48 Hours in Cu Lao Cham: Experience Slow Living Amidst Pristine Nature

🗺️ 48 Hours in Cu Lao Cham: Experience Slow Living Amidst Pristine Nature

Cu Lao Cham is a cluster of 8 islands covering approximately 15 km² in Tan Hiep Commune, Hoi An City. The largest island is Cu Lao (or Hon Lao), which has many tourist activities, and smaller islands including Hon Khô Mẹ, Hon Khô Con, Hon Lá, Hon Dài, Hon Mồ, Hon Tai, and Hon Ông. Most visitors to Cu Lao Cham go for day trips. However, if you have time and enjoy experiencing pristine nature, visitors can choose to stay overnight on the island to slow down and enjoy a relaxing feeling.

This 48-hour itinerary in Cu Lao Cham is based on a real schedule from July 2024 by reader Duy Tran and advice from a tour operator in Hoi An.

📅 Detailed Itinerary

Day 1: Island Exploration and Relaxation

🚤 Departure from Hoi An

The pier on Cu Lao Cham Island where high-speed boats from the mainland dock. Photo: NVCC

🎫 Tour Purchase and Visiting Key Attractions

Visitors should buy a day tour priced from 400,000 to 500,000 VND per person, including boat fare to the island, island entrance fee, and coral diving services. The tour also includes lunch and travel insurance. Visitors staying overnight on the island will need to pay separately for the return boat fare and accommodation.

After visiting these attractions, visitors will go snorkeling to view coral, mainly shallow diving with life jackets and goggles. For premium experiences like scuba diving with oxygen tanks, visitors will need to pay extra, ranging from 800,000 to one million VND outside the tour package.

🍽️ Lunch at Bai Ong

Have lunch at Bai Ong. Restaurants here mainly serve day-trip visitors, so it’s quite crowded at noon but quiet in the evening. Bai Ong has public freshwater bathing facilities.

🏠 Check into a Homestay

Bai Lang and Bai Huong are two areas with homestays and small hotels serving tourists. These accommodations offer basic services with private sanitation. Room prices range from 300,000 to 700,000 VND.

🏖️ Free Beach Time

Rent a motorbike to explore beaches on the island including Bai Bac and Bai Ong. Bike rental on the island is more expensive than on the mainland, averaging about 200,000 VND per day, including fuel. Visitors can stop anywhere to swim freely.

“Bai Bac is very secluded. This is a turtle conservation area, so boats and ships are not allowed to dock. The road to Bai Bac has many sections under repair, making travel somewhat difficult” - Mr. Duy notes.

Afternoon at Bai Bac. Photo: NVCC

🍽️ Dinner at Bai Lang

Dining in Cu Lao Cham shouldn’t miss seafood and Central Vietnam specialties. Visitors can enjoy grilled abalone, lobster, grilled scallops, oysters, fish salad, grilled Venus shells, rice soup, or forest vegetables with fish sauce, Quang noodles, and Cao Lau noodles. Note that raw salads or oysters are better consumed at lunch for freshness.

The row of restaurants at Bai Lang offers beautiful views directly facing the pier. Suggested restaurants: Dan Tri, Sunbay, Ngan Ha.

Day 2: Deeper Exploration and Return

🛵 Motorbike Ride Around the Island

“The coastal road around the island has been paved with concrete, so you can travel entirely by motorbike. However, note that there are many steep sections” - Mr. Duy says.

Eo Gio is located on the coastal road of Bai Huong on the main Cu Lao Cham island, about 3 km from Bai Lang, and is considered the best spot to watch sunrise on the island. This season Cassia fistula flowers are blooming in Cu Lao Cham, so along the island’s roads, visitors can see the bright orange flowers everywhere. Visitors can stop at Bai Lang, Bai Xep, Bai Bim, or Bai Huong.

🍽️ Breakfast at Local Eateries

In the morning, many locals in Cu Lao Cham set up stalls selling local food for visitors to have breakfast such as rice pancakes, vermicelli noodles, and rice cakes. Drink coffee at Ray Ong Bang - the only mountain-top café on Cu Lao Cham.

From here, you can observe the panoramic view of Bai Chong from above.

🏖️ Stop at Bai Xep and Beach Time

According to locals, each beach has its own beauty, so if time permits, visitors can visit other beaches not explored on the first day such as Bai Huong, Bai Chong, and Bai Xep. These beaches have many foreigners lying around relaxing and sunbathing.

Similar to Bai Bac, Bai Xep is also a place where no motorboats or ships dock, so it’s “completely free of smoke or fuel odors.”

🚤 Return to Mainland

Have lunch at Bai Lang and board the boat back to the mainland on the latest trip at 2

PM. Visitors should note that there are no boat trips in the late afternoon, so they need to arrange their schedule accordingly to avoid missing the boat.

📷 Cu Lao Cham Photo Album

Below is a collection of beautiful images of Cu Lao Cham for your reference:

🏖️ Beautiful Beach Scenes

Beautiful beach in Cu Lao Cham

Blue sea scenery in Cu Lao Cham

Peaceful beach in Cu Lao Cham

🌊 Island and Mountain Scenery

Island scenery from above

Mountain ranges in Cu Lao Cham

Beautiful sunset scenery in Cu Lao Cham

🌸 Cassia Fistula Blooming in Cu Lao Cham

Bright red Cassia fistula in Cu Lao Cham

Village road with Cassia fistula

Cassia fistula by the beach

Scenery during Cassia fistula season

Cassia fistula and mountain ranges

Cassia fistula garden

Cassia fistula and blue sea

Beautiful scenery during Cassia fistula season

Cassia fistula and fishing village

⚠️ Travel Tips for Cu Lao Cham

• 📋 Documents: Visitors to Cu Lao Cham should bring complete personal documents
• 💰 Tours: Joining a Cu Lao Cham tour is usually cheaper than buying tickets and traveling independently
• 🎫 Options: Visitors can buy full itinerary tours or day tours
• 🔒 Security: Security on the island is quite good
• 🚗 Motorbikes: “Visitors can leave motorbike keys without worry of theft. When returning the bike, just take a photo of where it’s parked and send to the host” - Mr. Duy adds

Author: Tam Anh