Mui Ne has more to offer than just relaxing days at the beach. I had no idea that such a landscape that resembles a desert could be found in Vietnam at Mui Ne sand dunes. So, I would say that the biggest attraction in Mui Ne is the sand dunes.
First I visited the white sand dunes, but I know there are also red sand dunes as people call it.
The red sand dunes look more orange than red and are not so impressive as the white ones. They are reachable by local bus and are located just next to the street. You can see them clearly from the street. I think the reason they aren’t so impressive as the white ones is that they are not that tall, and when I visited Mui Ne sand dunes they were super crowded. We went there for the sunset, and this place was so full of people that all the footprints on the sand were just ruining how beautiful just the sand by itself could be. There was also considerable amounts of trash left by all those people that are mainly Asians.
There are people selling some kind of “snowboard” so you could surf the dunes. I don’t think the material is very resistant as I saw many of those broken and useless. It sounds like a fun activity, but the place is way too crowded and as I said, the dunes aren’t that tall. They certainly have a way bigger extension than the white sand dunes and you can walk on the red sand dunes for much longer without losing sight of sand. People gather here for the sunset, but for me, it wasn’t so special… I prefer sunsets close to the water and this one wasn’t that special.
The local bus stops right next to them, so we go back to our Hostel by bus again. The thing with the local bus is that they charge you whatever they want. We saw people paying less than us for the same journey, and we never know what is the real price, cause once you try to argue they will not understand shit and will get angry. So, we just accept the fact that we are being overcharged and that’s it!
Another attraction besides Mui Ne sand dunes that was actually more worthy was the fairy stream. I have never been to such a place like this, so it was interesting. You need to pay an entrance fee, but it is cheap and to get there you can also go by local bus.
The fairy stream is a very pleasant place where you walk in shallow water all the time in between a reddish landscape with some white tones. It’s a very particular kind of landscape that I don’t think can be found so easily somewhere else. There is plenty of shades along the way, and the water in your feet makes the walk a refreshing journey. There are many people here but not many Westerners again, so we are received with many smiles and many “hello’s” from the younger ones that laugh enthusiastically after having a hello back.
During our walk we can see kids having fun in the mud, smiley faces designed on the stones along the way, made with the mud too. It’s fun to watch! The journey ends when the water becomes too high to walk and there you see many kids swimming and having fun. Along the way, there are some coffee shops and even some kind of “zoo” to watch some animals and take pictures with exotic snakes. Reaching the end, you need to come all the way back.
The fairy stream is nearby the beach, so we went for a while. In this place, you also have a lot of food offers, ice creams rolls, and cold drinks. Here in Mui Ne, there are a lot of Russian tourists and a lot of stores run by Russian people. I have never seen so many stores with cosmetic products like here. All these Russian stores are selling basically the same products. BE AWARE! I can only talk about my experience. I bought a fake sunscreen and got sunburned like never before in my life. Yes, as crazy as it might sound, they actually sell fake sunscreen, and not only. My friend bought a hair conditioner and it was fake!!! She knew it after seeing a video on the web about the real product. So, I honestly believe that many things they sell here are fake. My advice is: don’t buy anything from these stores.
Although I decided to do everything on my own if you don’t have all that time there is a tour of about 150K Dong that lasts half-day and takes you to the main attractions like Mui Ne sand dunes and the fairy stream by jeep.
