Halong Bay
Cruise Trips
Other Junks
Sights
Cu
Lao Cham islands (near Hoi An)
Information source: The Timeout Guide Magazine
Cu Lao Cham is home to 8 islands which are located off
Vietnam's central coast.
Nearly 200 years ago, Cu Lao Cham almost became a Hong
Kong-style colony. Historian Nguyen Van Xuan said in
early 19th century, the British asked the Nguyen Dynasty
rulers for the right to build up a trade base on the
islands so as to have better access to China's Guangzhou
province and other countries in the region. After the
Opium War took place from 1839-1842, the British
colonized Hong Kong, thus diverting attention from the
Vietnamese archipelago. That partly reduced traffic in
the waters from Cu Lao Cham to Hoi An, which during the
16th & 17th centuries had been one of Vietnam's busiest
trade centers.
The largest island of Cu Lao Cham is Lao island. On this
island, a tourist promotion called "Cu Lao Cham and
valuables from the seabed" is on. Pottery objects
salvaged from wrecked ships on display reveal the beauty
of an illutrious past.
There is also an introduction to the fauna and flora of
the archipelago. According to the figures of the Cu Lao
Cham Nature Preserve Project, which stated in 2003,
there are about 200 coral species, 202 fish species, 5
lobster species and 84 mollusc species in Cu Lao Cham.
The "cua da" (the stone crab) is particularly special as
Cu Lao Cham is the only region in Vietnam where these
creatures with violet and orange coloured shells are
found. They live under stones in the forests, eat only
medical herbs but reproduce in the sea.
Cu Lao Cham has a temple where the tradition for
worshipping the whale in Vietnam's central coastal areas
began in the 19 century. At Hai Tang Tu, there is a
small but beautiful pagoda for worshipping the Sea
Deity. Constructed 300 years ago, it looks like an
ancient house in Hoi An with two "house eyes" on the
main door.
How to get there:
1. From the Cua Dai port in Hoi An, take a high speed
hydrofoil run by the Cu Lao Cham Trade, Tourism and
Investment Joint Stock Company. It's only 25 minutes to
Lao island.
2. From Da Nang city, take a one-hour trip by high speed
hydrofoil of the Dong Song Xanh Company which departs on
the Han river in front of Da Nang's Vietnam Television
Center. This hydrofoil runs only on Tuesday, Thursday,
Saturday and Sunday.
3. For more details, pls send a private message to "Safetyrp",
an Australian TTer in this branch. I saw he posted some
info about Cu Lao Cham sometime ago.
Other tips
Useful sites
1. Red Dragon
Junk, Cruise Halong Bay: 5 cabin boat on
Halong Bay
All cruises on
Halong Bay Online,
Halong bay
travel guide, Hanoi Halong Bay Tours, Maps to Halong,
2. Prince
Cruise Halong Bay Vietnam: 4 cabin cruise on Halong
Bay
3. Jayavarman
Cruise on Mekong River Vietnam Cambodia: luxury
cruise on the Mekong River
4. Hanoi Airlines:
book flight tickets to Hanoi
5. Halong Bay
Cruise: list all cruise boats on Halong Bay & Bai Tu
Long Bay
6. Hotel
Vietnam, Vietnam Hotels: book hotels and resorts in
Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia
7. Laos Travel
Guide: book tours in Laos with the New Road Tour
8. Cambodia
Travel: useful guides, hotels, flights, tours in
Cambodia
9. Phu Quoc
Travel Guide: useful information on Phu Quoc Island
Vietnam
10. Travel Sapa
Vietnam: tours, hotels, maps to Sapa Vietnam
11. Mekong
Delta Tours: cruise, hotels, tours in Mekong, Saigon
Other new travel sites
1. Vietnam Travel
Company: First Choice Tours in Vietnam
2. Hue Travel Guide:
guide, maps, tours in Hue Vietnam
3. Sapa Travel Tips:
Sapa guides, tourist information
4. Mekong River
Tours, Mekong Amalotus Cruise, Amalotus Cruise,
Amalotus Boat Mekong River
5. Amalotus.com,
Amalotuscruise.com, Amalotus Indochina Sails Mekong
River
6. Mekong
River Boats: Mekong Tours, Mekong River Tours
7. Hoi An Travel
Guide: Tours, maps to Hoi An
