Co To is an island district in the east of Quang Ninh province, about 80 km from the mainland. Co To has nearly 50 small islands, of which tourists mainly explore the island clusters of Co To, Co To Con and Thanh Lan.
Which season is beautiful in Co To?
The most beautiful time to travel to Co To is summer and autumn. April and May are ideal because there are no storms, no rain, and the sun is not hot. June and July are suitable for summer travel but there are frequent storms. September and October are beautiful but it starts to get colder and rains more – the plus point is that the prices are not as expensive as the peak season.
No matter what season you go, you should monitor the weather forecast before departing to avoid being stuck for a long time because boats are prohibited from sailing during storms. If a storm suddenly hits while you are in Co To, follow the instructions of local authorities, or tour guides in case of group travel. Stay in a hotel or find a safe shelter, only continue your journey when the storm clears. You should bring more money than your estimated budget.
Move
To get to Co To island, visitors will have to take 2 routes:
Stage 1: Arrive at Cai Rong port, Van Don, Quang Ninh
Tourists from the South or Central region will take a flight to Hanoi or Hai Phong, Quang Ninh and then go by road to Cai Rong port, Van Don district.
If you do not drive your own car or motorbike from Hanoi, you can take a limousine or bus to Cua Ong, Cam Pha at My Dinh and Giap Bat bus stations. Price is about 150,000 VND to 200,000 VND per turn. Travel time is nearly 4 hours.
Departing from Hai Phong, travel time is about 1 hour 30 minutes. The price of a limousine is about 150,000 VND per trip, and a passenger car is about 120,000 VND per trip.
Stage 2: From Cai Rong port, take a boat to Co To island
There are currently 3 types of ships: high-speed ships, wooden ships and reinforced ships. Tourists often take high-speed trains and wooden boats.
High-speed train: Travel time is more than one hour, reference ticket price is 250,000 VND per trip. Shipping lines include: Ka Long, Phuc Thinh, Co To 68, Co To 01, Havaco, Nguyen Viet, Quang Minh, Manh Quang, Hai Vinh 89, Hoang Quan. Departure time is from 6:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Wooden boat: Travel time is nearly three hours, reference ticket price is 95,000 VND per trip. Departure time from Van Don – Co To is 7:00 a.m., return time is 1:00 p.m., as long as there are enough passengers, it will run.
Travel on the island
Visitors to the island can travel by electric car, motorbike, bicycle (rented at hotels and motels) or motorbike taxi or taxi.
Reference price: 7-seat electric car package 1,200,000 VND per day; motorbike 200,000 VND per day excluding gasoline; Bicycle 30,000 – 50,000 VND per hour.
Where to play?
Sea
The most attractive point in Co To is the long beaches, fine white sand and clear water. On Co To island, there are beautiful beaches such as Van Chay, Tinh Yeu (also known as Shipwreck beach), Hong Van , and Bac Van.
Co To Con Island has South beach and East beach. To get to Co To Con island, tourists take a boat from Bac Van port (about 7km from town), the time to get to the island is about 30 to 45 minutes depending on the weather.
Not only is it an ideal place for bathing, Hong Van, Nam Hai, Van Chay beaches… are beautiful places to watch the sunrise and sunset. At night, you can have a BBQ on the beach.
If you’re skillful enough, get up early to go to the market, buy seafood like squid, clams, oysters… to bring to the beach to grill at night. If you don’t have the conditions to prepare it yourself, you can choose available BBQ service packages from some travel companies that specialize in providing this service to have a romantic dinner with wine and seafood.
Thanh Lan Island , about 2 km by sea from Co To Island. This island commune is 27 km² wide and has an important position in the national defense and island security strategy. Thanh Lan owns many pristine beaches around the island such as Central beach, Vung Ba Chau beach, C76, Hai Quan… Sedimentary rocks dating back thousands of years with many different shapes create the magnificent for the landscape. The primeval forests on the island are still intact.
Island
In addition to the familiar big islands, visitors can rent boats to visit small islands such as Bat Huong island, Carp island, Khe Trau island, Tran island, Ba Duc island, Con Rat island, Lion island…
Dragon Claw Stone Beach
Mong Rong Rock Beach (also known as Cau My) has a system of sedimentary rocks eroded over tens of thousands of years by sea water. This colorful natural rock beach is located in area 4, Co To town on Co To island. The rocky beach is more than 40 hectares wide, stretching about 2 km.
According to ancient documents, the rocky beach was originally named Cau Thu My, and gradually people used to call it Cau My. In 2015, the beach was renamed Dragon’s Claw because the shape of the rocks reaching out to the sea is reminiscent of dragon’s claws.
In addition to checking in and sightseeing, visitors can also fish and scuba dive to see coral on calm days. Visit the rocky beach during moss season, you will have more magical color photos.
Co To lighthouse
Located on a hill more than 100 meters high, Co To lighthouse is considered one of the lighthouses with the most beautiful views in Vietnam. Climbing up the 72 spiral staircases to the top of the lamp, you will take in the entire beautiful island in the middle of a vast ocean and sky, with boats coming and going bustling…
If they have the opportunity, visitors can also chat with the lighthouse keepers to understand more about their duties and lives…
Visitors are advised to walk barefoot up the stairs – because the stairs are a place to catch clean rainwater for the light keepers’ reserves.
The path of love
The more than 2 km long road is paved with red bricks, along the coast, which is a romantic check-in point on Co To island. Known as the road of love, the path has the shade of green casuarina trees on both sides, swaying with the sea breeze, nearby are waves crashing against the sandy shore, golden sunlight filtering through the foliage… Tourists You will feel like seeing this familiar image on some romantic Korean drama.
Primeval forest
April is the flower season on Co To island. The flowers are green like leaves, tiny, growing in clusters like tiny, drooping fireworks.
Visiting the island in the right season, take the time to visit the primeval forest and look at hundreds of year old trees over 20 meters tall.
Enjoying fresh air, listening to birds singing, and exploring amazing nature are experiences that promise to leave memorable memories during the trip.
The primary playwood forest is located in Nam Dong village, Dong Tien commune, about 9 km from the center of Co To district. The primeval bamboo forest is about 10 hectares wide along Bac Van beach. Near the forest there is a passenger ferry to Co To Con, convenient for tourists to visit on their way to explore the island.
Memorial relic area of President Ho Chi Minh
This place has been recognized as a national historical relic site since 1997. The memorial area has relics associated with the places where President Ho Chi Minh visited during his visit to the island district in 1961 and 1962.
Truong Xuan Lake
This is one of two large freshwater reservoirs on Co To island, providing domestic water for people. Lyrical lake landscape, suitable for tourists to visit and explore. This place also has accommodation services for tourists.
Don Cao Relics
The relic of the Battle of Don Cao on the night of November 13, 1945 of Ky Con Company has been recognized as a provincial historical relic. The Don Cao area is located on high ground with an area of about 300 m2. This location has a panoramic view of Co To, so the French stationed troops.
This place marks the unequally brave fight of Ky Con Company – one of the first main units of the Dong Trieu War Zone with the French Army on Co To Island. In the center of Co To town is a road named Ky Con Company to pay tribute and commemorate the contributions of martyrs to the cause of liberating the island district…
Ky Con Walking Street
Ky Con walking street in zone 3, Co To town is more than 205 m long. This space is where visitors can explore food, drink, shop, and have fun. This is the first walking street of Co To district. The walking street operates from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. daily.
Eat and drink
Restaurants on the island serve affordable seafood. Addresses near the sea have higher prices. Some reference addresses include: Jellyfish restaurant, Thanh Uy, Hai Au, East Sea, Blue Sea, Son Hai Quan, Binh An Kitchen, Coto Hotel Group hotel restaurant, Van Chay restaurant, beach restaurant Ngoc Quynh… Bars with a “chill” atmosphere include Co To Santorini Bar & Cafe, CoTo Sunset Beach Bar…
Homestay, motel
Most motels and homestays are opened by local people, so they only have simple equipment at a price of about 200,000 – 1,800,000 VND per night. There is electricity on the island, so visitors do not need to worry too much about basic amenities. Some highly rated accommodation addresses include Coto Eco Lodge, Starlight Hotel Co To, Homestay Co To Haki…
Note
There are many mosquitoes on the beach at night, so bring insect spray to prevent them.
The weather at night on the island is low, please bring a light jacket. If you plan to camp on the beach, you should choose a place out of the wind and bring a flashlight. If you book a hotel or homestay on the island in advance, ask if there is transportation support to save time and travel costs.