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Phan Rang is one of those spots that are off the beaten path, no infrastructure for kiteboarding (this is changing fast) and no large community of kiters to enjoy your sessions with or show off to. But that is the charm for a spot like this, you have to travel off the beaten “kite” path for some amazing kitesurfing conditions. The main windy season is November - April and even has wind during the spring/summer time too. The closest international airport is Cam Rang, which is only an hour drive to Phan Rang. However, you may make the trip from Mui Ne as this is the base for Vietnams kiting community. In Mui Ne you will find some good partying, great food and a nice welcoming kiting community. With new road improvements the drive down to Mui Ne now takes 2 hours, rather then the 4 hours when I was living in Mui Ne.
But the real gold for kiteboarding is north a 2 hour drive from Mui Ne if you do not fly into Cam Rang, you can get there by a kiteboarding tour, moto rental (which I did and loved) or rental car. I have mapped out all the locations for kiteboarding flat water or waves. Some of the flat water is tide dependent and on a low tide you may have to walk out or wait for the tide to come in. I would recommend staying more than 5 days for exploring and kiting. These are my top 5 tips for one of the best kiteboarding spots in Vietnam.
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KiteWorld Article Phan Rang
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It’s Windy!!! Check the forecast
This spot can blow like Cape Town and I think red bull should consider having the big air contest here. That being said, if the forecast is showing a lot of wind make sure to bring you smaller kites or rent one. On the strong days you can use a 5-6m and the average size is 9-10m.
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Rent a Car or Moto, they are inexpensive
Yes, you can drive there with a motorcycle and its quite fun for exploring. But if you’re the less adventurous or have a crew, get a car or do a kiteboard tour that takes you in a large bus with other kiters. On the way there check out the famous Sand dunes and in Phan Rang make sure to visit the temples, Dinh Cape and Vinh Hy. The drive to Phan Rang from Mui Ne takes about 2-3 hours. There is no designated parking at some of the spots to kite, so make sure that you choose a nice off the side of the road place to keep your vehicles. Sometimes you may get police who come out and want a bribe to kite at a beach. Refuse at first, if they do not go away give them a dollar or so to kite at a particular beach. But you shouldn’t have much of a problem with the local police, as the KTA had a large kiteboard competition in the area and makes for the populace more aware of the sport.
Visit all the kiteboarding spots in Phan Rang
There are a large number of spots to kite with flat water to great surfing waves. Make sure you take time to visit them all, as each has slightly different conditions. Check out the map I made with all the spots to visit and kite. The kiteboarding beaches near town can be a bit gusty due to the wind coming over the land and into the bay. That is why the kiting spots that you are out of the bay have much cleaner wind. During lat spring/summer time though the wind switches to other spots for the thermal wind to start kicking in. It seems that Dam Vua is the go to spot for flat water in town for this time period.
Stay near the center of town
Currently the options for restaurants and food are only near the center of town. If you stay outside near one of the flatter water spots, be prepared to not have many options for eating out. However, hotels in town are nice and very inexpensive. Don’t be afraid to try street food in Vietnam, it’s amazing!
Bring friends
This is still an up and coming kiteboarding destination and does not have a large community. so, I would recommend to bring some folks with you for some fun exploring, kiting and general good times.
