Ninh Thuận Province, a Hidden Gem
The province of Ninh Thuận and its capital, Phan Rang, provides a one-of-a-kind Southeast Asian experience. There isn’t another place like it. This province is unique because of its climate, topography, culture and food. Large sand dunes, secret beaches, cliffs plummeting into a clear blue sea, vineyards, dragon fruit farms, traditional fishing villages and jungle-covered mountains can all be seen as you travel along Ninh Thuận’s coastline from south to north.
Phan Rang is a Vietnamese word that loosely translates to “wind that burns you.” The title is appropriate, yet it does not tell the whole story. The province is the driest in Việtnam; rainfall in Phan Rang is 25% lower than in neighbouring Nha Trang. It is also the hottest province, classified as “Hot Mediterranean” evidenced by the vineyards along the coastline.
With a 105-kilometre shoreline, it benefits from favourable conditions such as high-salinity seawater and dry, hot weather all year, which not only helps the water evaporate faster but also produces huge, dry grains of salt. Farmers make salt by pumping saltwater into salt fields, waiting for the water to evaporate for a week in the sun, and then harvesting the salt.
Ninh Thuận is a kitesurfer’s paradise if you’re looking for wind and it has some of the best kitesurfing wind in the world. During the summer, a constant southerly thermal wind blows most days at about 10 a.m. and dies down in the evenings. In the winter season, stronger winds blow from the north practically every day.
Given its proximity to well-known tourist spots such as Nha Trang, Mũi Né, and Đà Lạt, Ninh Thuận is remarkably unspoiled and unexplored by mass tourism. This arid region not only has a stunning coastal path but also has a diverse topography that places it between the desert and the sea.
In the afternoon, customers gather from far and wide to buy freshly caught seafood at low costs at the Nại fish market (Chợ Nại) in Ninh Thuận. The Nại fish market, formerly known as Khánh Hải, takes its name from its location in the Nai lagoon, between the Ninh Chữ and Tri Thủy bridges in Ninh Hải District. This is Ninh Thuận Province’s most well-known seafood market, which is busiest in the afternoons when boats with baskets of fresh fish return from the sea. Tuna and various mackerels are also available in the Nai fish market. These fish are the main ingredients in many of Ninh Thuận’s well-known noodle soups.
Moreover, fishing ports such as Đông Hải, Ninh Chữ and Cà Ná, and Mỹ Tân are significant to the province and have recently been improved to accommodate 3,200 fishing boats at a time. Highly reliant on the fishing sector, it has also grown into the country’s largest shrimp breeder.
Its hot climate almost throughout the year, and a short wet season between September and November, isn’t entirely a curse, as it has helped the province earn a national reputation as the “holy land” of goats and sheep. Ninh Thuận is Việt Nam’s largest goat and sheep breeding region, and due to the country’s little rainfall, farmers breed animals outdoor in small herds throughout the year.
Goats and sheep are mostly raised for meat and breeding. The most popular of the two is goat meat, which can be found in several speciality restaurants in Ninh Thuận. Goat meat with lemon (Dê tái chanh), stir-fried goat meat (Dê xào lăn), goat curry (Cà ri dê), lemongrass steamed goat (Dê hấp sả), grilled goat (Dê nướng mọi), and goat hotpot (lẩu Dê) are some of the most popular dishes to sample when visiting Ninh Thuận.