The island of Thanh An or Thanh An commune is the only island commune of Ho Chi Minh City. Thanh An Island is located about 80km southeast of the city center. This place is not a tourist destination, but it is an ideal spot for those who love the simple and rustic beauty of the rivers and water. This weekend, if you want to “escape” from the noisy and busy city life, visit Thanh An Island.
What does Thanh An Island have?
Thanh An Island is not famous for delicious food or stunning landscapes like many other islands, but Thanh An offers its own beauty as a peaceful island commune, suitable for those who want to find a quiet and fresh atmosphere, away from the dust and noise of the city. What are you waiting for, pack your bags and goHello everyone. A short trip to escape the city. Not choosing Vung Tau, I chose Thanh An 80km from Saigon. Suitable for those who want a change. Not suitable for luxury resorts.
How to get to Thanh An Island from Ho Chi Minh City
To get to Thanh An Island, you can go by motorbike, private car, or bus;
Going to Thanh An Island by Bus:
From Ben Thanh, take bus 20 to the last stop which is Binh Khanh ferry terminal. After the ferry, take bus 90 to Can Thanh (remember to ask the driver to stop at the boat station). Both bus routes have subsidies and run many trips throughout the day from morning to evening, making it very flexible for your travel. Additionally, you can also take bus 75 from Ben Thanh directly to Can Thanh. However, this bus route does not have subsidies and has very few trips per day.
Arriving at Can Thanh boat station, it only takes about 45 minutes by boat to reach Thanh An island commune. The boat only runs a few trips per day, so you need to plan your travel time accordingly.
Going to Thanh An Island by Motorbike:
Just go straight on Huynh Tan Phat Street, District 7 until you reach Binh Khanh ferry terminal, the ferry fee is 5,500 VND per person + vehicle (ferry starts at 5 am).After the ferry, you will reach Can Gio, then go about 50km on Rung Sac Road to reach Thanh An. Note, this road used to be a bit rough with many speed bumps, and no lights at night (currently the road has been improved and repaired quite nicely)
You can ask the locals here for directions to the boat station to go to the island. (next to Coopmart) It is recommended to park your vehicle next to the boat station because the island is very small and can be easily explored on foot (we didn’t research well so we parked right at the boat station)
Parking fee at the boat station: day: 5k, night: 10k
Boat to Thanh An Island
Boat schedule to and from the island: 6:30 am – 9 am – 10:30 am – 12 pm – 2 pm – 5 pm
Pay attention to the time to catch the boat, or you can arrive 20 minutes early because once there are enough people, the boat will depart without waiting for anyone (when I went, it was a holiday so it was crowded waiting for the next boat after the iron gate, it felt like being in jail ha ha standing there singing and waiting for the boat)
Boat ticket: 20,000 VND per person (45 minutes) but the trip to the island takes about 30 minutes
Oh, and if you get seasick, make sure to take motion sickness medicine beforehand to avoid getting sick.
Frequently Asked Questions When Visiting Thanh An Island
When is the best time to visit Thanh An Island?
You can visit any day, but it’s best to avoid rainy or stormy days. March and April are the most suitable times.
Is it possible to visit Thanh An Island in a day?
Definitely. The island is quite close and small, so one day is enough to explore it all.
How to get around Thanh An Island?
Thanh An Island is very small, so you can just walk. It’s about a 2km walk from one end of the village to the other. Or you can rent a bike from Home.
What activities can you do on the island?
Thanh An is quite pristine, so there are no entertainment activities. But you can enjoy the pure nature here, walk on the stone embankment to admire the sea, take photos on the stone path in the middle of the ocean. Paper flowers, red phoenix flowers, yellow phoenix flowers, blooming bauhinia trees, etc. It’s recommended to stay overnight to experience the tranquility and freshness, and witness the sunrise here.
What to eat on Thanh An Island?
On Thanh An, you can buy seafood directly from the fishermen as soon as their boats dock. The seafood here is very fresh and reasonably priced. If you enjoy seafood, this is the place for you. You can have delicious and affordable clam porridge on the island. Besides seafood, there are many other snacks available:
- Seafood restaurants like Sau Bo, Kieu Huong. (We didn’t eat seafood on the island as we preferred to eat at the market in Can Gio)
- In the evening, there are grilled skewers, grilled chicken feet, grilled chicken wings, priced at 23k. Grilled rice paper. Grilled eggs. Grilled duck intestines. Ice cream, sweet soup.
- In the morning, there are various dishes. There’s pho at the market, and banh mi at the pier,.. A giant bowl of pho costs 17k
- The grocery store sells bear-shaped cakes, small cute items that are very appealing.
- Mango with chili salt. Fried milkfish. Crushed tamarind juice. Jujube juice for 5k/cup
- Can Gio: Hang Duong Market has a wide variety of seafood. Choose by weight and have it cooked for 10k/dish. Or you can choose from pre-cooked dishes.
- Rent a seat for 10k/seat + 10k/cup of drink: Relax and enjoy the cool breeze.
What are the people like on Thanh An Island?
You can rest assured, everyone is very friendly and hospitable.
Where to stay on Thanh An Island?
There are a few small guesthouses on the island if you want to stay overnight. But if you’re just going for the day, it’s not really necessary.
Other necessities?
There are quite complete things you need. In addition, there is a medical station, border guard station, so you can rest assured when coming to the island.
Itinerary for a 2-day 1-night trip to Thanh An Island
Day 1 :
- 12h move from SG to the pier, drink water and wait for the boat to run on time. Take the 5-hour boat trip (last trip).
- Check-in. Wash up. Wander around for food and drink. Sit at the pier: the island is quite small. No matter how you go, you will reach the shore.
Day 2 :
- Wake up early to watch the sunrise (It’s recommended to wake up early because the morning at the pier is very lively, and the sunset is also extremely beautiful). Have breakfast, wander around and take photos.
- Return to the room to pack up, take the 2-hour boat trip. Stop by Hang Duong market to buy seafood.
- Go to the beach, rent a seat to eat seafood.
- Return to SG
Cost for a 2-day 1-night trip to Thanh An Island:
- Gas + parking + ferry + boat (40k/2 people/2 ways): 120k
- Room 150k
- Seafood 280k + 50k (processing): 330k
- Chair + water (beach) + Drinking water along the way: 100k
- Miscellaneous food on the island (dinner + breakfast): 250k
- Miscellaneous additional costs: 50k
Total cost 500,000 VND/ 1 person (That’s the cost on my trip. It depends on how you design your itinerary as well)
Saigon – Thanh An Island – Monkey Island 1-day Itinerary
7:00 AM: Breakfast and departure from District 7, passing through Huynh Tan Phat to Binh Khanh ferry and straight down to Can Gio.
- 8:45 AM: Arrive and rest at Sister Muoi’s drink stall along 30/4 beach.
- 9:20 AM: Enjoy the beach and take photos.
- 9:45 AM: Visit Hang Duong Market to buy fresh seafood and pre-prepared seafood. Prices are reasonable and fair.
- 10:30 AM: Return to the drink stall for rest and then head to Thanh An Island.
- 11:45 AM: Transfer to Thanh An Pier to reach Thanh An Island, the pier is about 15-20 minutes from the beach. You can follow the map to Coopmart Can Gio and drive past Coopmart, then turn right and go straight to the pier.
- 1:10 PM: Arrive at Thanh An Island and explore around.
- 2:00 PM: Return and head to Monkey Island along the way back, there are signs along the road, about 5.5km from the beach and on the left side.Be careful with the monkeys, they can be aggressive, do not bring glasses, phones, etc. with them.
- 4:30 PM: After the visit, stop by Station 2 to enjoy coconut water and other drinks.
Return to District 7.
Cost of Thanh An Island – Monkey Island 1-day Trip
Food consumed during the trip at30/4 Beach, Hang Duong Market, Thanh An Island, and Monkey Island.
- Red Snapper: 80k
- Sea Urchin: 60k
- Cooking fee: grilled fish + sea urchin with water spinach = 60k
- Grilled Snail: 50k/portion
- Grilled Squid: 80k/1 squid weighing 200g
- 1 Mango: 25k
- 100g grilled squid and 1 pack of peanuts: 60k
- 1 pack of Sting: 90k
- 4 seats: 40k
Other expenses:
- Parking fee for the island: 20k/2 cars
- Round-trip boat ticket: 80k/4 people
- Banana Ice Cream: 20k/4 cones
- Drinks off the island: 20k (2 C2 bottles, 1 sweet tea).
- Monkey Island entrance ticket + electric car: 200k/4 people
- Station 2 stop for coconut water + mineral water: 95k/4 people
Total cost: 980:4 = 245k/person.
Notes when visiting Thanh An Island, Can Gio
- If you want to eat better, buy fresh seafood and have it cooked according to your preference, it will taste better. The cooking fee for one dish is 20 – 30k.
- When you go to the ferry terminal, head straight towards the terminal. Don’t read reviews online that say to go to Coopmart to park your bike, it’s far from the terminal. You can only take a motorbike taxi there, it’s a long walk. At the ferry terminal, look to your right and you will see a motorbike parking area. 10k per bike. The parking attendant is friendly, feel free to ask for more information.
- The boat ticket price is 10k per person, but it depends on the boat owner and they may charge based on the number of passengers. My experience is to have the exact amount of money ready for the number of people and just pay without asking for the price. If the boat is less crowded and they charge 20k, don’t be upset, it varies based on the number of passengers.
- The boat ride from the terminal to Thanh An Island takes about 30 – 45 minutes depending on weather conditions and water currents. If you get seasick, remember to wear a mask as the boat not only rocks but also has a smell of gasoline, 45 minutes of inhaling that is quite intense. Also, you can bring your motorbike to the island (55k per bike), but the island is small so it’s tiring to bring a bike, walking for about an hour is enough.
- There are a few rooms on the island for free air-conditioned rest, but the condition is that you must eat their seafood.
- The last boat leaves at 5 pm, so plan to start walking back around 4:30 pm. (When I went, we just arrived on the island, had ice cream, and suddenly a motorbike taxi asked if we were going back, he took us to the ferry because the last trip was at 3:30 pm. Don’t listen to that. The last trip is at 5 pm.)
- One more thing, on the way there you may not see any gas stations, but on the way back there are many, so if you’re running low on gas, cross the road and ask for a gas station.
- Regarding Thanh An Island, I don’t have many landscape reviews for you to explore on your own. If you visit like I did, one visit is enough, but if you want to experience the local life, then you should stay longer. I heard there are many interesting things to do like squid fishing, casting nets, etc.
Review of Thanh An Island
- In this review, I will lightly touch on some real conditions in the local area to evaluate the island, which still faces many difficulties and lacks many things. If you prefer luxury, then go to Phu Quoc, buy a plane ticket to Thailand and then to Phu Ket, there are no luxurious beach resorts for sunbathing here.
- Another point I noticed and strongly support is the island and its people calling on visitors not to bring plastic bags and to participate in the “Thank You for Not Littering” program initiated by PNJ company.
