The upcoming April 30 and May 1 holidays can be said to be the first long holiday before the peak summer tourist season begins. This will be a good time for tourists to "heal", recharge, and also a time for families to bond and love each other more.
Cua Lo coastal town seen from above. (Photo: Ho Dinh Chien)
Explore Hon Ngu Island, Lan Chau Island
Hon Ngu Island is about 4km from Cua Lo beach, located off the coast of Nghe An province. It is a relatively new tourist destination for many visitors. Due to not being exploited much, this island still retains the pristine beauty of lush green forests, extremely clean sand and gravel beaches, sparkling in the sunlight, creating a beautiful scene.
Lan Chau Island seen from above. (Photo: Ho Dinh Chien)
In addition, what fascinates and attracts many tourists to this place is the clear sea water and fine sand. Because the two islands are close to each other, people also call them by the familiar name Song Ngu Island.
Besides its tourism potential, Hon Ngu Island also plays an extremely important role as a wave shield for Cua Lo tourist area, to avoid and minimize the impact of natural disasters.
Closer to Hon Ngu, Lan Chau Island is located right next to Cua Lo beach. Lan Chau Island is also called by the locals with a more affectionate name, Ru Coc Island, because from above, the island looks like a giant toad stretching out to the ocean. Thanks to its proximity to the sea and the mainland to the west, traveling to Lan Chau Island is also more convenient.
The east side of Lan Chau Island is characterized by the image of undulating cliffs facing the sea, creating a majestic, undulating landscape. If you are a lover of peace, watching the sunrise and sunset on the sea drifting with the wind, immersing yourself in the beautiful romantic scenery, then visitors should visit Lan Chau Island, surely there will be beautiful check-in photos to bring back.
Fascinated by the field of sea daisies
Cua Lo Beach is located about 15 km from the center of Vinh City (Nghe An) and more than 300 km from Hanoi. This resort attracts tourists thanks to its fresh air, clean sea, delicious food and many beautiful check-in spots, which are the ticket for tourists to return to their childhood.
The field of sea daisies is an ideal place to take "virtual life" photos.
Amidst the vast expanse of white sand, visitors cannot help but be moved when they see yellow and red petals swaying gently in the bright yellow sunlight.
It seems that the scorching heat and sun of Nghe An's summer can make those small flowers and fragile flowers wither. But no, the small wild flowers still silently have a strong vitality to decorate Cua Lo beach every day. Here, it helps visitors "heal" all worries and sadness, and brings a wonderful joy.
The flowers bloom around late April and early May. The entire wide beach is covered with the brilliant yellow and orange of the sea daisies, creating an impressive scene, standing out on the sunny and windy Central coast.
Discover the flower with simple, rustic beauty but containing a strong vitality - sea daisy when coming to Cua Lo beach, surely visitors will have interesting relaxing moments!
Experience night squid fishing with fishermen is extremely interesting
For a long time, squid fishing has become a daily job for the fishermen in the coastal town of Cua Lo. Since tourism has developed here, squid fishing has also become an activity used to attract tourists. It can be said that night squid fishing in Cua Lo has created a famous tourism product, attracting a large number of tourists to come here to learn about the life, people and culture of the locality.
Basket boats used for night squid fishing. (Photo: Sach Nguyen)
To fish for squid at night, visitors will board a traditional bamboo boat, woven with bamboo and about 2m in diameter. The shape of the boat looks like an enlarged bamboo basket, from which the locals have named it "basket boat". Fishermen go fishing at night. They usually go in groups of 2-3 boats. When they catch squid, one boat goes ashore to sell it to tourists.
When the boat reaches a calm sea, the driver will drop anchor and prepare the hooks for the tourists. The hooks for night squid fishing are made from metallic material and are woven into small clusters around a plastic bait. When the hook is dropped into the water, the electric light will shine, creating a sparkling metallic light. The squid that like to eat bait will be attracted by this light and compete to bite the hook.
Preparing for night squid fishing trips. (Photo: Sach Nguyen)
The angler only needs to pull the rod up when the squid has bitten the bait, and each squid will be easily pulled onto the boat. When first caught, the squid is as white as ice with tiny brown and black dots flashing under the light. Not only is it a form of entertainment, night squid fishing at Cua Lo beach is also a cultural beauty of the local people.
According to experienced fishermen, most of the squid caught are sold out overnight. On days with many tourists, the amount of squid is not enough to meet the demand. That is why each batch of squid, usually from 10 to 25 pieces depending on the size, costs from 150,000 to 300,000 VND. The price may vary but is still reasonable for the quality of this specialty.
Explore the squid market in Cua Lo at midnight
On the road to Lan Chau Island, Nghi Thuy Ward, every evening. At night, from about 8pm to midnight every day, hundreds of locals and tourists gather at Cua Lo beach, eagerly waiting for the basket boats bringing squid from afar. Every time the street lights up, this scene becomes more attractive, everyone wants to participate in the exciting "squid hunting" matches.
Flashing squid, also known as jumping squid, is a specialty of the coastal areas of Nghe An and Ha Tinh. This is a type of squid caught by fishermen, still alive, with a flashing body. This type is usually caught from April to August every year.
Cua Lo flash squid.
The new flashing squid night market has attracted a lot of people to buy, flashing squid is considered a very special delicacy here. The best flashing squid is the one that has just been caught and brought back alive. According to the experience of fishermen, the best flashing squid is the one that has just been caught and brought to shore, washed and left whole to boil, steam with beer, or eat with salad. The taste is sweet and fatty, the crispiness of the squid is still fresh.
After being caught, the flashing squid will be sold by people on the road to Lan Chau island, Nghi Thuy ward every evening. The later it gets, the more crowded the 'market' becomes with people and tourists coming to buy, watch, cool off and livestream for friends far away to watch.
Although there were no tables, chairs or electric lights, the fresh squid flashing under the light of hand-held lamps was enough to attract everyone’s attention. The bustling and lively buying and selling scene created a unique space for Cua Lo beach.
3 seafood markets not to be missed
When visiting Cua Lo, in addition to breathing the fresh air and immersing yourself in the cool water, visitors should try visiting the 4 markets in this beautiful coastal city.
Tourists can also visit the markets to buy fresh seafood that has just landed and then hire restaurants to prepare the dishes at a negotiated cost.
Fishing wharf market area in Nghi Thuy ward, Cua Lo. (Photo: Sach Nguyen)
First is the Nghi Thuy Ward fishing wharf market. The market opens at dawn, when the boats dock. Every day, the fishing wharf market welcomes groups of 20 to 30 boats arriving one after another in the joy of the people. This is considered a wholesale market providing fresh seafood such as shrimp, crab, squid, clams, snails, etc. for local people and tourists visiting Cua Lo.
Visiting this market, visitors can rent an electric car to go straight to the fishing wharf to watch the bustling boats entering the wharf as well as buy fresh seafood at affordable prices. Visitors should visit the market before 10am before the market closes.
The seafood market in Thu Thuy ward is also a destination not to be missed. This market is also one of the famous places for fresh seafood at affordable prices. During the tourist season, the market opens all day and closes in the evening.
In addition to fresh seafood, visitors can buy dried seafood such as squid, fish, shrimp... The seafood sold in the market is the product of the daily fishing trips of fishermen in the area.
Unlike the fish wharf market and seafood market, Hom market operates in the afternoon. The market opens from 1pm to evening. Located near the end of Cua Lo beach, visitors can rent an electric car to both see the streets of Cua Lo and visit Hom market. The shop owners in the market are quite friendly so visitors can comfortably bargain.
Eating and drinking at Cua Lo beach
A trip to Cua Lo on hot summer days will not be complete if you miss out on the delicious seafood dishes.
Crab sprouts and 7-course cobia are two of the dishes you should try. Cobia are quite fierce when caught, but through the skillful hands of the chef, the fish meat can be processed into 7 attractive dishes such as salad, steamed with lemongrass, stir-fried fish intestines, hot pot, porridge, fried fish fins, crispy fried skin...
Visitors can experience some delicious and unique dishes in seafood restaurants, such as the unique lobster blood pudding. Besides the fragrant and fatty herring salad, the delicious and chewy grouper salad is also extremely attractive or the butter-sauced snails served with bread are very suitable for children... In addition, there are also some typical seafood dishes such as flashing squid, steamed crab with tamarind, steamed mantis shrimp with lemongrass and beer, grilled herring, grilled mackerel head and tail, shrimp porridge, clam porridge, eel porridge...
Visitors can also visit the fishing port in the morning to buy fresh seafood that has just landed and then hire a restaurant to prepare the dish at a negotiated cost.
5 days is the ideal time to heal your soul with sunset afternoons wandering along the winding coastal roads. Make the most of your time to immerse yourself in the life of fishermen in the sunny and windy sea of Central Vietnam.
In addition, visitors can visit some other places such as: Pu Mat primeval forest (Con Cuong), President Ho Chi Minh's hometown (Nam Dan), Hoang Muoi temple (Hung Nguyen)...
These are places that not only have peaceful and poetic scenery but are also rich in cultural experiences with friendly and hospitable locals. After 5 days in Nghe An, you will definitely have a different perspective on life, adding more positive energy to yourself.
Cua Lo fishermen suspect they caught rare golden croaker fishSource
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