The island with a hidden path in Vung Tau

Located about 200m from Nghinh Phong cape and the foot of Nho mountain, Hon Ba island (in the Back Beach area, Vung Tau city) is an attractive destination thanks to its wild beauty, spiritual and historical values.

On the island there is a temple of the same name, attracting many people and tourists from all over to come and offer incense and perform rituals on the full moon days of January, April, July and October of the lunar calendar.

According to legend, Hon Ba Temple was built in the 19th century to worship Thuy Long Than Nu - who plays the role of regulating the climate, helping fishermen to do business in peace and go fishing smoothly. Therefore, the temple is also called Ba Temple.

The worship items in the temple have been restored, upgraded and embellished many times to become a spacious place of worship, meeting the religious needs of local people and tourists.

Thanks to its special geographical location, located halfway up a small island, Hon Ba Temple is also ranked among the temples with the most special locations in Vietnam.

Not only attracting tourists to make pilgrimages and offer sacrifices at the temple, Hon Ba Island is also special because of the stone path hidden under the sea, connecting the island with the mainland, only appearing at low tide.

Tourists must watch for the "golden time", monitoring each day to know the time of the water receding. Especially on the 15th and 16th of the lunar month, the sea water recedes the deepest, creating favorable conditions for tourists to experience walking through this road.

However, the path is quite slippery, with lots of rocks and oyster shells, so visitors need to choose suitable shoes for easy movement and to avoid injury.

On days when the sea level is high, visitors can rent a boat or motorboat to get to the island. However, it is not possible to go straight from the mainland to the island but must circle out to sea and dock on the east side.

According to the Electronic Information Portal of the Center for Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion of Ba Ria - Vung Tau province, Hon Ba Temple is located at an altitude of about 4m above sea level. Below, historical war relics are preserved with a basement 6m long, 3m wide - which used to be the place where secret revolutionary meetings were held.

Every year, Hon Ba Temple organizes 4 ceremonies, based on the tides, including January, April, July and October (lunar calendar). Every year, on October 16 of the lunar calendar, the Thang Tam Communal House Relic Management Board will organize a ceremony to welcome the Lady from Hon Ba Temple and Ba Ngu Hanh Temple to worship.

Mr. Le Quang Duong, Deputy Head of the Thang Tam Communal House Relic Management Board - the unit that manages and administers the worshiping activities at Hon Ba Temple, said that Vung Tau City leaders had a meeting with the Thang Tam Communal House Management Board about the policy and plan to build a bridge to Hon Ba to create conditions for people and tourists to come to Hon Ba.

However, the unique road leading to Hon Ba will remain intact, ensuring the inherent natural beauty of this destination.

If you plan to visit Hon Ba, you should follow the weather forecast and the tide schedule. When walking through the unique stone path to get here, you should wait until the water recedes and the path is clear before moving; Choose shoes with high friction to ensure safety; Balance the visit time appropriately to return to the mainland before the tide rises...