Share experiences of independent travel to Con Dao

Over time, Con Dao has gradually transformed from a “hell on earth”, a “one-way prison”, to one of the most wonderful tourist and resort paradises in Vietnam. With its wild, mysterious but extremely wonderful beauty, Con Dao is truly a “fairyland” with vast sea and sky and rare fresh air.

How to go to Con Dao?

- Plane

This is the fastest way to travel, but currently there are only two direct flights to Con Dao: Ho Chi Minh City and Can Tho City. The airfare to Con Dao from Ho Chi Minh City is about 1.5 million VND/way and from Can Tho is cheaper (about 1 million VND/way). If you go from Hanoi, you will have to take a connecting flight to Tan Son Nhat and continue another flight to Con Dao. Therefore, the ticket price will also be much higher.

There are currently only two direct flights to Con Dao.

- Ship

As an offshore island of Vung Tau, there are currently daily boats going to Con Dao, namely Con Dao 9 and Con Dao 10, with a capacity of 200 passengers/boat. However, due to the distance from shore and the dependence on weather factors, the boat schedule is often not fixed. The ticket price from Cat Lo port (Vung Tau) to Con Dao is usually around 150,000-200,000 VND per trip.

- Speedboat to Con Dao

For boats departing from Vung Tau, they will depart from Cau Da port to Ben Dam, Con Dao. Ticket prices range from 660,000 VND to 1.2 million VND/trip. Or if you take the Superdong boat from Soc Trang to Con Dao, the ticket price is 310,000 VND/trip, departing from Tran De port, Soc Trang to Ben Dam port, Con Dao.

How to get around in Con Dao?

With a small island like Con Dao, you should rent a motorbike to fully explore the roads and tourist attractions of Con Dao.

To rent a car, you can contact hotel owners, motels or car rental services, the price is about 100 - 200,000 VND depending on the type of car. Besides, bicycles are also a means of transport that you cannot ignore if you want to explore the island in the most environmentally friendly way.

Staying in Con Dao

Hotels in Con Dao mostly fall into two categories. The first is resorts with 3-star standards or higher, which are the expected addresses for a truly luxurious and extremely private beach vacation. Room rates for 3-star hotels usually range from 1,300,000 VND/night or more.

The second option is for those who do not want to spend too much on accommodation. Room rates range from 500,000 VND/night for a standard hotel room. In addition, motels and homestays with spacious rooms, close to the beach are also options that can be considered for your self-sufficient, economical Con Dao tour.

Con Dao tourist destination

- Dam Trau Beach

Dam Trau is also one of the most beautiful beaches in Con Dao. While swimming, you can also watch planes landing, a unique feature only found here.

- Hot Spring Beach

A short forest path from Dam Trau beach is Suoi Nong beach. The advantage here is the wild beauty as well as the rare mangrove ecosystem. This is a beautiful beach like a vivid picture of the tropical sea with flat white sand and cool clear water.

- Hon Bay Canh

As the second largest island among 16 islands of Con Dao, it has the largest number of sea turtles coming to lay eggs in Vietnam. The nature here is especially wild, so every year hundreds of mother turtles come to the beach to lay eggs, creating an extremely unique landscape.

Coming to Hon Bay Canh, visitors will have the opportunity to explore the mangrove ecosystem and dive to see corals. The corals here are very diverse in species with plate, table, branch and block corals all listed in the Vietnam Red Book.

- Hon Tai

It is a rich and colorful picture of corals blending with marine life hidden under the sunlight through the clear blue water. Coming to Hon Tai, visitors will admire the mysterious shimmering beauty of the aquarium with many types of colorful and strange corals that are hard to find anywhere else.

At Hon Tai, you can see black squirrels - a type of squirrel endemic to Con Dao, monitor lizards, geckos, ... and many species of seabirds, white-rumped grebes - a rare bird of the pigeon family.

Historical sites in Con Dao

- Hang Duong Cemetery

One of the spiritual tourist destinations in Con Dao, is home to the graves of more than 2,000 martyrs. Especially the grave of Vo Thi Sau is a place not to be missed. Coming here, in addition to burning incense, you should prepare offerings, such as mirrors, combs, and fresh flowers.

- Con Dao Prison

This place helps you go back in time to find the tragic history of hell on earth. Learn about the lives, brutal torture methods, and living quarters of imprisoned prisoners. This is also the place where Vo Thi Sau was imprisoned.

HA MY (synthesis)

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