A corner of Xuan Dai bay

Song Cau is a land belonging to Sa Huynh culture, which was settled very early, most of the population earns a living by farming, animal husbandry and fishing. In 1611,  after Tutelary God Luong Van Chanh reclaimed the land of Phu Yen from Cu Mong pass to Ca pass, the name of Song Cau appeared and belonged to Dong Xuan district, Tran Bien province.

Song Cau has high mountains in the west and Cu Mong mountain in the north with 245m above the sea level; a branch of the majestic Truong Son range in Phu Yen is like a giant dragon slithering out into the East Sea, making the coast of Song Cau extremely beautiful, which is sometimes curved like a crescent moon and sometimes flat with stretching white sand beach.

This place has numerous large lagoons and bays, thanks to this the climate is warm in winter, cool in summer, with fresh fruit trees in all four seasons, especially coconut trees, which can't be found anywhere else in Central region.

Xuan Dai bay is formed from the Co Ngua mountain range, about 15km long, like a giant unicorn running along the coast to the south, creating Xuan Hoa and Xuan Thinh peninsulas. It possesses an area of 1,300 hectares with the gate of more than 4,5km wide facing southeast, connecting to the East Sea.

From the top of Gang slope, Highway 1, Xuan Dai Bay is like a charming landscape painting, an area of mountains and water filled with green; flat blue water surface, green hills and mountains, streets and villages mixed with the green of coconut forests and deep blue sky; there is sometimes sudden sun shower here.

Around Xuan Dai bay, there are numerous beautiful beaches such as Vung La, Vung Chao, and extremely beautiful small islands such as Ong Xa island, Nhat Tu Son island, Da Mai cape, Tai Ma cape... For generations, it has provided thousands of people for their livelihood through fishing, farming and catching seafood. Currently, Xuan Dai bay is a famous place of commercial lobster farming in the South Central region.

Xuan Dai bay is a large bay with deep water and a wide, wind-tight gate that is very convenient for boats travelling. There was Vung Lam commercial port so long ago in Xuan Dai ward, Song Cau town. It was very prosperous for a long time but due to historical events, it did not develop like other commercial ports.

In the current context, it is essential to build detailed plans, research and exploit the potentials of Xuan Dai bay, including Vung Lam commercial port in order to create motivation for tourism development for Song Cau urban area. If Xuan Dai bay just focuses on commercial lobster farming, its valuable potential has not been awakened.

In our opinion, the province needs to invest in transportation infrastructure and tourist routes to scenic spots around Xuan Dai bay; building Vung Lam general port with the priority of developing tourism by boat, converting labor from fishery to tourism services like Phong Nha (Quang Binh) or Trang An (Ninh Binh); building a cable car line around Xuan Dai bay so that tourists can fully enjoy the precious beauty of this scenic spot. This is also a distinctive and unique feature of Song Cau tourist urban area that cannot be found anywhere else.

Translated by Khuong Thao