Beaches of Cat Ba Island

What are the beaches on Cat Ba

Although Cat Ba Island is considered a beach resort, there are few beaches suitable for swimming here - only five. Moreover, they are very tiny. All of them are located in the south of the island near Cat Ba Town. Despite the considerable perimeter of the shores of the rest of the island, it is useless to look for other "secret" beaches here. The fact is that the banks of the Catba are practically not adapted for swimming: it is too shallow, dirty, and there are a lot of dangerous rocks. We have traveled and bypassed almost everything here, and now we will tell you how things are with the beaches in reality, and not in advertising booklets.

So, there are 5 beaches on the island, where you can relax and swim more or less comfortably. They are small, but even at the height of the season from June to August there is enough space here, since most of the local Vietnamese vacationers almost do not approach the water. But on weekends there is sometimes a big influx of people who want to sunbathe, swim and take endless selfies.

The conditions on all the bathing beaches are about the same: they are located in bays, there are sun loungers and cafes, the water is warm and moderately transparent (but far from crystal clear), pleasant white or yellow sand everywhere.

The influence of low tides is insignificant, and even during the most powerful water does not go far, you can swim. But the problem is that at high tides the water comes very close to the shore, "eating" most of the sandy strip. If this is important for you, then here is a schedule of tides for the near future, and by following the link you will get to the semi-annual forecast:

There are almost no usual water activities such as bananas and jet skis on the beaches of Cat Ba. We have only seen banana riding in one place at Tung Thu Beach. Kayaks and surfboards can be rented on the rest. There is also a place to dive with a mask, especially on the edges of the beaches near the stones. But, in our opinion, this idea is questionable, since the water is muddy most of the time, and there are few animals.

And now we present you an overview of all the beaches of Cat Ba:

• Cac Ba Beach

  This is a new beach almost in the very center of Catba Town in the place where the port used to be (Cac Ba on the map). If you stay in one of the hotels in the center, it will be easiest to walk to it. But there is also a peculiarity: it works according to a completely idiotic schedule from 06:00 to 10:00 and from 15:30 to 18:00. The rest of the time, the guards expel everyone from the beach and close the passage with a fence. Perhaps the rules will change over time, but at the time of our trip it was exactly like that.

  The beach itself is not bad here in principle. The sandy beach is about 200 meters long and several dozen meters wide. Even despite the center position, there is enough space on the shore here, in the water too. There is an information sign with prices for services, but we did not see the services themselves on the shore. If anything, the prices are as follows:

  • Chaise longue – 40,000 DONG/ 1.52 USD
  • Toilet – 5,000/ 0.19 USD
  • Shower – 20,000/ 0.76 USD
  • Banana riding - 1,000,000 VND/ 37.99 USD
  • Parachute – 800,000 VND/ 30.39 USD

  

  

  

• Beach Cat Co 1

  Cat Co 1 is the closest beach to the center of Catba Town, except for the new Cac Ba. But unlike the Cac Ba, it works all day without a break. From the center it is 800 meters on foot, or you can take electric minibuses for 10,000 DONG (Cat Co 1 on the map). Therefore, on weekends and in summer it is the most crowded beach.

  Cat Co 1 seems to belong to Flamingo Cat Ba Resorts beach, but at the same time it can be visited completely freely. But if you want, you can buy a "subscription" here, which includes a range of services for 70,000: use of a shower, toilet and luggage storage. And you can pay for each service separately at will. A chaise longue with an umbrella for the whole day costs 100,000. All prices in the photo below, but this is just for reference, they, of course, can change.

  Well, now about the beach itself. It is located in a very deep bay, the length of the entire coast is 170 meters. But at high tide, they are suitable for relaxing and swimming at most 100 meters. There is sand on the shore, there are deck chairs, kayak and board rentals. Well, and everything else according to the price list. Well, look at everything else in the photo:

  

  

  

• Beach Cat Co 3

  Cat Co 3 is on the same shore as Cat Co 1, just a little to the left (Cat Co 3 on the map). One and a half kilometers from the center to it, and again you can get there by electric cars. And there is also a concrete path along the rocks and the shore from Cat Co 1 beach, it takes only 5-10 minutes to walk.

  Somehow it so happened that Cat Co 3 is the most youthful. And we like it the most out of all three Cat Co beaches, too. It is longer, more spacious, and well equipped. There are a number of cool palm umbrellas and wooden deck chairs, a cafe and a bar. However, it conditionally refers to the five-star hotel Hotel Perle d'Orient, and the entrance to it is limited from 7 o'clock to 17:00 (time may vary). But the entrance is not limited in any way, you can freely come and swim for free. If you want, you can rent a chaise longue for 100,000 DONG and use the rest of the beach services for a fee. In general, this is definitely the best beach on Cat Ba in our estimation.

  

  

  

  

  

• Cat Co 2 Beach

  Cat Co 2 is located to the left of Cat Co 1 just a couple of minutes away, and a little more than a kilometer from the center of Cat Ba town (Cat Co2 on the map). It is conditionally related to Flamingo hotels, but the entrance to it is again unobstructed. More precisely, it is possible to get freely only to the right side of the beach, and the passage to the left side is closed to non-guests of the hotel.

  We were here at the peak of the season, and there was no one on the shore at all except us and the guard. This is surprising, considering that there were quite a few vacationers on the nearby Cat Co 1. So use it if you can't find a place on Cat Co 1. And the rest of the beach is like a beach, see everything in the photo:

  

  

• Tung Thu Beach

  Tung Thu or Catba Emerald Beach is located on the other side of the Cat Co beaches, but also not far from the center, about 20 minutes on foot or one and a half kilometers ( Tung Thu Beach on the map). This is the most favorite beach of local tourists, at least that's what local holidaymakers from Hanoi told us several times. And indeed it is almost always crowded.

  But to be honest, we didn't quite like it. Everything seems to be there on the one hand, but somehow it's too noisy from local vacationers and frequent events with loud music. There was no talk of any quiet rest. But maybe we were just unlucky, and when you rest here, it will be different.

  Tung Thu Beach like all other beaches is located in the bay. Its length is about 200 meters, very wide. There are several cafes serving simple dishes, but the prices are too high compared to the center. There are a number of umbrellas that offer for rent from 100,000 to 200,000 VND, it depends on the mood of the owner. There is also banana riding and jet ski rental. For parking a car or motorcycle, they also ask for 20,000 VND. There are changing rooms, shower and toilet. In general, come to this beach yourself and then decide whether you like it or not.

  

  

  

  

• Xuan Dam Beach

  Xuan Dam Beach is located in the village of Syan Dam of the same name, it is 8 kilometers from Catba Town (Xuan Dam Beach on the map). The beach is dirty, the water is muddy, there are boats and piles of garbage on the shore. But nevertheless it is a beach, there are even sun loungers and umbrellas for rent, a cafe.

  It's definitely not worth coming here from Cat Ba Town, you will be obviously disappointed. But if it's not easy for you to come to this village for a rest, and there are several guest houses here, then you can swim and relax here if you don't disdain to go into the water. But for us personally, such a beach is not an option at all.

  

  

  

• Chut Chit Beach

  Chut Chit Beach is also sometimes called "Secret Beach". But if your imagination draws a beautiful tropical beach, hidden from prying eyes, then forget about it. Just look at our real photos below.

  It is located behind the village of Xuan Dam, 10 kilometers from Catba Town (Chut Chit on the map). You can only get there by motorbike, go to the point on our map. It will be necessary to drive after the exit from the asphalt a couple of hundred meters along the broken primer through the line, and you are on the spot. If you drive a couple of hundred meters further to the left and steeply down, you will get to the fence and the ruins of some restaurant. Locals like to come to the ruins of the restaurant to do photo shoots. There is another "secret" beach in the bay behind the fence, but you can't get through the fence, everything is blocked there and there are also ruins of some hotel there.

  Chut Chit beach itself is located in a cozy bay and would be a cool place if it weren't for the garbage, dirty water and littered bottom. From the outside it may seem beautiful, but on the shore there is just a dump made by fishermen. So skip this beach.

  

  

• Hien Hao Beach

  Hien Hao Beach is located far from Cat Ba Town in Hien Hao village, 15 kilometers from the center of Cat Ba Town here (Hien Hao on the map). It is located right by the road, and opposite it across the street is a cafe and the village itself.

  Unlike the previous two beaches, it seemed a little cleaner to us, but we did not find a reason to come here on vacation for ourselves. Here you can rent a chaise longue, contact the cafe for this. They also sell cold drinks and snacks there. There is nothing else here, as well as vacationers.