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VietnamDescription and is it worth a visit
Viet Hai Village until recently was a completely unknown attraction for foreign tourists, and in general a rather isolated place. After all, this fishing village on the Cat Ba island for a long time was not connected to the outside world by road (and even now only a bad dirt road leads to it), and being surrounded by tropical forests of the Cat Ba National Park was communicated only by water. But from a certain moment the village was on the tourist hiking route through the National Park, and then attracted the attention of foreigners.
At first glance, Viet Hai is nothing special, and looks almost the same as any other remote village in Vietnam. Therefore, if you have already made trekking walks through the villages of North Vietnam, in the vicinity of Sapa, for example, then everything will seem familiar to you here. But in fact, if you take a closer look and spend more time here, you will notice that the villagers still use little modern tools, and lead a subsistence economy with almost nothing from the outside. Of course, the situation is changing very quickly, and the village is rapidly turning into a popular eco-resort, so you should hurry to visit it.
By the way, if you want, then in the village you can even stay for one or more nights in one of the guest houses, which are called homes here, since accommodation is offered in real houses of local residents.
🕐 Working hours
Around the clock.
💵Entrance fee / ticket price
Visiting the village is free, but when passing the route through Cat Ba National Park you will need to pay 80,000 VND (3.04 USD, see Vietnam's currency and exchange rate).
🚶 How to get there
The village of Viet Hai is located in the central part on the eastern shore of the island (Viet Hai on the map). The easiest way to get here is with a tour offered by travel agencies Catba town. There are both separate excursions to the village with an overnight stay, and a trekking tour of 18 kilometers through Cat Ba National Park with the end of the route in the village.
But without problems, you can visit the village yourself. The most interesting way is Route No. 4 through the National Park with a length of 18 kilometers. To pass it, you need to get to the entrance to the park early in the morning by taxi, pay 80,000 VND at the cash desk, and set off on a journey that will end in the village. The route is not difficult and accessible to everyone, but be sure to bring drinking water, a raincoat and jacket, good shoes. After visiting the village, you will need to walk another 5 kilometers to the pier, from where you can take a ferry or boat back to Catba town to the Ben Beo/Cai Beo Pier.
Another option is to ride a rented bicycle or motorbike on a dirt trail along the coast. You will have to drive 13 kilometers. This method has not been tested by us, the conditions on the road are not known.
Well, the easiest way. From the center of Catba town, walk or take a taxi to Ben Beo/Cai Beo Marina (Ben Beo/Cai Beo on the map), and there take a regular ferry for 50,000 VND or hire a private boat. Upon arrival at the jetty of Viet Hai, you can reach the village center on foot (5 kilometers) or rent a bicycle here. Unfortunately, the ferry schedule is extremely inconvenient, and you will most likely have to return back on a private boat. The ferry departs from Ben Beo/Cai Beo pier at 11:00 and 16:15, from Viet Hai at 07:00 and 13:00.