take a Mud Bath at the Mui Ne Mineral Mud Centre. On the main street, head up the long, long driveway next to the Tien Dat Restaurant, and up to the Hot Spring Centre where you will also find an enormous swimming pool to enjoy. It cost around $20 AUD to enter the mineral bath area, where you will be led to your personally filled round bath underneath a grass hut. Each tub is poured on the spot with silky smooth, warm mud, with the consistency of a thick milkshake – or a thin thick shake. The silky slipperiness embraces every pore, and the texture feels beautiful as you slowly wave your limbs back and forth through the chocolatey bath.

After around 20 minutes or so, an attendant will appear and lead you over to another hut with a fresh bath filled with warm water and Lemongrass oil for an aromatherapy rinse off. It’s a nice little break and something a bit different to do if you haven’t relaxed enough already by the pool or the beach.

Getting there

There is no airport nearby, so the transport options come down to car, bus or train.

Having spent a few days in Vung Tau (1.5 hours by ferry from Ho Chi Minh City), we found that it was not easy to transfer to Mui Ne.

Our choices were car or bus, and we chose a private car, booked through Kiwi Taxi (it cost around $100AUD). It was expensive, but do not underestimate how crazy the roads are with bumper to bumper buses and trucks. It was consistently terrifying driving head-on towards oncoming vehicles as almost each and every one of them weaved and swayed and danced around on the road, to jump just one spot ahead in the never-ending queue. The trip from Vung Tau to Mui Ne took at least three hours, and would possibly be longer from the city due to the heavy traffic.

To return to Ho Chi Minh City, we caught a train from Phan Tiet station, which is only a fifteen or twenty-minute taxi trip from Mui Ne, and the end of the line on that stretch of train track. It was a pleasant and fun trip back, taking around four hours, travelling through dragon fruit plantations and lush fields. We booked our tickets ahead of time through www.baolau.vn for Vietnam railways for 343,000 dong ($20AUD), but you could, of course, buy them at the station on the day.

We stayed at:

Coco Beach Resort (and loved it)