Where do you go during Tet?

HCM City, Nha Trang and Dalat are among the top-10 tourist destinations in Vietnam for foreigners during Tet (Vietnam’s Lunar New Year)

 

The Weekly did a poll on the top foreigner picks of the 10 best tourist destinations in Vietnam at Tet. Twenty foreigners who have worked and lived in Vietnam for a number of years participated in the poll.

 

Most agreed that HCM City is the best place to visit during the Tet holiday, as it will be totally different, offering tourists a great chance to enjoy its full beauty. “The best place during Tet for color, flowers, food, activity, noise and crowds is HCM City,” says Marc Townsend, managing director of CB Richard Ellis in Vietnam.

 

Interestingly enough, among the 10 tourist destinations, coastal localities make up the majority, with six. They are Nha Trang, Phu Quoc, Hoi An, Halong Bay, Mui Ne and Con Dao.

 

This reflects the trend in recent years that foreigners working and living in Vietnam like to enjoy the fresh atmosphere at beaches with their families and relax during holidays.

 

“If I have a chance to go somewhere during Tet, I will select a quiet little beach resort,” says Albert Kaindlbauer, general manager of the Renaissance Riverside Saigon Hotel.

 

Those who chose mountainous areas like Lao Cai or Dalat have specific reasons. Besides enjoying the cold and virtual silence, they like to meet and talk with ethnic people who are known to be very friendly, as well as understand their cultures.

 

“I will go to Dalat with my family because the atmosphere there is wonderful,” says Peter Healy, New Zealand consul general in HCM City.

 

In general, wherever these foreigners choose for traveling, they contribute to making the picture of Vietnam’s tourism more active. Below is a little information about each of the 10 destinations.

 

HCM City

There are many magnificent things to enjoy at Tet in HCM City, also known as Saigon. First and foremost is the Nguyen Hue Flower Street and Record Banh Tet Festival and fireworks which have become the city’s annual tradition. Nguyen Hue and Le Loi Streets are decorated with flowers and lights on a specific theme that changes annually. Tens of thousands of people, including tourists, visit the streets. “We were completely amazed by the transformation of the city, the street that became flower gardens, particularly Nguyen Hue and the parks that were filled with flower displays. HCM city is quite magical during that time and we would be sorry to miss out on the displays,” say Jan Johnston, wife of Bill Johnston, Canadian consul general in HCM City.

 

Flowers, bonsai, orchids and kumquat trees which represent happiness and prosperity are displayed for sale on streets like Nguyen Van Cu and Chau Van Liem streets. “I like going to the park and bargaining for kumquat trees and orchids,” says Johnston.

 

Another great thing about Saigon during this time is the quietness that cannot be felt at any other time. “The first day of Tet is the only day I drive around on a motorbike. I do not trust myself during the rest of the year,” says Townsend. “I love HCM City, but it’s always crowded. Tet is a great time for me to enjoy the beauty of the city as it is very quiet  since most people leave the city to visit their families in the countryside. It is cool and clean,: says Kurt Kleven, a freelance journalism teacher who has been in HCM City for nearly eight years. “There’s an absence of trucks combined with very little traffic, so we can walk all over town,” Johnston adds.

 

Nha Trang

Vietnamese, expats and international tourists flock to Nha Trang during Tet.

The city enjoys cool weather all year around. It also has lots of unspoiled islands and islets. So, the trees, sand dunes and beaches are its special features. Nha Trang Bay, which was recognized as one of the 29 most beautiful bays in the world, is also the reason people love it.

 

“In Nha Trang the beaches are wonderful,” says Johnston. “I love Nha Trang with its beautiful beaches, magnificent bays and scenery,” says Patrick Moran, a British volunteer marketing consultant who has been a resident in HCM City for over 12 years. “With boat trips, islands that aren’t destroyed with over-development but developed enough to be civilized, good value hotels, restaurants, and bars in a range of prices, Nha Trang is an ideal place for people having a beach holiday,” he adds.

 

Noah Littin from Blackhorse Asset Management, shares that cheap scuba diving, cheap middle of the road accommodations and fun bars are what he enjoys in Nha Trang. “It is a good place if you are desperate for cheap Western food,” he adds.

 

Da Lat

The Central Highlands city of Dalat is known all over Vietnam for its flowers. Next to Xuan Huong Lake, the Dalat Flower Garden established in 1966 owns a tastefully arranged flora, including orchids, hydrangeas, fuchsias and ferns. Across the road from the flower garden are nurseries with various types of bonsai trees, artfully laid out around the lake.

It is also known as the City of Love by not only local but foreign visitors thanks to the many romantic places and ancient architecture.

 

The Valley of Love is one of them. It is a regular spot for honeymoon couples and young people because of its big lake, pine forests and soft green hills.

 

Legend about lovers who came to sad ends surround the lakes in the city like Xuan Huong Lake, Da Thien Lake and Chien Thanh Lake.

 

This is partly the reason why, Thomas Jakobsen, former president of Tropical Dane Co., chooses the city for his third Tet in Vietnam. “We will go to Cat Tien National Park and trek a day and a half around the jungle. From Cat Tien, we will go to Dalat and relax for a few days and look at the beautiful villas, walk around the lake, and go to the night market,” Jakobsen says.

 

There are some exceptional buildings with a modern heritage. There is a peppering of fine inventive French architecture in many modern villas built during the French rule.

 

Johan Nyvene, CEO of HSC Corp., who has lived in Vietnam for more than 10 years, also loves to be in Dalat for Tet primarily because of the climate there at that time. “Besides the climate, I think the landscape and the architecture are also attractive to foreign residents in Vietnam,” he says.

 

The landscape Nyvene refers to is Langbian Mountain with five imposing peaks about 2,200m above sea level, the Lat Village with ethnic minority groups, the oldest active monastery in the city, Linh Son Pagoda, and Prenn Waterfall, among others.

 

Phu Quoc

In the spring and summer time, an interesting option for a holiday is a journey to Phu Quoc, the largest island in Vietnam, located in the southwest part of the country. One can go squid fishing, explore the rural life of marine creatures under the sea, or have a night time boat-party.

 

Tourists will enjoy the fresh seafood sold in the Ham Ninh fishing village, walk through the primeval forest to visit the market in Ganh Dau Commune, and then visit Chanh Stream, where factories which produce fish sauce and oysters farm for pearls.

 

Tourists can also visit Phu Quoc prison an An Thoi port and explore the beautiful Sao Beach in the southern part of the island.

 

When night falls, tourists will go to Duong Dong port to make a trip offshore on the Saigon-Phu Quoc boat, which is fully equipped with fishing tackle for a nighttime squid fishing tour. Finally, a seafood barbeque will be held welcoming all guests on the boat to enjoy the freshly fished seafood in the romantic and quiet ambience of the sea at night.

 

Brendan Smith, lecturer at RMIT University in HCM city, says: “I have planned to go to  Phu Quoc for the Tet holiday. The reason is that I have read that there is a lot of natural forests there and the natural environment is largely undisturbed. But I have also read about big areas of land being given over to business for use, and golf courses and huge resorts being approved for the island.”

This is the reason why the man living in Vietnam for more than 10 years wants to go to Phu Quoc now while ordinary tourists can walk in the forests and walk along the beaches without security guards telling them that the forest or beach is reserved for luxury resort guests, as happens elsewhere in Vietnam. “I am sure that my family will have an enjoyable time on Phu Quoc, making the most of the sea and the fresh air.”

 

This opinion is shared by Noah Littin from Blackhorse Asset Management. “I have been to Phu Quoc twice. My wife and I love it because there are good accommodations and it is very relaxing,” he says.

 

Lao Cai

When choosing a trip to the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai, the Bac Ha Market of Bac Ha District is a wonderful choice for the first days of the new year. Bac Ha Market is held every Sunday morning. From 6 a.m., groups of people, especially Red Dao and Flower H’mong, arrive with goods on their backs and gather in downtown Bac Ha. The sounds of talking and laughter and the colors of costumes made the market a more boisterous place. Bac Ha Market is for trading, but also for young people, friends and relatives to meet. Sapa is famous for its love market, which takes place on Saturday evenings.

 

The love market used to be the place to find a partner to get married. For example, young Red Dao hill tribe come to Sapa to sing songs to the opposite sex. Girls sang the songs while hidden the dark, and when a boy found them, and if they matched together, they disappeared into the forest for three days. Some of them got married after that.

 

Besides the markets, Lao Cai has a variety of places of interest: ancient stone fields, a silvery waterfall, Mount Fansipan, villages of Mong and Dao ethnic minorities, and Ham Rong Mountain.

 

These wonderful destinations are on the list of Claude M. Balland, general manager of Victoria Hoi An Resort, during this Tet. He has been living in Vietnam for 12 years and told the Weekly that Sapa at Tet is cold and beautiful. “Besides drinking wines, I like local residents there because they always share the happiness with tourists like me.”

 

Jon Dillingham, copy editor of Thanh Nien News, and Chris Jones also plan to go to Sapa as it has a winter atmosphere. They both have the same reason: “I have not been there and I want to try.”

 

Hoi An

Wonderful beaches, reasonably priced hotels, restaurants and bars, shops for the ladies and tailors for men if they are in the mood are highlights of Hoi An.

 

These are the first words of Patrick Moran, volunteer marketing consultant, when talking about the ancient town of Hoi An. “These places are all unique. Today, everywhere is the same and much too big. On travels around Europe my Vietnamese wife said :”I suppose you are taking me to another old place?” I said: “Let’s say 50 places. You are dropped in any one by helicopter. Not told which country. Ear muffs not to hear the language. Nevertheless you would know exactly where you were in seconds. These places all have a soul.” She agrees.

 

The ancient town is a registered UNESCO’s world heritage as being a well-preserved example of a Southeast Asian trading port dating back to the 15^th to 19^th centuries. Besides the ancient beauty of Hoi An, local tourism has turned the town into a must-visit tourism destination for shopping and relaxation with various arts and crafts and tailor shops, as well as a variety of coffee shops, bars and restaurants along the riverfront.

 

To explore the ancient town, tourists can walk, bike, or use a cyclo to peruse the narrow streets.

 

Halong Bay

The UNESCO-recognized natural heritage site with outstanding universal aesthetic value is a wonderful destination for those who love the cool weather and beautiful, naturally-shaped islands and islets.

 

Halong Bay, or the By of Descending Dragons, in Quang Ninh Province is one of the main tourist attractions of Vietnam. Its geographical feature is unique in the country. The bay has cool weather, clear water with smooth waves, and thousands of enormous limestone rocks dotting the seascape. There are some 2,000 varieties of enormous rocks topped with thick jungle vegetation scattered throughout.

 

The destination also has a history of inhabitants dated to the B.C time. Rocks and caves, such as Me Cung, Tien Ong, Dau Go and Thien Long, in the bay have carvings dated thousands of years ago that help tourists learn about the culture and history of the region. Visiting the bay, tourists will be told legends of inhabitants living there thousands of years ago.

Another attraction of the bay is its people who live on floating houses sustained by capture fishing and marine aquaculture. Tourists will be offered by the locals with journeys around the bay. “Halong is the choice of Vietnamese style vessels for boat trips but otherwise underdeveloped,” says Moran.

 

The Descending Dragon Bay also has three large chambers containing a great number of large stalactites and stalagmites. It is also home to big, famous islands, Tuan Chau and Cat Ba. Both of them are famous tourist attractions with well-equipped resorts and hotels. There are also a number of wonderful beaches on smaller islands.

 

In addition, it is also a marine and coastal ecosystem where there are various endemic species inhabiting. There are also more to mention, but real experiencing is the best way to learn about it, especially when time is greatly available like the Tet holiday.

 

“We will go to Halong Bay this Tet,” says Johnston.

 

Mui Ne

A day of discovery along the beach at the renowned resort world of Mui Ne in the central coastal province of Binh Thuan revitalizes visitors after seeing the beautiful sand dunes and the other natural landscapes of the resort world.

 

There are desolate and primeval beaches that have not been exposed to human exploitation, as well as imposing landscapes. There is also Doi Cat (Sand Hill), which has long been a creative subject of artistic photographs and paintings.

Besides beaches and sand dunes, there are also beautiful landscapes such as Suoi Tien (Fairy Spring), Ong Hoang Mansion and the Poshanu Cham Tower.

 

Just one kilometer from Mui Ne Town on the other side of the cape is Hon Ghenh, or Ghenh Islet, where coral reefs, fishing grounds and waterfalls are waiting to be discovered.

 

Mui Ne has been a place to relax for many foreigners working and living in Vietnam for their holidays, especially at Tet.

 

Jakobsen chooses Mui Ne and Phan Thiet the final destination in his trip for Tet. “I will go there to soak in the sun for a day or two. Mui Ne is a great place to relax and recharge the batteries for a new year.”

 

Amit Kumar Saxena, chairman of Indian Business Chamber in Vietnam, who has enjoyed 18 Tets in Vietnam, also likes to go to Mui Ne and Phan Thiet with his family during this Tet. “The best thing about Mui Ne and Phan Thiet resorts is that they are places where one can relax, have good seafood and spend time leisurely,” he says.

 

Mekong Delta

The Mekong Delta is the combination of people’s gentleness and the beauty of rivers, paddy fields and fruit groves.

 

The delta is home to many different provinces with different traditions and histories. It is an agriculture-based economy rich in fresh fruits and fish of various kinds. The attraction of the place is the natural features and traditional cultures that are still alive with its people who are famous for their friendliness, generosity and the richness of altruism.

 

Reffering to the Mekong Belta, tourists will probably think of Can Tho City with Cai Rang Floating Market, Soc Trang Province with Doi Pagoda, An Giang Province with Ba Chua Xu Pagoda, for instance. They are among the attractions that offer tourists a great experience. “Small villages, friendly locals, and people working on lands growing foods and fruits are the great things of the delta. They are remind me of the countryside in my country,” says Kleven.

 

The Tet holiday is the most crowded time of the region. People rush to their hometowns to get together with their families and relatives. “Mostly I was impressed by the effort made by everyone to get home for the holiday. Clearly in Vietnam family values are strong and people cherish their families,” says Johnston. It is the occasion for traditional values to be revived. There are flower markets on land or in the rivers. Some days prior to the New Year, the locals are busy preparing for their New Year, thus making the environment noisier.

 

Besides the humane and natural values, there is also the presence of the traditional arts value which is don ca tai tu that has lived with the locals for many generations. After first hearing the traditional music, visitors will have a strong feeling of love, humanity and close lines between people, which represent the characteristics of its locals.

 

Con Dao Island

Con Dao is in the East Sea about 97 nautical miles from Vung Tau City. Con Dao Island is totally undeveloped with nice beaches. Those interested in the natural scenery will easily fall in love with Con Dao once visiting it.

 

Con Dao has 16 islands of all sizes in which Con Son is the largest, being 5.15 hectares There are more than 20 beautiful sandy beaches. Con Dao used to be a prison in Vietnam’s revolutionary wars. The islands was also the home to Vietnameses ancestors 2,500 years ago from which period a number of stone and bronze relics have been found. Primitive forests on Con Dao are also favorite places for tourists to visit.

 

Con Dao has many beautiful beaches where tourists can swim and play. The most-likes beaches are Dat Doc, Dam Trau, Bay Canh, Lo Voi, Hon Cau and Ong Dung. All of those beaches slope gently, are sandy and have clear water.

 

It is a great paradise for scuba diving. Tourists can hire scuba gear and dive to discover the beauty of coral reefs and swim along with schools of colorful fish. “It provides some of the best scuba diving beaches in Vietnam. Great old and decaying French villas that are also fun to explore,” says Littin.

 

Also, activities such as swimming, sunbathing on the sandy beaches, hiking through the forests, picnicking, or eating seafood will leave tourists with an unforgettable experience.

 

Watching sea turtles on Bay Canh Island laying eggs has become one of the most interesting activities when tourists visit Con Dao.

 

“I have just booked a flight for Tet for me and my family to Con Dao for some very specific reasons. I have never been there and love to do and see new things in life. Also, my friends have told me that Con Dao is beautiful in terms of beaches and as a natural reservation. I hear from everybody that Con Dao is very pure and unspoiled and that is has a great underwater world,” says Johan Kruimer, head of brokerage, HCM City Securities Corp.

 

(Source: SGT)