Ninh Van- Nha Trang to Phu Yen motorbike trip: Day 1

I really like to discover places that aren’t that traveled by foreigners in Vietnam as they are usually a surprisingly beautiful hidden gem and a true discovery because there isn’t much on the web about such spots. I think the Vietnamese coastline is beautiful so I’m willing to explore it further. On a motorbike trip, I think I can see the best of Vietnam’s coastline honestly. It was time to discover Ninh Van.

There are some Peninsulas not far from Nha Trang that I thought might be worth a check and that’s what I planned to do during this 3-day motorbike trip exploring the Vietnamese coastline and hidden beaches. This area gave me major island vibes. It ended up being much better than I expected.
I split my trip into 3 different days. The first day was to explore the first peninsula where Ninh Van is located.

Ninh Van

Riding along this peninsula where Ninh Van is located is absolutely delightful and surprising. I saw many beaches that are not even marked on the map and they were gorgeous. Riding here offered amazing views of the ocean and allowed me to see several beaches from above. I can not tell you the names of all these places as they are not on the map as I said, but I can describe my route.

So from Nha Trang, where I rented a motorbike for several days, I headed to Raffles Ninh Van. This place is more than 70 km away and the journey was long, especially because I stopped many times to take pictures of the beautiful views I had along the way. It was a very solo ride once I got out of the main street. The streets are good and wide and very empty indeed. Not many people come here, and even fewer foreign tourists. During 3 days of motorbike tripping from Nha Trang to Phu Yen, I saw zero foreigners.

Raffles Ninh Van is a bay where a fishing village is located. This is not the beach where you want to lie down and relax. Lots of trash and fishermen doing their daily lives. After enjoying the beautiful views of the traditional boats I asked at the shop selling drinks for a place to eat. They pointed in a certain direction and I just followed. You will not find eating options here. There was only this one restaurant where I ate and was overpriced of course cause there wasn’t any other option.

Bien Nho Ninh Vay Bay

After Raffles Ninh Van I went to Bien Nho Ninh Vay Bay where I ate and drank. Like I said, not that cheap. But this is the spot to relax. The restaurant is right in front of the beach and has some comfy chairs to sit on. The beach has people swimming and is clean too. It looks beautiful, surrounded by mountains but its true colors are only seen from up a rock in a corner OMG! What a stunner this beach is. The colors in the water are splendid! So many shades of blue with drawn black patterns by corals wow, such light shades of blue. I think I have never seen such water like this. I found it extremely beautiful and charming. I would have stayed here, but this was basically my first stop on this trip and I had way more spots I wanted to explore. Plus, it gave me alien feelings once I got into that restaurant, haha. Everyone was staring at me very surprised. I think this place doesn’t see many foreigners. Felt special haha.

This was just another beach along the way, no name:

I actually thought of maybe camping in Ninh Van as I saw a camping site marked on the map. There are one or two pricier places where to sleep, but out of my budget, and after checking the camping site, I was sure I wouldn’t sleep there and would have to find a solution for that night.

Ninh Van camping site had some tents and several locals, but no facilities at all. Felt like people brought their tents. How could I stay there without food and water, I had nothing with me haha. This was obviously not very well thought out. My bad. Also camping there with all these Vietnamese finding me a weirdo wouldn’t feel very comfy honestly. If I wasn’t alone I probably could stay. Bringing your own tent and exploring this area is a great idea. Many people camp along these very empty beaches, but as a woman, on my own, I will never camp by myself.

Ninh Van Camping

This spot is called Ninh Van Camping and faces a beautiful beach with beautiful waters. Major island vibes here. What a peaceful and beautiful spot. I decided to keep walking south along the beach to find even better ones and absolutely deserted.

I walked across several beaches with big boulders giving them a specific charm. Paradise was found. I stayed on the beach all day all alone. The water temperature was perfect and no major waves. Felt like a happy kiddo in there doing whatever I wanted and finding seashells. Yes, there are lots of dead corals on the sand here as well as pretty shells. Totally my vibe. Later on, someone showed up not far away and assembled their camping ground. Like I told you, many locals camp along the coastline on the beach.

I stayed near Ninh Van Camping for sunset and decided to ride back to the mainland to sleep. I slept in Doc Let this first night after about 100km done on my rented motorbike in Nha Trang for 150K per day. I spent a total of 140K Dongs in gas for this trip which lasted 3 days and a bit more than 300 km. I slept in the Doc Let area close to the peninsula where I spent the day. I have visited Doc Let Beach before, so it wasn’t included in my plans. The next day I would ride to the next peninsula north, more than 70km away.

You can read about the 2nd day of this Nha Trang to Phu Yen motorbike trip HERE, and the 3rd day HERE!