As promised, this is the next post on my backpacking trip. So, the next day in Nha Trang, I decided to spend a full day at Vinpearl Land!
The day started with me having breakfast at my hostel and heading out to find transportation to Vinpearl Land. Vinpearl land’s cable car station is a good 5km away from the city centre of Nha Trang. There’s a few busstops along Nguyen Thien Thuat street that indicate a bus ending it’s route at Vinpearl Land. I decided to forego the idea of taking the public bus as I do not really understand how it works. Instead, I walked for a further 1 km down the beach road, hoping to find a good deal on a motorbike taxi.
There are a few motor taxis, waiting for customers and I bargained and rejected a few, until we came out with a price of 40 000 VND. Well, it isn’t so bad paying about $2 for a 4-5km ride right? The motor taxi took me to a travel agency office near the cable car station for me to purchase the day pass. Day passes for Vinpearl Land is at 500 000 VND (entry by cable car), and 430 000 VND (by boat).
Of course, it’s most logical to go by cable car even though it might cost more. But think of it! Your gonna ride on the world’s longest cable car ride over-water. So why not? Besides, it includes a return trip too!!
And so, I’ve reached the cable car station and the motor taxi driver was kind enough to pass me his number in case I’m need of a return transport. Well, who doesn’t? At the entrance, staff will be there to check your bags. Of all things you can possibly think of, they are in fact looking for food and drinks. Apparently, Vinpearl do not allow it’s visitors to bring outside food in, so do take note!
View from cable car station
I was lucky as that day, it wasn’t filled with tourists. The cable car ride took approximately 20 minutes and it’s supported by pillars resembling the Eiffel Tower.
And so, I’m in Vinpearl! Now, i shall explain why it is such a good deal. For 500 00 VND, you get a return trip on the cable car, UNLIMITED theme park rides, water theme park rides, an underwater world and UNLIMITED video arcade games. Not forgetting, there’s some carnivals going on there too!
So, I began slowly walking around and i stumbled across something. Look at the photos!
guess what is it???
it’s a dolphin!!! yes, you can actually play with it if the time and queue permits
I started by heading to the water theme park. Lockers can be rented at about 20 000 VND, and you will be given a plastic case to store your key in it. The water theme park has some exhilarating slides, a wave pool, a lazy river and a beautiful beach where u can play some water sports.
This is far the best slide ever! it’s about 7-8 storeys high and just let gravity do the rest!
The typical “race” slide. mats are needed for these
The lazy river, DON’T BOTHER!
“family” slide
Well, I managed to capture only a few pictures of the rides, but here’s a breakdown. There’s a lazy river, in which you shouldn’t really bother. The water is really dirty with chunks of tree branches, leaves and apparently it’s just a pile of mess. There is no current there to bring you around, so just save yourselves some time and ignore this ride. Tubes can be found all over the water park and are free for use. Slide mats are also free. Some slides require the use of tubes and mats. Do note that the steel stairs used to climb up the slides can be really painful to step on. The wave pool is in good shape. There’s waves every 30 minutes and lots of tubes lying around.
The water theme park also has a beach. Surprisingly, it’s really a clean and nice beach. The water is not of Maldives standard, but I’ll assure you that the water is really clean enough such that i could see my feet when the water is around my shoulder height! Â There are no waves though in this beach. The beach will be a good if you wanna escape from the crowd at Nha Trang beach. There are several bars along the beach. And the stuffs there are quite cheap! You can get a fresh cool coconut for 30 000 VND!
I spent a good 3 hours at the water theme park. Remember to put some sunscreen lotion. The sun can be really glaring in the morning! So, next was the underwater world! Now, this can’t be compared to those found in Singapore or in Bangkok, but I think for the price you pay, it’s fairly a decent attraction.
Lunch was next and there are many fast food restaurants in the park. And to my surprise, the prices are really cheap, something you wouldn’t expect in a resort theme park! A decent meal will cost you only 50 000 VND! And all meals will include drinks, so it’s really worth every penny.
Next, I took a stroll before taking any rides. Here are some of the shots I took:
The outdoor theme park, was kind of depressing. There are only about 8 rides. And they are not those of Universal Studios standard. They are just your typical carnival rides. Here’s some of the pictures:
Don’t let your spirits down. There’s an alpine coaster awaiting! The ride will take you up the hill for about 10 minutes before letting you ride down just by letting gravity do the rest! The only control you will have is the brakes. Other than that, you can choose to “free-wheel” till you reach the finish line. The whole ride will last you a good 15-20 minutes!! In my opinion, this is far the best ride in the park so far! I took it about 8 times in total!
Just some tips: Some “not-so-daring” riders will tend to brake at every corner and every slope, thus slowing down the whole ride. If you’re the “brave-thrilling” kind of person, it’s better to avoid these people in front of you, or else you just gotta brake everywhere you go, rendering the ride useless.
And next, was to try the indoor arcade games. It’s free flow. You can just start and continue your game anytime. But, some of the machines are really not working. Other than that, it offers some cheap fun. There’s also a 4D cinematic ride and a rodeo ride. Worth a visit though.
As the day gets darker, I explored the park to see what I’ve missed. And just in time, I made it for the musical fountain show! It’s at the amphitheatre closer to the chain of restaurants. The show will last you a good 15 minutes, with spectacular laser lights, powerful fountains and loud music. Some pyrotechnics were also used.
And by the time it was done, it’s already 2100. The park closes at 2200. I slowly headed back to the cable car and headed back to the mainland. Overall, I think Vinpearl is really worth a full day of fun. For the price, it’s really worth it! Do not give it a miss when you’re in Nha Trang! Do remember to try to avoid the peak season. Bring enough cash and sunscreen lotion!
That’s all for my post on Vinpearl. Stay tuned as I travel to the highlands of Dalat next!!
Redd Wanderlust 