WHALE ISLAND – A VIETNAMESE PARADISE ISLAND

HEADING TO WHALE ISLAND

After just one night in Doc Let, we left, excited to be on our way to the paradise retreat of Whale Island.

We got a taxi from the nearby restaurant, which took us to the docks of the nearby village of Dam Mon, from where we could get a boat over to the island.

At first we headed to the wrong part of the dock and speaking to the locals didn’t help, as no one spoke a word of English. Fortunately I was able to get through to the resort and they pointed us in the right direction.

We walked over to the other dock area and waited for our boat to arrive.

We loaded our things onto the boat and we set off for whale island; a 15 minute journey across the bay.

ARRIVING AT THE ISLAND

As soon as we got off the boat at Whale Island, we knew this was somewhere that was going to be the perfect spot for relaxing for a few days.

The island had only one thing on it – this little resort. The resort was located right on the shoreline, overlooking a beautiful bay, with clear blue waters and rich marine life.

The accommodation we were staying in, was a beautiful, wooden, beach hut; complete with porch area, ensuite bathroom and a large four-poster bed, with the essential additional of a mosquito net surrounding it!

Stepping out from our cabin, we were only a few yards from the beachfront:

No crazy traffic. No blaring horns. Bliss.

Walking along the beachfront for a hundred yards, was the bar and restaurant area. The bar was shaped like a boat and we hung out here for a few hours, looking out at the bay and got stuck straight into a few G&Ts.

As there was nothing else on the island, we were confined to the restaurant here for all meals, but they were incredible.

Every lunchtime and evening, there was a lavish four course meal, which cost us $14 USD each. Not a lot by Western standards, but fairly pricey for Vietnam. Well worth it though. Everything was cooked excellently and there was always a great selection of dishes, including lots of locally sourced seafood.

ENJOYING THE ISLAND

There was relatively little to do on the island, but this was exactly how we wanted it, for a few days.

It honestly felt like the rest of the world didn’t exist while we were on this island. So tranquil.

But what did we do here? Not a lot. But here’s a few things:

SUNBATHING AND LIZARD CHASING

Just a few steps from our cabin, by the shore of the island, there were sun loungers, so obviously we made some time to enjoy sunbathing and top up the tans.

Until the lizards came out. These things were everywhere and, like a kid, I enjoyed running and chasing them. And feeding them wasabi peas.

Lizard chewing on a wasabi pea. He seemed to be into it.

Holly making a friend

HIKING

On one of the days – one of the most ridiculously humid days I’ve ever experienced, mind – we went for a hike around the island.

It took a good couple of hours to complete the circuit, meandering our way through trees and bushes and having to deal with cobwebs breaking in our faces at every turn. This was exhausting, in the excruciating heat and humidity, but we were treated to some great views, overlooking the island and bay area.

A floating fishing village at the far side of Whale Island

SNORKELLING

The bay area of the island has rich marine life, supported by coral. We hired snorkelling masks and spent several hours swimming and admiring the tropical sea-life in the beautiful waters.

The area had been named ‘Whale Island’ because of the number of whales and whale sharks that had been spotted around it. Apparently there have been very limited sightings in recent years and we didn’t see any while snorkelling here, but it was still pretty amazing.

Here’s some pics from snorkelling at Whale Island:

In the mood to see a bit more? Great! Here’s a video montage, of the times snorkelling on the island:

LEAVING WHALE ISLAND

After three days on Whale Island we were sad to leave, but at the same time ready to move on.

Feeling fully relaxed and revitalised we packed up our things, checked out and boarded the boat, back to the mainland.

We had a taxi waiting for us there which would take us to our next stop – Tuy Hòa.

Read on for the next step of the adventure…