The South

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The South

Vung Tau

From Bien Hoa, just outside Ho Chi Minh City, Highway 51 heads southward via modest

Long Thanh ( famed locally for its impressive fruit market) to Ba Ria. From there, a dog – legged road ventures out across the swampland and shrimp farm of the Vung Tau Peninsula to Vung Tau itself, home of the most southerly beaches on the Vietnamese coast.

Vung Tau, “ The Bay of Boats”, it located some 125km southeast of Ho Chi Minh City on a hammer headed spit of land jutting into the mouth of the Saigon River. Once a thriving riviera – style beach resort, the city’s offshore oil industry and steadily growing port have transformed it into a more business – oriented conurbation, though residents of Ho Chi Minh City still flock here on weekends, when hotel rates rise. However, despite a recent effort to clean them up, the town’s beaches – Bai Dau, Bai Truoc, Bai Dua

Portuguese ships are thought to have exploited the city’s deep anchorage as early as the fifteenth century. By the run of the twentieth, French expats, who knew the place as “ Cap Saint – Jacques”, had adopted it as a retreat from the daily rigmarole of Saigon, and set to work carving colonial villas into the side of Nui Lon and Nui Nho, two low hills near the coast. Shifts in Vietnam’s political sands duly replaced French visitors with American GIs. With them gone, and the Communist government in power, the city became a favored launch pad for the vessels that spirited away the boat people in the late 1970s. These days, it’s become a weekend bolt – hole for the stressed – out inhabitants of Ho Chi Minh City.

Vinh Long

Ringed by water and besieged by boats and tumbledown stilt houses, the island that forms the heart of Vinh Long has the feel of a medieval fortress. However, if you find yourself yearning for a peaceful backwater, first impressions will be a let – down; central Vinh Long is hectic and noisy, its streets a blur of buses and motorbikes. Make for the waterfront, though, and it’s a different story, with hotels, restaurants and cafes conjuring up something of a Riviera atmosphere. From here you can watch the Co Chien River roll by, dotted with sampans, houseboats and the odd raft of river – weed. Though there’s little to see or do in town, Vinh Long offers some of the most interesting boat trips in the delta – to the Cai Be floating market, coconut candy workshop, fruit orchards or even overnight in home – stays.

Cai Be Floating Market

Cai Be’ floating market is one of the most popular in the delta, and also the most distinctive because of its backdrop of a slender cathedral spire. Throughout the day boats of all sizes throng in the water of the Tien Giang, with fruit vendors displaying a sample of their produce suspended from a stick. The market reaches its busiest at around midday when busloads of visitors on organized tours roll on to Cai Be village from Ho Chi Minh City, 110km away. They are shepherded on to boats for a few hours to explore the market and fruit orchards on nearby islands before zipping back to the city. While this may be convenient for those who are short of time, it’s all a bit rushed, and the midday heat can be oppressive. If you have a more relaxed schedule, meandering through the picturesque channels of An Binh Island between Vinh Long and Cai Be market, or overnight in a home-stay before visiting the market in the morning, offers a more rewarding experience. Cai Be is about 40km west of My Tho and lies just south of Highway 1

Cu Chi Tunnels

During the American War, the villages around the district of Cu Chi supported a substantial Viet Cong (VC) presence. Faced with American attempts to neutralize them, they quitter literally dug themselves out of harm’s way, and the legendary Cu Chi Tunnels were the result. Today, tourists can visit a short stretch of the tunnels, drop to their hands and knees and squeeze underground for an insight into life as a tunnel – dwelling resistance fighter. Some sections of the tunnels have been widened to allow passage for the fuller frame of Westerners but it’s still a dark, sweaty, claustrophobic experience, and not one you should rush into unless you’re confident you won’t suffer a subternaean freak – out.

There are two sites where the tunnels can be see – Ben Dinh and, 15km beyond, Ben Duoc, though most foreigners get taken to Ben Dinh. If you don’t want to jonnie a crowd in a bus, four people will pay around $50 for a taxi following the same itinerary. Another option is to go boat and return by bus ($14) contact Delta Adventure Tours for details.

The guided tour of Ben Dinh kicks off in a thatched hut, where a map of the region, a cross – section of the tunnels and a black and white movies bristling with national pride fill you in on the background. From there, you head out into the bush, where your guide will point out lethal booby – traps, concealed trap doors and an abandoned tank. There are several models showing how unexploded ordnance was ingeniously converted into lethal mines and traps, and a demonstration of how smoke from underground fires was cleverly dispersed far from its source.

When you reach the shooting range, you have the chance to shoulder an M16 or AK47 and shoot off a few rounds, or stop at the adjacent souvenir and snake stalls. Finally, you get the change to stoop, crawl and drag yourself through a section of the tunnels about 140 meters long (with frequent escape through, but the pitch blackness and inters humidity can be discomforting, so when you emerge, you’ll be glad you don’t have to live down there for weeks on end as the VC did.

ConDao Island

One of the stellar attractions in this region, the Con Dao Archipelago is slowly gaining attention for its startling natural beauty. Con Son, the largest of this chain of 15 islands and islets, is ringed with lovely beaches, coral reefs and scenic bays, and remains partially covered in thick forests. In addition to hiking, diving and exploring empty coastal roads and deserted beaches, there are some excellent wildlife-watching opportunities.

PhuQuoc island

PhuQuoc One of Vietnam’s star attractions, mountainous and forested Phu Quoc is a splendid tropical getaway set with beautiful white-sand beaches and quaint fishing villages. Adventure comes in many forms here – from motorbiking the empty dirt roads circling the island to sea kayaking its quiet inlets, scuba diving the coral reefs or simply having a bang-up seafood meal followed by a cocktail on the beach. Once a sleepy, backpackers’ retreat, Phu Quoc has ramped up tourism significantly, and visitors can now choose between five-star resorts and rustic family-run bungalows. Plans are underway for developing the island even more heavily – a la Phuket style. If package tourism isn’t your bag, get there now before this happens.