Discovering a "little desert in Vietnam", the scenery changes continuously throughout the day, making visitors admire

Standing in the desert and being able to see the blue sea and immerse yourself in the majestic mountain scenery seems impossible. But in Vietnam there really is such a magical place...
Standing in the desert and being able to see the blue sea and immerse yourself in the majestic mountain scenery seems impossible. But in Vietnam there really is such a magical place...
In the subconscious of many people, the desert is associated with images of endless sand slopes and harsh climate. Most people think that this is a place only suitable for creatures with strong vitality such as camels or cacti. Plus the geographical distance makes conquering this place difficult.
However, if you still want to explore the desert once, the good news for travel enthusiasts is that even in Vietnam there is a place called "little desert". That is Mui Dinh in Ninh Thuan province. Not only is the climate pleasant, but it also has beautiful scenery, which makes many tourists, especially young people, put the name Mui Dinh on the list of "must visit once in your life" places.
Explore the famous "little desert" of Ninh Thuan
Ninh Thuan is a land with a lot of desert terrain. The vast sand dunes are a consequence of the steppes being gradually desertified (also known as semi-desert terrain). However, it is also thanks to the ingenious transformation of nature that Ninh Thuan possesses such impressive highlights.
Many tourists said that Mui Dinh reminds them of the Sahara desert because of its wide sand dunes, stretching as far as the horizon, with only a small amount of grass fluttering in the hot wind. On the "little desert" of Mui Dinh, there are hundreds of tons of rocks, becoming unique works of art without the intervention of human hands.
The strong wind that continuously blows the sand away also makes the shape of the sand dunes here always wavy and change. That's why Mui Dinh is also considered to continuously change its shape in just one day. According to local people, if tourists come here during the four seasons of the year, they will see an even more obvious difference.
Although it is a semi-desert, this "sand field" is not as dry as many people think. Except for cacti, on the way to explore, visitors can still see lush green plants stretching in the sunlight. Visitors can even see the lush green grass at the foot of the sand dunes used by local people to herd sheep. The image of a flock of white sheep grazing leisurely highlights the wild nomadic life here.
“Little desert” is not as dry as people imagine
In addition to walking, visitors can choose an all-terrain vehicle to explore the "little desert" of Mui Dinh. Driving through bumpy roads and white sand roads is a great experience. Through each sand dune, visitors are awakened to a feeling of strength and suspense. Many people have to scream because they are too excited to feel the free life in the desert.
There are many terrain vehicle rental services here, rental prices range from 800,000 - 1,600,000 VND depending on the type of vehicle used. Nam Cuong or Son Hai are small sand dunes located in Mui Dinh, chosen by most tourists to do this experience. In addition, when the sun is out, visitors can participate in sandboarding activities, which are also very interesting.


Journey to Dinh Cape
Mui Dinh is a cape located in Phuoc Dinh commune, Thuan Nam district, Ninh Thuan province, 30km south of Phan Rang - Thap Cham city center and 80km southeast of Ngoan Muc Pass (Song Pha Pass). Because it is located in a remote location, the road to get here is quite difficult and bumpy. This place is almost unpopulated so it still retains its rare wildness.
There are many means of transportation that tourists can choose to get to Mui Dinh. Among them, passenger cars and motorbikes are the two closest, most convenient and popular means of transportation. If you take a bus from Saigon to Phan Rang, it will take about 6-7 hours, visitors should choose trips that leave the night before to arrive early the next morning. The average current bus ticket price is about 160,000 VND - 200,000 VND/person.

>The pristine wilderness of a corner of Mui Dinh
If you want to conquer the most beautiful roads in Ninh Thuan yourself, a motorbike is a reasonable choice. Traveling by motorbike, visitors can choose the following travel routes:
From Saigon - Phan Rang, visitors travel about 15 km along National Highway 1A to Cham Van Lam village, then turn left. Next, cross the Bang Lang area for about 8km to reach the top of Eagle Mountain. Go another 7km to Son Hai, from here drive straight into the desert or park your car at a local house, Mui Dinh mountain is 1km away. Currently around this area there is parking and selling snacks and drinks, so it is relatively convenient.

>The super beautiful coastal route certainly does not disappoint travelers
Another route to Mui Dinh with extremely beautiful coastal scenery is the route along Ca Na beach. When passing Ca Na lagoon, visitors will turn onto road DT701 to go to Mui Dinh. However, it should be noted that this is a road with many bends and turns, so drivers need to concentrate and make sure they have a steady enough steering wheel if they decide to choose this road.
As mentioned above, Mui Dinh attracts tourists because of its wild beauty and vast space. Many tourists also commented that Mui Dinh represents all the most typical features of the land of Ninh Thuan, such as a colorful landscape painting stretching out into the vast ocean, wild but bringing a feeling of peace. In 2020, Mui Dinh was chosen as one of the main settings of two movies, “Nomad Footprints” (2014) and “Red Sand” (2020).

>A scene at Mui Dinh in the movie Red Sand
To fully enjoy the beauty here, visitors should visit from April to June with a summer trip. Because the terrain is adjacent to the sea, the winter here will be colder and windier. If tourists want to attend the unique festivals of the local Cham people, they should come to Mui Dinh around August to October every year, which is the grape ripening season (Mbang Kate festival takes place on the 1st-7th day of the Cham calendar every year).
Nearby places for tourists to refer to
Besides Dinh Cape, visitors can refer to some nearby places in Ninh Thuan to complete the trip.
The lighthouse is more than a hundred years old
The journey to explore Mui Dinh Ninh Thuan would be incomplete without conquering Mui Dinh lighthouse. This ancient lighthouse located on Mui Dinh mountain is hundreds of years old. It is 170m above sea level, built during the French period in 1904, all made of solid granite. With a lighting radius of about 30 nautical miles, the Mui Dinh lighthouse is not simply a night eye pointing the direction of land for ships from Phan Rang to Tuy Phong but also an impressive ancient architectural work.
However, the road to get here is quite steep and difficult, walking is quite strenuous. Even though the distance is only over 1km, many people have given up. To make the journey less difficult, you should only choose to go in the early morning or late afternoon.
Ms. Thao Van shared about her experience: “The road was steep, tiring and very hot. I had to rest a few dozen times to get there. However, when I reached the lighthouse, all the fatigue seemed to disappear because everything was so wonderful. The vast but peaceful natural scenery, the salty taste of the wind between the sea and sky really made me want to stand there forever.”
Soak at Bai Trang
Going to the end of the desert, visitors will approach Trang beach with long stretches of white sand and clear blue water. This is a small beach, located right under the lighthouse. This destination is still very wild, the sea is calm and beautiful, there is an empty lot suitable for camping overnight and holding BBQ parties. In addition to swimming, visitors can also contact fishermen to ask to take photos with basket boats, or rent kayaks to enjoy rowing with the ocean waves. Overall, this is the perfect combination of majestic mountains, vast sand desert and vast sea.
Alisa, a tourist from the UK, shared:"Mui Dinh, Vietnam is very beautiful. The scenery is wild and peaceful. The food here is also very delicious and cheap, suitable for our taste. If I have the opportunity, I will come back here again!".
Khanh Hoa 6347 view
Update day : 26/10/2023
Source : Tổ quốc .vn Affiliate links
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