HCM City – Vung Tau Fishing – 3 day Loop

Route Summary:

Duration: 3 days - 430 kms

For those who like fishing this is a great weekend ride opportunity. Day one is around 3.5 hours so with Friday afternoon off, easy done. All fishing gear can be hired on site and food and beverage is also covered.

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Day 1: HCM City - Vung Tau via River - 165 Kms

Cat Lai - Vung Tau via River

Distance: 145 kms

From the first right hand turn you get the feeling Saigon is well behind you and it’s game on.

Though at this point still a view to D7 over the river its a very different environment for the first timer out of the city. I remember it some 13 years ago fondly for that.

The first stretch of the river road was unsealed but generally pretty solid with plenty of pot holes but we were out of the rat race and into the fun. These days its all concrete so accessible even for scooters.

A lot of the land along the river is low lying wetland. Its an amazing area really considering its in such close proximity to the countries largest concrete jungle.

There’s always plenty to keep you interested. This isn’t a fast ride but one to relax and take it all in along the way.

(A, B, C, & D) Are all just way points on this one to keep you exploring off the main arterials. The coffee stop is a good one.

There is a short unavoidable stint on the QL51 before the left turn which gets you back on some quiet back roads again. The farmland areas this side of the highway are very different to the river section adding great diversity to the day.

(E) Is a winding bitumen road and the best of the ride if time allows. There’s plenty of off tracks and temples to explore up there also.

(F & G) Take you the best way into town and are two of the better seafood restaurants if a late lunch or early dinner is in order. The second on the water is my preference.

One of our preferred accommodation options overlooking the harbour and sunset. Vung Tau is on a peninsula and unique in Vietnam for a number of reasons. One most notable is that the sunrise is over the back beach and sunset over the front beach.

Vung Tau, the city I choose to base myself, has over 500,000 residents but doesn’t feel that big. A clean city with a good year around climate and a lot to offer visitors. To date not particularly well marketed but I feel that will change with the development of the beach areas in progress and planned for the near future.

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Day 2: Vung Tau - Bull Arena Fishing - 115 kms Loop

Vung Tau - Bull Arena Fishing

Distance: 115 kms

An early ferry or VIP bus to Vũng Tàu from Saigon and this could be a day of two great Vung Tau loops for the weekend. Always got bikes by appointment ready to go there.

No gear and no bait required for this great day out. 900k a fisherman all inclusive outside of food and beverage.

(A & B) keep you on the coast early and (C & D) divert you into a local fishing village. Some coffee ladies there if you didn’t get that out of the way early.

(E) Then inland to this very nicely set up and well stocked freshwater lake.

The equipment for hire is first class and comes with bait and a guide to keep the bait baskets coming.

(F) takes you the right way to (G), the memorial cross in memory of the 18 Australian and 245 Vietnamese soldiers killed In the August 1966 Battle of Long Tan.

(H) back to a great spot for a few sundowners and reflect on the day.

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Day 3: Vung Tau - Cat Lai via Lakes - 150 kms

Vung Tau - Cat Lai Ferry via Lakes

Distance: 150 Kms

One of many inaccuracies I hear from foreigners here is that the ride to and from Saigon and Vung Tau is terrible. On the arterials yes, but this diverse farmland ride through rubber, corn, banana, pepper, sweet potato and cassava is relaxed and interesting.

If you’re on a loop I likely had you on the river tracks down as it gets you out of the city traffic the quickest but this lakes run is my favourite. Be aware in wet season the trails through the rubber plantations are very slippery.

Plenty of great deviations off this map too so if you have time, follow it loosely and enjoy some exploring. Many of the trails aren’t on maps but it doesn’t matter you’ll pick it up again later.

(A) is a popular photo stop. Usually a lady set up there for a morning coffee too.

(B) takes you on the beach road through a fishing village and marks where you turn inland to the rubber plantations

(C) is a memorial cross in memory of the 18 Australian and 245 Vietnamese soldiers killed In the August 1966 Battle of Long Tan.

(D) and (E) gets you to the next lake though casava and pepper crops.

(F) A chocolate factory is your lunch stop on another lovely lake. Orders take a while but the food is good and the portion sizes very generous.

(G) takes you past two more lakes and is the point we turn left on some trails. Nothing technical but easy to map around it if necessary.

(H) is a random coffee shop marked only to take you around a favourite police haunt for their coffee indulgence.

(I) on the ferry and if returning to our D2 shop just 13km dealing with most riders daily reality here.

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