From Cau Da port, it will take you more than an hour by boat to Hon Noi – a swiftlet island in Nha Trang. This place has the only double beach in Vietnam with fine white sand, you can see the blue sea in any direction. For quiet tourists, Hon Ong is a wonderful island, unspoiled and uninhabited. But if you want to scuba dive and see coral, you have to go to Monkey Island and Mun Island. The best time for diving is from April to July. Hon Mun is located about 10km from Cau Da. Located in the southeast of Bong Nguyen Island, it will take about 45 minutes by train. Hon Mun has a total area of ​​160 km², of which 122 km² is the sea surface area, 38 km² is the total area of ​​the islands. It is called Mun island because the southeast of the island has high rocky snouts, The cliffs are craggy, forming a cave, especially the rock here is as black as ebony, very rare in other places. To participate in this adventure tour, you need to prepare a hat to protect yourself from the sun, use low shoes and sandals, and limit carrying electronics. In the black rock caves of Hon Mun is the place to live and nest. The marine ecosystem here is also extremely diverse and rich. According to statistics, Hon Mun has up to 1,500 species of coral and marine life. The sea water here is blue with countless beautiful coral species. There is nothing better than having the opportunity to dive into the sea and see the ocean floor. Children under 11 years old, people with a history of cardiovascular disease, people who are prone to seasickness and car sickness should not join this risky tour. The lifeguards will guide visitors to prepare clothes for diving. watching corals (shallow diving), schools of fish bouncing on the seabed. Visitors will be instructed to warm up for about 5 minutes before entering the sea. Visitors will be equipped with life jackets, diving goggles, snorkels, propellers (if desired) to freely swim and snorkel to see corals, explore the shimmering colorful world on the ocean floor. With normal health You can conquer a depth of about 20m, diving time is about 30 minutes under the ocean. Of course, the lifeguards will have to constantly watch their every movement. The interesting thing is that you can share these slightly adventurous feelings of exploring the sea with friends or family on the bottom of the sea. An interesting experience for those who love to explore the ocean will be an unforgettable memory that will never be forgotten. In Nha Trang, there is another place where you can snorkel and see coral. That is Monkey Island, a small island located in Nha Phu Bay, right near the beautiful Ninh Van Bay, and only 15km north of Nha Trang city center. To visit Monkey Island, you have to go to the pier at Da Chong port. The island has an area of ​​25ha and also owns a lot of beautiful scenes with more than 1,200 monkeys including many different species such as red-faced monkeys or gray-haired monkeys. Monkeys here are raised naturally in the primeval forests, not kept in cages. So before diving, you can have fun with cute, funny monkeys everywhere on the island. Pristine beach, no human intervention, clear blue sea and many beautiful coral reefs. This is a hiding place for many strange and precious sea fish. Because of that, it attracts the curiosity of visitors when they want to explore the blue ocean. In addition to the diving journey to see the sea in Nha Trang, visitors will be immersed in the sun, wind, sea and sky, struggling in the clear blue water while diving. Go ashore to enjoy fresh seafood dishes. Famous delicacies in Nha Trang can mention small abalone, dried shrimp, grilled clams with garlic butter.

Ngoc Hoa said that the number of tourists buying tours to the island, Vinpearl Land or destinations around the central coastal city all skyrocketed during the holiday of April 30. He witnessed some people waiting for hours and still could not buy tickets to the tourist area, had to change to explore the inner city. Tourists queue in a long line at Vinpearl Land Nha Trang tourist area. Photo: Pham Ngoc Hoa. Similar to Phu Quoc (Kien Giang), Da Lat (Lam Dong) or Vung Tau (Ba Ria – Vung Tau), overcrowding of tourists also occurs in the coastal city of Nha Trang. Check-in photos are constantly being updated on social networks, attracting mixed opinions. Manh Quan account said: “Looking at this picture, I feel bewildered. I just went to Nha Trang from April 27 and came back yesterday, it’s wise to travel before the holiday, not in long queues”. Hoang Tuan Anh left a comment: “The epidemic is stressful like this, but many people gather in one point, if someone ‘forgets’ to wear a mask, it will be easy.” Tourists focus on Nha Trang Tourist Wharf to go on a tour to visit the sea and islands. Photo: Vinh Max. Meanwhile, many people believe that without a ban, tourists are not at fault when choosing to go out during the holidays. Tea member Bonny said that when looking at the photos, it is a good thing to see that all tourists are wearing masks, consciously limiting the spread of disease in the community. The flow of people from Ho Chi Minh City to the provinces, leading to traffic jams, has been reported by people since the morning of April 30. Readers Vinh Max started at 6:30 pm on April 29 in Ho Chi Minh City. At 6 am the next morning, he arrived in Phan Ri Cua town (Binh Thuan). “Due to the long holiday, people flocked to their hometowns to travel, so the traffic was stuck in Dong Nai area. I planned to go to the island soon but broke the plan because I couldn’t move,” this passenger said. On May 1, Nha Trang Tourist Wharf, where tickets are bought to visit places such as Mun island, Tranh beach, Coral bay, Tam island, etc., was also filled with people waiting to go to the island. Nha Trang has the advantage of a beach resort and is a safe destination chosen by many people. Previously, Khanh Hoa Tourism Department predicted that there would be about 70,000 tourists during the April 30 holiday. Tourists mainly stay in Nha Trang city and Bai Dai area (Cam Lam district).

The coral disappears? The team led by Professor Konstantin Tkachenko and his colleagues conducted a coral survey at 10 points for about 3 years (2016 – 2019). Average coral cover decreased 64.4%, of which the strongest reduction was two corals Acropora and Montipora, which are the main components of coral reefs in Nha Trang Bay, decreased by 80, respectively. 6% and 82.3%. The level of coral degradation in the above survey points is serious. On Hon Mot island, this coral has lost completely or its coverage decreased by 4-8 times. Collecting coral samples on Nha Trang Bay. Observation results, collecting analytical samples at 20 fixed points (2013 – 2019), combining the tools of mapping reefs and analyzing GIS geographic information systems for comparison with 4 decades ago show that , the total area of ​​rich and healthy coral reefs in Nha Trang Bay has decreased from 6.65km 2 before 1980 down to 0.74 km 2 in 2019. That shows, Nha Trang has lost 90% of its corals in less than 40 years. The remaining 10% of the coral communities are in two states: Some remain stable and some continue to decline, coverage ranges from 13 to 50% and species diversity is also significantly reduced. . According to Dr. Hoang Xuan Ben – Deputy Director of Nha Trang Institute of Oceanography, the results of recent research and publication (2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020) of the Institute of Oceanography on the current situation and trend of change The coral reefs in Nha Trang Bay Reserve also showed that the average coverage of hard corals in Nha Trang Bay was 22.8%. The cover of coral reefs in Nha Trang Bay can be divided into 3 groups: The group with high coverage is Hon Mun area reaching level 4 (coverage 51 – 75%); the average coverage group is Bai Bang, Hon Chong, Hon Vung and Hon Tam with the value of level 2 (10-30%) and the group with low coverage are the remaining points with the value of level 1 (less than 10%). . The assessment results at the fixed monitoring points in Nha Trang Bay showed that the monitoring points located in the strictly protected area all had a high value of hard coral coverage and remained stable over time from 2002 – 2015. Meanwhile, most of the monitoring points outside the strictly protected area have fluctuations in a downward trend. Compared with the results in 1994 (over 25 years), the average coverage of Nha Trang Bay corals is about 30%, the current coral coverage is 7.2%. The area of ​​coral reefs decreased from 754ha to 636.6ha (down 117.4ha, equivalent to 13.5%). 9 species of hard corals that are resilient Dr. Hoang Xuan Ben said that the decline of coral reefs in the bay has many causes such as: Exploiting destruction by explosives, cyanide (currently no longer available); environmental pollution (tourism activities, waste discharge, aquaculture …) altering living conditions, appearing diseased corals, outbreak of coral-eating organisms (starfishes) and local eutrophication; coral bleaching phenomenon and natural disasters (storms, floods) … However, the biggest loss of coral reefs is due to the leveling process, construction of tourism infrastructure and people in the coastal and island areas. The leveling not only loses the area of ​​the coral reef but also sends sediment into the sea, causing deposition on the reef surface, causing the coral to die. Over the past time, the Institute of Oceanography has experimented with restoring corals in Nha Trang Bay, has identified 9 recoverable hard corals with a survival rate of over 60%, the average growth rate from 0. , 4 – 6.5mm / month. This result brings certain effects, contributing to minimizing adverse impacts on coral reefs, improving reefs by increasing coral cover, increasing sustainable attachment prices for corals. To restore and create a stable environment for the development of the reef biome. However, compared with other recovery areas in Vietnamese waters such as Ly Son, Binh Dinh, and Con Dao, the survival rate of the recovered corals in Nha Trang Bay is not high. Some of the causes are identified such as: coral damage, competition between species, environmental quality changes due to indirect activities from humans and other factors such as dynamic mode, coral. wounded at the cuts. Therefore, the province needs a comprehensive assessment to have a solution to this problem. VL