English Newspaper praised the paradise of Con Dao

English Newspaper praised the paradise of Con Dao

The Con Dao island has a calm, clean sea and is ideal for snorkeling and diving activities throughout the year.


Con Dao is a district of 16 small islands located in the East Sea, with about 5,000 inhabitants. Con Dao or Con Son is the largest island. The news is transmitted fairly quickly and clearly with the loudspeaker. There are only two traffic lights and a coastal walk. Getting to this place, you will feel like going back to the past.

Peaceful space, peaceful on Con Dao. Picture: Tom Westbrook.

Only 45 minutes from Ho Chi Minh City, Con Dao is a completely different world, unlike Nha Trang resort or Phu Quoc beach. Con Dao does not have vendors selling guests but is the place of quiet beaches, the peak season here is not too crowded.


However, the tourist base here is thriving with the arrival of luxury resorts. Today, most of the visitors are still domestic visitors, visiting the island - once known as hell on earth. During the war, the French colonialists and American imperialists built the prison and had brutal executions with Vietnamese prisoners of war.


Over the harsh past, today's life on the island is somewhat modern but still bearing the old mark. The island is surrounded by turquoise waters and coral reefs. Paper jams add color to the jungle, and wildflowers and wildflowers add to the beauty of the roads.


One main route around the island, just a motorbike, can go along the coastline, see landscapes, lilies or red orange cliffs and white sandy stretches. The setting is calm, clean and ideal for year-round diving.

Early morning scene, busy people on the island. Picture: Tom Westbrook.

Ordinary days on the island start with the busy market with all kinds of shrimp, crabs, fish, cuttlefish and fruits are sold outside. Inside the market are young soldiers in blue clothes sitting on low plastic chairs. Their breakfast is a bowl of vermicelli, barbecue noodles. About 9h, the breakfast was sold out, until noon the market is empty.


Until 14pm, the market is vibrant again with the appearance of the burgers, juice and salad rolls. Just two hours selling, the market again, the sun began to dive behind the sea.



If you want to visit the other islands of Con Dao, go out for a walk and meet the fishermen, asking for permission to take the same trip the next morning. They will be willing to take you to the bay and coral reefs outside the main island. You just need to dive here to feel the diversity of the sea and know the best diving point in Vietnam.


When the sunshine of the day passes, many tourists choose motorbikes as a means of exploring Con Dao. In An Hai beach, one kilometer south of the island center, fishermen and pearl seekers board the boat ashore. Continue for about 6 km, to the road running along the beach, you will reach the farthest point south of the island, where can see all directions on Con Dao.

Water color as green jade in the beach, Con Dao. Picture: Tom Westbrook.

The road on the island embraces the cliffs, winds along the coastline and stops at Nhat beach, one of the beautiful beaches of Con Dao. The sandy beach stretches for hundreds of meters each time the tides come down, and the water is warmer and deeper. If you stay until dusk, you will be able to admire the skyline of the sparkling sea of ​​large ships off the coast.


Come here, do a coastal walks and relax. This is also the time when the barbecue and grilled corn are started. Most of the visitors go to the sun bathing in the daytime, swoop in the cool water and return when it is dark. So there are many people on the beach.


From the seashore across the road, you will find some old French villas, lush gardens. French composer Camille Saint-Saens used to live there when he completed the Brunhilda opera in 1895. Today, the building has become a famous café in Con Dao. Guests can stop and enjoy beer, ice cream and of course Vietnamese coffee.


At night, another market appeared on Tran Huy Lieu street, not far from the villa. The half way was filled with tables and chairs, grilled seafood and beer. Gathering together with friends to enjoy the late dinner here is a very interesting way to end it.