By: Mark Gwyther. The beach is the main attraction, and choosing the right place to stay is very important if your goal is to have quality beach time. The resorts have private beach rights allowing them to keep non-guests away from guests. It also motivates the resorts to keep their beach clean. Beaches in front of the other resorts can accumulate garbage from the locals who come to the bay in the morning and evenings.
Waking up for sunrise is highly recommended and may be a highlight of your trip to Vietnam. You will also see many of the traditional round boats out in the bay as the fisherman collect their daily catch. The hundreds of locals mysteriously disappear around AM and the beach is all yours until the evening.
In fact, during the daytime you may not see anyone on the beach. If you love to wind surf or kite surf, then Ninh Chu Bay is a paradise. A consistent, strong wind begins blowing before noon and lasts until the evening. Jet skis and motorboats are still unknown, leaving just a few fishing boats as the competition.
As of now, none of the resorts rent equipment, however. If you feel like exploring, behind the Saigon Tourist Hotel and within walking distance from the center of the bay, is a hill with several temples and pagodas. Pathways make it easy for visitors to walk up to the statues among the hills and look out over the area.
It is a very peaceful place. Thap Cham is the location of two of the most famous Cham temples. The most popular is Po Klong Garai, which was built in the 13th century and is still an active site for Cham celebrations. Unlike many old ruins, the government has recently renovated the attraction and it is kept in good shape. If you want to take a day trip, the most popular attraction for the Vietnamese tourists is near-by Vinh Hy Bay.
