Surf Camps in Vietnam

Vietnam surf is not really on the radar. Most people come here to explore the colossal cities and see the wonders of Ha Long Bay. But there are some gems, mostly long, sandy beach breaks that get firing during the monsoon.

Vietnam is the long, snaking backbone of Indochina. On one side it creeps up into the jungle-dressed hills of Southeast Asia. On the other, it rolls down to meet over 1,100 miles of Pacific coastline. There are about five or six key surf destinations to know about in Vietnam. Most of them rely on long, open beachfronts with shallow sand shelves that can suck in any swells that happen to be moving in the South China Sea.

When to Surf in Vietnam

November-March is the best time to surf in Vietnam. The season of the NE monsoon is the key time to surf in Vietnam. It brings the wettest weather and the strongest low-pressure systems to North Vietnam, causing heavy rainfall around Ha Long Bay and the Sapa Mountains. It also pushes winds through the heart of the South China Sea, which build and build the swell across nearly 600 miles of open ocean before hitting the coast at key spots like Mui Ne and Nha Trang.

The SW monsoon lasts from May to October and sees the dominant wind direction switch. The only real chance you have of good waves at this time will be because of big typhoons hitting Taiwan and the Philippines.

Where to Surf in Vietnam

Vietnam’s best surf destinations begin around midway down the country, which is where the coastline bends more east and south-facing and the NE monsoon makes its mark. The first place consistent enough to be listed is the city of Da Nang. The rest pepper the coast between that and Ho Chi Minh City.

• Da Nang: The single most consistent spot in the whole of Vietnam. It’s a pretty large city of over 1.2 million people, strung out along sparkling yellow-sand beaches between the bluffs of the amazing Marble Mountains. China Beach is the most famous spot.
• Hoi An: Between 30-40 minutes’ in a taxi to the south of Da Nang, the enthralling town of Hoi An beckons with its riverside bars and coffee roasteries. A newly developed beach area known as Am Bang is reachable by bicycle or motorbike in 10 minutes or so.
• Nha Trang: Probably the only place that can match Da Nang when it comes to consistency and quality of waves. This resort town does have access to several beaches that can work on big typhoon swells and more moderate windswell days alike.
• Mui Ne: Cut its teeth as a windsurfing destination extraordinaire. Sat right on the bum of South Vietnam, the town’s long beaches and open bays hoover up the winds that push through on both the NE and SW monsoon.
• Vung Tau: There are two sides to Vung Tau. There’s the Front Beach and Back Beach. The first is a long, exposed run of shoreline that’s windy as hell most of the time. Back Beach hides behind a lip in the headland and will need strong swells to wrap around the rocks but if they do they can form marching lines of clean left handers.

How to get to Vietnam

For long-haul fliers, there are two main entry points to Vietnam. Hanoi is the capital of the country and home to the largest airport. It’s in the north and is served by loads of major carriers. Then there’s Ho Chi Minh City in the south, which also has arrivals from Europe, Asia, and North America. To get to the surf spots, you can switch from plane to train and travel up the famous Reunification Express line. It stops at almost all the major points along the coast here.