Tho Chu Archipelago (or Thao Chau Commune) is not a familiar name on the Western tourist map. But referring to the pristine islands of Kien Giang, one cannot ignore the name Tho Chau – where the last landmark of Vietnam in the Southưest is located. Tho Chau archipelago is a place that you definitely have to go to once in your life, come to see how beautiful the Vietnamese sea and islands are, come to feel a very strange life in an island commune far from the mainland.
Tho Chau – where the last landmark of Vietnam in the South is located.
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What to know about Tho Chau?
The name Tho Chau Archipelago was given by Lord Nguyen Anh during the period of his arrival here. Tho Chau Archipelago, also known as Tho Chu Archipelago, is a frontier island commune on the southwest sea of Vietnam in Phu Quoc City, Kien Giang Province, including many large and small islands. In which, there are 8 large islands with different shapes and areas, namely, Tho Chau Island, Hon Nhan, Hon Xanh, Hon Kho, Hon Cao Cat, Hon Tu, and Hon Keo Ngua. The highest point of the island above sea level is 164m.
Of the eight islands, Tho Chau has the largest area with 13.95 m2 and is also the most populated place. This island belongs to Bai Ngu Hamlet, the administrative center of the commune. Hon Nhan has the smallest area, only about 2000 m2. The people of the archipelago live mainly on fish farming, fishing, and fish processing.
The busiest place
The Tho Chau Archipelago is located in the southwestern tip of Vietnam, about 160 km northwest of the Ca Mau Cape and 220 km from Rach Gia (Kien Giang). With a location close to the international sea, the islands have a very important military position, so it is strictly protected by the border forces to assert sovereignty over the sea and sacred islands of the country. Perhaps because of this strictness, this place does not have professional tourism activities. However, thanks to that, the Tho Chau Archipelago retains its most pristine beauty that other islands do not have.
The wild beauty of Tho Chau island
Fine white sand beaches, enchanting coral reefs or paths through primeval forests, convex cliffs … will fascinate anyone from the moment they first step foot on Tho Chau.
Transportation to the Tho Chau Islands
There are 2 ways to go to the Tho Chau Islands:
To Tho Chau from Phu Quoc: You can easily move to Phu Quoc by plane, the high-speed ship then you continue your journey to Tho Chau. Ships to the islands usually depart from Phu Quoc at 8 am on 10,15,20,25,30 monthly and return at 5 am on 6, 11, 21,25 every month. It takes about 4-5 hours, this is the shortest route and is the most popular choice for tourists.
To Tho Chau from Rach Gia: From Rach Gia, it is more than 16 hours by train to reach Tho Chau. The train will depart at 8:00 am on the 5th of each month and return on 31 or 26 depending on the month. You should prepare yourself for good health when moving otherwise it is very easy to get seasick.
Because the shipping schedule is quite small, so you want to travel to Tho Chau, you need to consider carefully the time. This is a journey that busy travelers with only a few days off cannot make.
The attractions of sightseeing and fun activities in Tho Chau
Traveling to Kien Giang, the journey to Tho Chau is not easy, but in return, you will enjoy the scenery of islands that still retain their untouched beauty without much human impact. Tourism that has never been developed here turns out to be a good thing here. Here, visitors can swim at Bai Ngu Beach, explore Hon Nhan, Hon Xanh, go to Tho Chau lighthouse to enjoy the vast sea and island space of Vietnam.
Going to the beach
On Tho Chau, there are four beaches, namely Ngu Beach, Dong Beach, Mun Beach, and Nhat Beach, of which Ngu Beach and Dong Beach are the two largest beaches. Bai Ngu is associated with Nguyen Anh – Gia Long’s Nguyen Dynasty start-up event. During the days of being chased by the Tay Son, Nguyen Anh went to this island many times. This is also the place where boats go in and out of the dock as well as the busiest concentration of residents.
Beautiful white sand blue sea
The beach at Bai Ngu is still quite unspoiled with many eagle trees, maple trees, and coconut trees along the coast. Bai Ngu has an arc shape, surrounded by two mountain ranges, so the sea here is very picturesque. You are immersed in cool water and admire the vast ocean.
Cool green coconut row
In the southwest monsoon season from April to August every year, people move to Dong Beach; In the northeast monsoon season from September to March next year, they return to Ngu Beach.
Dong Beach
The houses of the people avoid the wind in Dong Beach
Walking around the islands
From Ngu Beach, there are 2 roads to Dong Beach, Nhut Beach. One, going around the island, the other is going through the mountain. In which, the path through the mountain winding under the primeval forest canopy is very beautiful with many kinds of ancient trees, medicinal plants (honey, dragon blood, pineapple, fossil tree …).
The road around the island
The winding mountain path under the primary forest canopy is very beautiful
You will fully feel the fresh wild nature of Tho Chau Island as you pass through this tropical forest. Along the two sides of the road, visitors will find many old trees with tall bodies reaching straight up to the deep blue sky. An entire area of green, strangely peaceful stretches out forever, leaving only the rustling wind and the chirping of birds singing through the branches.
An indispensable detail is that on Tho Chu Island there are quite a few square eagle trees which are considered one of the two typical tree species in Truong Sa (along with the maple tree).
On the island, there are rather many square eagle trees
Lighthouse
To fully enjoy the beauty of the Tho Chau Islands, you can come to the 140-meter high lighthouse to overlook the villages, beaches, and fishing activities of fishermen. This lighthouse is where the border forces observe the island. At night, the lighthouse will also light up to serve fishermen offshore.
Tho Chau Lighthouse
A corner of Tho Chau island seen from above
Diving and seeing coral
The seawater around theTho Chau Islands is clear, within a few tens of meters near the shore, you can see the sand bottom with a flock of fish swimming around the colorful coral reefs. Coming to Tho Chau, not to miss diving activities to see coral which will be an interesting and impressive experience as a valuable reward that nature Tho Chau offers to visitors. You can admire more than 99 different colorful corals while diving under the deep sea.
Hon Cao where there are beautiful coral reefs
Visiting relics, spiritual spots
Talking about Tho Chu is referring to a traumatic and tragic historical event of Vietnamese people in the war against the Pol Pot genocidal regime (Red Khmer). So, when you step foot on the island, do not forget to visit the Tho Chau Temple. From the port up, turn right to Tho Chau commune headquarters and Tho Chau Primary School a distance from Tho Chau Temple. The architecture of the temple is like a martyr temple. The temple worships President Ho Chi Minh, martyrs sacrificing to liberate the Tho Chu Islands, and especially it worships more than 500 Tho Chu people who were murdered by the Pol Pot army in May 1975.
Tho Chau Temple
On Thao Chu Island, there is also a HoangTemple where the god controlling and protecting the villager is worship. One side is to worship Ba Chua Xứ, a goddess helping villagers and the other is to worship Ong Nam Hai, a god protecting fishermen when going to the sea. People on the island doing business and fishing offshore have set up the temple to worship. Every year on the 24th and 26th of the 2nd lunar month at the temple, there is a ceremony to pray for good rain, wind, and favorable business on the sea. It is an opportunity for people to summarize their sea trips.
Hoang Temple on Tho Chau Island
Lady and Gentleman festival with warm smiles of people from everywhere coming here to start a career has created a deep impression on anyone who once arrived on the island.
Visiting Hon Nhan to watch the Swallow bird
Hon Nhan is a place where no residents live. There are only tens of thousands of terns to nest and live here. The time from October to March of the lunar calendar is when the terns come here to lay eggs. Having the opportunity to come during the swallow season, you will be able to watch the birds spread their wings against the deep blue sky.
Hon Nhan is seen from afar
Flocks of birds spread their wings
You will also see majestic cliffs, where point A1 – Vietnam’s maritime border. Under the sea is a beautiful coral reef, like a newly opened paradise.
Point A1 – Vietnam’s maritime borderline
Explore Hon Xanh
Hon Xanh (Green Island) is one of the interesting places when you come to Tho Chau. As the name of Green island, the island is covered with green color with new species of trees, or rocks covered with moss. This place is considered an ecological reserve and is home to many species of animals. Especially, with green grass, cool trees, Green Island is quite ideal for camping.
Xanh Island
The rocks are covered with moss
To visit surrounding islets such as Hon Nhan, Hon Xanh … you have to hire boats from indigenous fishermen.
Experiencing fisherman life
The fishing village on the Tho Chu Islands has existed for a long time. The people here are always friendly and hospitable. You will easily apply for accommodation, experiencing life on the islands with them, especially set sail with them to go fishing and squid fishing. If you are not afraid of seasickness, you should definitely give it a try.
Going squid fishing with fishermen
Eating and drinking on the Tho Chau Islands
The islands are full of eateries, so you don’t need to prepare many foods in advance. The seafood on the islands is extremely fresh with the bold taste of the sea, remember to enjoy delicious dishes such as grilled snail, squid, crab, shrimp, fish, seaweed soup … You can buy directly from the restaurant at a very affordable price and require processing. In addition, visitors can also visit the market to buy squid, scallops, snails and bring them to the camping area, cook their own way.
Fresh and delicious seafood
Resting on the islands
Due to the underdeveloped tourism, there are no hotels and motels. You can ask for sleep at local homestays or border stations. The people here are very gentle, kind, and hospitable. Life on the islands today is also quite complete, convenient, generator running 24/24 hours, telecommunication network including 4G, mainly Viettel, military and civilian medical station combined … so you do not need to worry too much. You can also choose an outdoor camping option to fully enjoy the natural atmosphere on the islands.
Notes to Tho Chau
They are military islands that are strictly managed by the Navy Region 5 of Military Region 9, the border of Kien Giang province, and administrative agencies at all levels. There are a few things you should keep in mind when coming to the Tho Chau Islands.
- In order to travel on the islands, you must obtain a permit from the authorities.
- Need to bring identification papers
- Not all areas can be photographed, if the area is under the management of any agency, please note that permission is required
- If you want to visit other islets, you must also apply for a permit, not be arbitrary. In addition, some activities such as camping, campfire also require prior permission
- You should save fresh water and do not litter
The beautiful scenery of the Tho Chau archipelago is truly indescribable: white sandy beaches, clear blue water, charming coconut trees, colorful coral reefs, and rich seafood. Currently traveling to Tho Chau is quite difficult, so if you want to explore Tho Chau, contact Mekong Adventure. It is a unit specializing in organizing tours to the West Coast Island. Book a Tho Chau Island Tour, It will take care of all of you.
