Small island in Song Cau town
The Co Ngua mountain range in the North of Song Cau town stretches out to the East Sea about 15 km, creating the Xuan Thinh peninsula embracing Xuan Dai bay in the South and Cu Mong lagoon in the North. In particular, Xuan Dai bay is extremely beautiful and peaceful, located right in front of Song Cau town, famous for coconuts and other products from the sea.
Xuan Dai Bay seen from Gang slope on Highway 1A, with Co Ngua mountain range in the distance.
To the southwest of Xuan Dai Bay, Mu U Mountain stretches out to the sea, creating a small cove looking straight out across the bay. Right in that small cove, nestled behind Mu U Mountain a little to the south, is Nhat Tu Son Island, lying diagonally in the northwest-southeast direction like a screen protecting the two fishing villages of My Hai and My Thanh inside.
Nhat Tu Son Island is a few hundred meters from the mainland.
The island belongs to Xuan Thanh ward, to the south of Song Cau town, Phu Yen province. On Pham Van Dong street - the main road of Song Cau town - from the North, just past Tam Giang bridge, turn left onto Nguyen Hong Son street, hugging the coast for a few more kilometers to see the island. If you go from Tuy Hoa to Song Cau, just past Huyen bridge on National Highway 1A, turn right at the foot of the bridge, go less than 1 km to reach the island.
Walk to the island
The special thing about this small island is that, normally it is an island in the middle of the beautiful Xuan Dai Bay, but when the water level goes down, a sandbar appears connecting the "island" to the mainland, making it easy for people to walk to the island - there are even times when the water level is so low that cars can reach the island.
Usually at the beginning of the month, from the 1st to the 15th of the lunar month, the water recedes in the afternoon, and from the 15th to the end of the month, the water recedes in the morning. The Central region often has many storms in the second half of the year, the best time to visit Nhat Tu Son is from February to August.
At noon, the water began to recede, the yellow sand road vaguely appeared under the blue water.
At times when the water begins to recede but is not completely dry, the road appears faintly under the clear blue water, it is truly amazing. Walking to the island, the water is only slightly above the knees, looking from afar like one is “walking” in the middle of the sea.
Nhat Tu Son is currently managed by a unit for tourism business. As of mid-2021, the entrance fee here is 50,000 VND, including drinking water and canoe fee to and from the mainland to the island. Wading in and out of the sea is optional, but canoes are always ready to transport visitors at any time.
In the distance, tourists are wading across the sea to get to the island.
Discover Nhat Tu Son
Not only is the walking path on the sea special, Nhat Tu Son is also attractive because of the endless green color of the vegetation on the island. Services on the island are almost nothing except some common soft drinks, but in return, the poetic green space, rows of tables and chairs hidden among the trees and flowers, bring a feeling of relaxation and peace.
Flower trellis at a scenic spot for tourists to rest on the island
Another special thing is that the island is surrounded by a rather wide “rock shelf”. You can walk around the perimeter of the island on that rock, to hear the sound of the waves crashing against the rock, creating white foam. The walking path around the island is mainly on natural rock, with some places where people have made extremely simple concrete bridges to safely cross small ditches.
Go around the island along the rocky beach, through extremely simple "bridges"
At the end of the path through the rocky beach, there is a small cave that seems to lead underground to the other side of the island, because every now and then white foam shoots up from the cave mouth.
Past the rocky beach that circles the island's perimeter, the small path passes through a botanical garden with beautiful bird gardens and Koi ponds hidden under green trees, and sunflowers dancing on the ground after the gentle breezes blow the canopy of leaves.
Koi pond on the mountainside
After about half an hour of walking on the rocky beach around the island close to the sea, when your legs are starting to feel sore and your body is tired from the sun, you will return to the resting point near the pier on the island. Sitting on the stone benches under the shade of trees or on the simple swings hanging from the branches along the road will be a very pleasant feeling.
A shady and breezy rest stop
For those who still want to explore, there is a path up the mountain with stone steps leading to the Buddha statue on the top of the mountain. From here, you can look out over the vast ocean, sky, and mountains, which is also an interesting experience. The mountains on the island are not high, so it is not too strenuous.
Buddha statue on the mountain top
Goodbye to the small island and return to the mainland on a road hidden under the water.
Currently, the island does not allow guests to stay. After 18 hours, the canoe will stop operating and visitors will have to leave the island. After exploring this interesting island, if you have a canoe parked on the island, you can get on the canoe to return to the mainland immediately. If not, just stand on the island and wave your hat, the canoe will come out to pick you up. Although simple, Nhat Tu Son is an interesting destination that is worth visiting in Phu Yen.
