Con Dao Vietnam is one of the famous tourist destinations in the Southern region of Vietnam. Beyond its spiritual significance, Con Dao tourism is also known to many as a relaxing paradise with attractive places and unique culinary culture. If you don’t know where to go and what to eat, the self-guided Con Dao travel tips in the article below will help you have a meaningful and complete trip!
[Image: Con Dao tourism attracts a large number of visitors due to its wild and rustic beauty.]
1. A Few Words About Con Dao
Con Dao is an island district comprising 16 large and small islands, under the management of Ba Ria – Vung Tau province, with an area of 76km². Con Dao is located 185km from Vung Tau city, 230km from Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), 83km from Can Tho, and about 1,700km from Hanoi.
With mainly hilly terrain, Con Dao has a hot and humid sub-equatorial – maritime climate with two distinct seasons: wet and dry. Con Dao possesses a diverse marine ecosystem along with many naturally beautiful beaches, attracting tourists to visit and experience every year.
2. The Ideal Time to Travel to Con Dao
The period from March to October is the most ideal time to travel to Con Dao. At this time, the weather in Con Dao is quite beautiful, the sea is calm, the wind is gentle, and the rain does not last long, making it very suitable for participating in activities on the sea. Besides, this is the time when turtles flock to Con Dao to lay eggs, so you can visit to witness this especially interesting moment firsthand.
[Image: You should visit Con Dao from March to October to enjoy the best weather and witness the turtles laying eggs.]
3. Guide to Getting to Con Dao
For a self-guided trip to Con Dao, you can choose a mode of transport suitable for your distance and budget, specifically:
3.1. How to Get to Con Dao
You can choose one of the two means of transport to Con Dao currently available:
– By Plane: If traveling from distant locations, you can book a flight ticket to Con Dao to save time and ensure your health upon arrival on the island. Currently, Bamboo Airways operates a variety of one-way/round-trip flights to Con Dao with good prices and many attractive offers.
[Image: Traveling to Con Dao by plane is very suitable for visitors who get seasick or want to save time.]
– By Boat/Ferry: You can travel to Vung Tau or Soc Trang city and then take a ferry to Con Dao. This will help you save costs for your Con Dao trip. However, visitors need to have good health to travel for a long time when going to Con Dao by boat.
3.2. How to Get Around Con Dao
Based on experience traveling in Con Dao, you can choose many types of transportation depending on your needs and finances through the comparison table below:
4. What’s Attractive About Con Dao Tourism?
The ideal tourist spots and local specialties below will surely make your Con Dao experience more complete.
4.1. Discover Nature in Con Dao
A self-guided trip to Con Dao is an opportunity for you to explore beautiful nature with ideal stopping points such as:
– Mui Chan Chim (Bird’s Foot Cape):
Mui Chan Chim is a Con Dao tourist spot with beautiful natural scenery, a long white sand beach, and clear, sapphire-blue seawater. In addition, Mui Chan Chim also attracts tourists with fresh seafood dishes available at nearby restaurants and eateries.
[Image: Mui Chan Chim is poetic and charming with clear, emerald-green seawater.]
– Dam Tre Bay:
Located in the North of Con Dao, the pristine Dam Tre Bay is surrounded by bamboo and mangrove forests, making it quite sheltered from the wind. It is also where swiftlets fly to build their nests during the annual breeding season. Here, you can swim, scuba dive to see coral, climb mountains, or visit the mangrove forest.
– Hon Cau (Cau Island):
The characteristic feature of Hon Cau is the long white sand beach backing against the mountain in an arc shape, embracing the clear blue water of the sea. Surrounding it are towering coconut trees and majestic rows of trees that provide a peaceful and pristine setting for Hon Cau.
– Ong Dung Primeval Forest:
Ong Dung Primeval Forest is an ideal trekking spot for young people today to immerse themselves in the wild natural scenery. In addition, you can rest, fish, or immerse yourself in the clear blue water to scuba dive and see coral.
[Image: You can go trekking to explore nature in the Ong Dung Primeval Forest.]
4.2. Visit Historical Sites
Besides the natural exploration spots, a trip to Con Dao is also an opportunity for you to visit national historical sites such as:
– Con Dao Museum:
Con Dao Museum is where more than 2,000 valuable documents and artifacts about both nature and the people here are preserved and displayed. Furthermore, you will have the opportunity to learn more deeply about the history of the Con Dao prison struggle over 113 years of our nation.
– Hang Duong Cemetery:
Con Dao is famous as a spiritual tourist destination with Hang Duong Cemetery – the resting place of Ms. Vo Thi Sau and more than 2,000 other national martyrs. The evening is the time when tourists visit the cemetery to pay respects and pray.
– Con Dao Prison System:
According to Con Dao travel experience, your journey will be more meaningful when visiting the prison system, which was dubbed “hell on earth” at that time. When you come here, you will visit historical sites such as the American Tiger Cages, French Tiger Cages, Phu Hai Prison, or the Island Lord’s House.
– Nui Mot Pagoda (Van Son Tu):
As the only pagoda on the island, Nui Mot Pagoda was built on a high mountain peak in 1964. From Nui Mot Pagoda, you can look out into the distance to fully admire the beautiful scenery of the green forest, the town, Con Son Bay, and An Hai Lotus Lake.
[Image: Nui Mot Pagoda is built on a high mountain, helping you fully admire the scenery of Con Dao.]
4.3. Enjoy Con Dao Cuisine
Con Dao tourism is not only known to many for its pristine natural scenery and national historical sites but is also famous for its specialty dishes such as:
– Oyster Porridge (Cháo hàu):
Oyster porridge is a nutritious dish made from rice and the fresh, fatty oysters of Con Dao, with a little seasoning added. When you eat it, you will feel the aroma of the rice blending with the sweet, cool taste of the oysters, bringing an unforgettable flavor.
– Steamed Moon Crab (Cua mặt trăng hấp):
Moon crab is an extremely rare type of seafood in Con Dao. When steamed, you eat the crab meat dipped in a little green chili salt and will feel the sweetness of the crab right on your tongue. Besides, moon crab can also be prepared in many other ways, such as tamarind sauce or in a hot pot.
– Shark Salad (Gỏi cá nhám):
The firm meat from the middle of the shark’s back is filleted, then sliced into small pieces and mixed with galangal and lemongrass to remove the fishy smell. After that, the shark meat is mixed with dipping sauce and many other spices. You will feel the soft, fragrant taste of the fish and the spicy and sour flavors of the accompanying spices.
– Grilled Sea Urchin (Nhum biển nướng):
Sea urchins are halved, then drizzled with a layer of scallion oil and grilled over hot charcoal. When you hear the sizzling sound and the fragrant smell of the sea urchin permeates the air, you just need to use a spoon to eat it immediately while it’s hot.
[Image: Grilled sea urchin is a particularly delicious dish not to be missed when traveling to Con Dao.]
4.4. What to Buy as a Souvenir from Con Dao?
Surely the following gifts from Con Dao will please your family and friends, such as:
– One-Sun Dried Mackerel (Cá thu một nắng):
After catching, the mackerel is processed, cut into pieces, washed with water, and then sun-dried for 1 day. One-sun dried mackerel can be made into many dishes, such as fried, braised, or grilled, with high sweetness, good chewiness, and no fishy taste.
– One-Sun Dried Squid (Mực một nắng):
The squid is processed after being caught at night and then sun-dried for 1 day. One-sun dried squid is chosen by many tourists as a gift because of its particularly sweet, soft, and chewy deliciousness. This specialty can be prepared by grilling with chili salt or with fragrant chili sauce.
– Tropical Almond Jam (Mứt hạt bàng):
After harvesting, the Con Dao tropical almonds are shelled and then roasted with salt or sugar to create a delicious jam. Because of its characteristic fragrant, fatty, and nutty flavor, tropical almond jam is chosen by many Con Dao tourists to buy as gifts for family and friends.
[Image: Con Dao tropical almond jam has a particularly fragrant, fatty, and nutty flavor.]
– Con Dao Ginseng Wine (Rượu Sâm Côn Đảo): Speaking of Con Dao gifts with high nutritional value, ginseng wine certainly cannot be overlooked. This wine is steeped with ginseng roots grown for many years in Con Dao. This rarity further increases the value of Con Dao Ginseng Wine in terms of both nutrition and price.
5. Con Dao Travel Tips
Unlike other tourist destinations, you need to be aware of a few tips when traveling to Con Dao to limit unexpected issues during your journey to experience this land:
– Wear polite and discreet clothing when visiting spiritual and historical sites in Con Dao.
– If you go swimming, pay attention to beach regulations and the lifeguard team.
– When exploring the forests in Con Dao, be sure to follow marked trails and absolutely do not try to find your own way through the forest.
– Bring plenty of cash as there are only 2 ATMs on the island (in the Pham Van Dong area and the town center), and electronic payment services are not widely popular here.
– Fill up the gas tank before you set off, as there are only 2 gas stations on the island.
– Prepare all necessary items and medicines such as sunscreen, jackets, motion sickness pills, stomach ache medicine, mosquito and insect repellent, etc.
– Always carry personal identification documents with you for use when needed.
– Choose appropriate clothing for climbing or trekking, such as jeans, long-sleeved shirts, baseball caps, and sports shoes.
6. Frequently Asked Questions
When planning your trip to Con Dao, you will surely encounter a few of the following questions:
Some festivals in Con Dao also attract tourists to visit to learn about the special culture here, such as Con Dao Commemoration Day (the 20th day of the 6th lunar month), Ms. Sau’s Death Anniversary (the 27th day of the 12th lunar month), Ba Phi Yen’s Death Anniversary (the 18th day of the 10th lunar month), etc.
Con Dao still retains the wild beauty gifted by Mother Nature. Therefore, Con Dao tourism is increasingly attracting attention for its natural scenery, historical relics, and unique culinary culture. We hope that the shares from us will help you have a memorable self-guided trip to Con Dao. Don’t hesitate—hunt for good-priced flight tickets to Con Dao right now!
