Why Mui Ne is Unique

Welcome to Mui Ne Beach, Vietnam. Here you can enjoy the finest weather in Vietnam (Mui Ne has the lowest annual rainfall in the entire country). Enjoy fine dining or local street food. Spend an exciting day of windsurfing or a reclusive morning at the White Sand Dunes. Shop at the Mui Ne Village Markets for cheap clothing and local produce, or visit the Phan thiet City to shop for traditional Vietnamese arts and crafts.

Mui Ne Beach and the surrounding Binh Thuan province have everything to offer. We have beautiful tropical beaches lined with groves of swaying palm trees; immense saharan sand dunes meandering for kilometers through colors of red, yellow and white. We have winding rivers teeming with fresh fish and crabs; tall mountains with bamboo rainforests and pristine waterfalls. There are deep red canyons parted by twisting streems and echoed by the sounds of tropical birds... we have everything you could ever want.

Mui Ne is quickly becoming known as the kiteboarding and windsurfing capitol of Vietnam. Likewise, neighboring Phan Thiet has one of the finest golf courses in the country. Development continues on a number of new and exciting venues for the area as well.

Mui Ne is a relatively new community. Phan Thiet is said to be less than 100 years old. In contrast, much of the resort areas of Mui Ne are less than 5 years old. Mui Ne is relatively "undiscovered" and is much more relaxed than other costal areas in Vietnam, and perhaps the friendliest. You won't be pestered by street venders here.

However you spend your vacation, you will find it to be one of the most relxing yet memorable yet. Come to the friendliest beach in Vietnam

Getting There and Away

From Ho Chi Minh City, travel East for 198 kilometers on Highway 1 to the city of Phan Thiet. Then take Route 706 East for another 22 kilometers to Mui Ne Beach (Ham Tien Ward).

Mui Ne Beach and Phan Thiet may be easily reached by car or bus. All major tour operators visit Mui Ne. Trains also stop in Muong Man, and then a connecting train ticket can be purchased to Phan Thiet. There is no local airport. Please visit our Tours and Transport section to arrange transportation.

Flora and Fauna

At the beach itself you will not find a lot of wildlife. However, in the dunes are a variety of birds, snakes, lizards, insects, frogs and crabs. Of note are the giant milipedes and cobras! the Fairy Springs offers a glimps of wild flowers, butterflies, freshwater fish and crabs. At the water's edge, you can watch fishermen pull in their nets full of squid, octopus, cuddle fish, jellifish, fish, crabs, and on rare occasions, sea snakes.

For More Please See

• Photo Gallery for pictures of local wildlife.
• Feature on Hon Cau-Vinh Hao Proposed Marine Protected Area
• Feature on Ta Kou Mountain Nature Reserve
• Feature on Nui Ong Nature Reserve
• Feature on Kalon-Song Mao Nature Reserve
• Map of Nature Reserves in Binh Thuan Province
• Map of Nature Reserves in SE Vietnam

History, Culture and Economy

Mui Ne means "sheltered peninsula," and indeed, is used as a seasonal harbor by local fisherman.This area was previous occupied by the Cham Kingdom, as testified to by the Cham Towers overlooking Phan Thiet. The towers were built in the 8th century to worship Shiva, and are said to be among the oldest in Vietnam. Beside these three towers, there was once a temple, but it has been buried in the ground for more than 300 years. There is now a modern pagoda beside them. Inside the main tower is an altar, on which a couple of Liga-Yoni sit. In Binh Thuan Province (where Mui Ne is situated) in 1306, King Tran Nhan Tong agreed to the marriage of princess Huyen Chan to King Jaya Sinhavarman III of the Cham Kingdom. The area is rich in local lore and superstition, with many stories of ghosts, fairies, local gods, monsters, magic and miracles, both ancient and recent.

In 1692, Nguyen Phuc Chu captured the area and named it Binh Thuan Dinh. The city of Phan Thiet is very new however, and the modern occupation of this area is only within the last century. Phan Thiet is the provincial capitol, and Mui Ne is more or less a suburb.

The Lonely Planet Travel Guide states that during the French colonial period, Europeans lived in a segregated area North of the Ca Ti River (Phan Thiet River), while Vietnamese, Cham, Southern Chinese, Malaysians and Indonesians lived on the southern side. We have not independently verified this information yet. While certainly individuals still remain or have immigrated recently from these groups (particularly Cham and Chinese) and others, there are not currently any ghettos or active minority communities within Phan Thiet. However, just outside the city there are several little-known ethnic minority villages.

Binh Thuan province has 27 ethnic groups living together, including Kin, Cham, K'ho, Rai, Chan Ro, Nung, Tay. Minority peoples total nearly 76,000 persons and account for over 7% of the province's population. The ethnic minority people mainly inhabit 15 separate communes and 20 mixed villages. Eleven of the fifteen are mountainous groups with 2,669 households and 14,044 persons, and the remaining four are Cham with 3,623 households and 20,714 persons.

The ethnic K'ho, Rai and Chan Ro today carry out intensive farming. The average family works 1.5 ha Crops also include cashew, rubber trees, coffee, mango, lichee, orange, lemon, banana and dragon fruit. Binh Thuan has 6,500 ha of wet rice fields, 1,000 ha of corn fields and 3,000 ha of orchards. The electronic age has come to Vietnam's minorities as well. Among the minority groups, 68% of the households having radios and televisions.

Ho Chi Minh spent a year in neighboring Phan Thiet City. Duc Thanh School, cultural and historical relic, situated at Number 39, Trung Nhi Street, was built in 1907. In 1910, teacher Nguyen Tat Thanh (later President Ho Chi Minh) stayed and taught at Duc Thanh School for one year. Presently, the School has preserved many objects that relate to the life of life of Ho Chi Minh, such as a writing table, an ink-slab, and a wooden bed. The Ho Chi Minh Museum is next door.

The city of Phan Thiet is the provincial capitol of Binh Thuan, with an estimated population of nearly 100,000 people. It was officially upgraded from a town to a city in 1999. Phan Thiet is situated between mountains, rivers, sand dunes and the ocean. It has the lowest annual rainfall of just about anywhere in the country and a true desert region. Due to the low rainfall and cool ocean breezes, Mui Ne has some of the best weather in all of SE Asia. Mui Ne is just "over the ridge" from Phan Thiet, locked behind the sand dunes and pressed up against the sea.

The local economy depends upon Fishing (and most notably fish sauce or "nuoc mam"), agriculture (mostly green dragon fruit), and tourism. In what it does, it excels! Binh Thuan province is the world capitol of dragon fruit, produces the country's most prized fish sauce, and has 70% of the country's total resorts sitting on its beaches. According to local statistics, nearly 100 different varieties of fish are harvested here with an annual yield of more than 70,000 tons. Phan Thiet also produces about 16-17 million liters of fish sauce each year. Products are shipped not only around Vietnam, but throughout Asia, and may even find their way to your home country. Salt is also an important product (you can see may salt fields in Phan Thiet and South of Khe Ga). You'll find prices much cheaper than Siagon or Nha Trang here. People are also much more poor in this area.

On October 24, 1995, thousands rushed to Phan Thiet and Mui Ne, after scientists announced Binh Thuan would be the only place in Vietnam where people can perfectly observe a full solar eclipse. It is said that this is the day the tourist industry in Binh Thuan began. On the tenth anniversary of this event the "Binh Thuan Tourism Festival" was born.

Mui Ne and Phan Thiet are quickly developing. All the resorts and restaurants in Mui Ne are less than 10 years old. Mui Ne Bay is quickly becoming a new mecha for windsurfing and kitesurfing enthusiasts in South East Asia. With perfect weather, lots of sunshine and wind year-round, Mui Ne Bay is perhaps the best spot for kiting in the region. There are a number of new and exciting projects in development that will change not only this area permanently, but will also benefit the entire country and this region. Stay tuned to this website to learn about these projects.

Medical and Pharmacies

There are small pharmacies and clinic in Mui Ne. Phan Thiet offers better facilities and large hospitals. For serious procedures, you may want to head to Saigon which is 3-4 hours away. You can purchase just about any medical supplies you could need it Phan Thiet. Dental is also available here.

What to Bring

• Larger-sized people may have difficulty buying cloths in the market. Best to bring enough cloths with you, or have them tailor-made here
• Electronic gadgets, battery chargers, laptop equipment. There are not a lot of shops for this in neighboring Phan Thiet.
• DVDs and Audio CD's. There are not many shops in Phan Thiet (there are a few though), that sell foreign digital media (except in VCD format).
• Reading material. Only a few shops in Mui Ne have a very limited selection of foreign reading material.
• Sun protection. You can buy it here but you should have it ready from the time you get off the bus.

What to Buy Here

Phan Thiet and Mui Ne have minimal shopping for souvenirs and items of interest to most tourists. Highlights of shopping here include:

• Nuoc Mam (fish souce)
• Local Produce (especially Dragon Fruit)
• Embroidery
• Cham textiles (in small quantities)
• Paintings & Photos (in small quantities)
• Ceramics (in small quantities)

What NOT to Buy Here

There are some products which you may find for sale here which you should avoid. These may be illegal in Vietnam or your home country, or simply may encourage destruction of the environment and harm to the local people. These include:

• Coral and coral products. Buying these products encourages destruction to Vietnam's irreplacable coral reefs.
• Sea Turtle products. You may find preserved sea turtles in shops - particularly sold in the open in Hanoi. This should be obvious--but sea turtles are endangered and all products made from them are illegal.
• Rice wine containing whole animals or animal products. Wildlife populations have been decimated in Vietnam. Many of the animals and animal parts used as ingredients in rice wine are globally threatened and endagered - including the snakes.
• Ivory, bone and tooth products. This animal product will be illegal in most home countries, regardless of which animal it came from. The only allowable products may be those made from farm animals--but this may be very difficult to distinguish.
• Alligator and crocodile leather. This is illegal to transport between many countries.
• Drugs - including marajuana are illegal and the sale or use of them can carry SEVERE penalties.
• Prostitution is illegal and destroys not only yourself, the person you engage with, and your family. Aids and other serious STDs are VERY COMMON in Vietnam--even the countryside.

Phan Thiet

Phan Thiet is a small city and does not offer some of the excitement of it's neighbors, Saigon and Nha Trang. The main social spots are the cafes, with a few very small nightclubs and discos. It does however have a beautiful location on the Ca Ty river and the beach.

Important Addresses in Phan Thiet (not exhaustive)

Industrial & Commercial Bank With ATM Cash Machine
261 Tran Hung Dao St.

Post Office
Nguyen Tat Thanh St.

Everythings about Mui-Ne on http://www.muinebeach.net