Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam

Ho Coc Beach, (nearest beach to Ho Chi Minh):

Who? 3rdworldwhitegirl & family

When? June 2008

What? Ho Coc Beach is basically a few shacks/huts on a very nice beach. If you don’t want to take the 5 hr. trip from Ho Chi Minh up coast to Nha Trang/Mui Ne , then this is an alternative. However, this is NOT a resort, by any stretch of the imagination.

Where? About 2 hours drive south of Ho Chi Minh city. You can get there by bus, or arrange private car from your HCM hotel, (as we did), for a price of US$90/ea. way.

Why? Well, basically we HAD made the 5hr. bus trip up to Mui Ne on a previous trip to Vietnam, and this time we wanted to see if it was worthwhile to try beaching closer to HCM. Plus, the price was darn cheap!

Noted: This place is really nothing more than a local’s hangout, or would appeal to the backpacking set. We stayed in the “family” accomodation, (see photo), which was a shack made of…GLASS. Yes, that’s right, the walls were made of glass sheets. People who live in glass houses…?? Inside, there was one large pallet bed, (ie; no mattress), and 2 twins. Very old and shabby.

Just off the bulkhead in front of the glass managerie, we stepped right on to a very decent sandy beach. One afternoon, however, while I was sipping a cool one & enjoying my book, a small herd of cattle came running right down the beach in front of me. (see photo) Even 3rdworldwhitegirl found this surprising.

The main problem for us with this place turned out to be security. There really isn’t any. While it was probably safe, we still worried about our two kids, especially our 16yr. old daughter. One night, just after we turned in, a group of local men showed up, and sat just outside our door on the porch, drinking booze and chatting loudly. The glass walls didn’t do much to keep out the noise, and we were concerned that if they had too much to drink, they might try to break in.

There is a large seafood restaurant there, and the food is fresh and very good. Unfortunately, on what turned out to be our last night there, our son was served a steak, (which was later revealed to be “ostrich”, but God only knows what it really was…), and got food poisoning. We had to go back to HCM early, his vomiting, etc. were so bad.

Conclusion: Ho Coc Beach is a weekend get-away place for local Vietnamese/expats residing in HCM. So, I would suggest that if you are just visiting HCM, and need beach time, go up coast to Nha Trang/Mui Ne…or further. The saying is, the farther north you go, the better the beaches.

Rating: 1/2 star for room, 0 stars for “steak”

Read more of my reviews of SE Asia travel at: http://3rdworldwhitegirl.wordpress.com/

I was in HCMC last March and I love it there!

General tips: 1) The hostels there are cheap and as good as hotels. Stay in a hostel at District 1 (near the backpackers area) and you'll be within walking distance to most of the attractions. 2) Ben Thanh Market has (almost) everything! There's food, bags, clothes, shoes.. Bargain hard and you'll get a good deal. At night, the streets surrounding Ben Thanh are converted to Food Streets so get cheap seafood and drinks there! 3) Go on day trips to Mekong Delta and Cu Chi Tunnels. Highly recommend Cu Chi Tunnels! It's an adventure! 4) Traffic is quite bad but just be brave and cross it. You'll see the motorcycles going round you. Do not stop abruptly or run across the road. If you're still scared, raise one hand up and they'll know you're a newbie. 5) If you're into propaganda, visit the museums in the town area. If not, you can forget it. Do note that the museums close during lunch time and most close at 4pm. Plan well before you go. 6) Try the road side food! It's cheap and yummy! 7) You'll appreciate the city better if you walk around. You'll discover more things that are not written in the travel guides! If you die die have to take cab (to some far far away places), ask the hotel person what is the average price to get to the place and ask them to help you bargain with the taxi driver. 8) Relax! Do as the Vietnamese do, just sit around in cafes and watch the city buzz around you!