Cham island or (Cu Lao Cham in Vietnamese) is a beautiful island not far away from the world heritage Hoi An. Nature here is fascinating with the coral reef ecosystem having a rich diversity. Upon visiting this island you can dive and watch coral or enjoy yourself on the white sand beaches. People here are very friendly and hospitable. Due to Hoi An is only about 14km to Cu Lao Cham, it is a destination that attracts many tourists. Cu Lao Cham is also developing homestay tourism so this is a more interesting place for young backpackers.

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Be a Backpacker
Backpackers means completely self-sufficient and do not book through the tour companies. However the companies organize one day tours to Cu Lao Cham are quite interesting, with enough itineraries which include sightseeing and fishing, coral. Being a backpacker, on the other hand, will be amused and impressed much more than booking a tour. Cheaper price is a sure thing and a 100% free to do whatever you want but that trip is going to be harder. Be prepared for at least 2 day stay (since each day only one trip to and from the Island so you must stay at least 1 night). You can enjoy swimming and snorkeling. About the ships to the island - you have to go to Hoi An and ask for directions to the Bach Dang pier (people also call this market pier Cu Lao Cham). There are two kinds of ships Cu Lao Cham as vessels freeway Greenlines and market ones (timber ships). There is also smaller speedboat that goes faster (only takes about 25 minutes). If one likes to feel strong and want to save time, buy train tickets from travel companies. Of course encouraging you to buy their package tour travel is also popular where you buy the tickets - but do not worry, you can always refuse if you don't want to. Otherwise you can still move through the boats at market because these boats are an hour slower than a train. High-speed train tickets namely 150,000 VND per pax (8/2012) but small boat tickets are just 25,000 VND per pax. Liner are more slowly, larger ships, so if anyone afraid of seasickness should take this one.

Get Aboard and Settled In
Since each day there is only one single trip to the island, so you have to be at the dock at 7:30 in the morning. If you take the market boats, you will have to wait until the boat is fully-loaded. If this is your first time, you should sit on the second floor of the ship. Private speedboat Greenlines dock at the Beach Village, this is the most populated area of the whole island. Opposite to the pier is the tourist center of the island and marine conservation center of the island. You can visit both two places and take the most general information about those two.

You can also ask the staff of the marine conservation center on a few residential addresses. Homestay tourism business form are available as you can ask any other people on the island. Once settled in, you can freely roam around the island to visit the tourist attractions on the island. Some places to visit you can see the: docks storm in Bai Village, beaches Bai He, Bai Chong, Bai Sort Temple... The village is located on the beach and you can take a nice walk there. If you want to get off the island, hire motorcycles. However, the roads here are not good enough to reach any destination.

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