After the previous post about Hoang Minh hotel at Sam Son beach, this time I want to share with you another destination that I personally feel is more worth experiencing – that is Hai Tien beach tourist area, located in Hoang Hoa district, Thanh Hoa.
Compared to Sam Son, Hai Tien beach is cleaner, the air is more comfortable and especially less crowded. Because this is a newly developed area, everything is still quite original, and service prices are also very affordable.
I stayed at Bien Xanh hotel – the name sounds simple but very coastal. On the weekend in summer (Saturday – Sunday), in peak season, the price was only 500,000 VND/night (~25 USD), really surprising.
The room was clean, had 2 beds, cool air conditioner, private bathroom, stable wifi, TV, hairdryer, mini fridge – everything was full. The hotel is quiet, comfortable, has a small balcony with sea view, very chill.
🍽️ Meals at the hotel – Unexpectedly delicious and worth the money
At first I just planned to eat lunch for convenience, but after the first meal I had to book dinner again because it was so good.
🥢 Lunch (10 USD/person):
Lunch was served in the dining room on the 2nd floor with air conditioning, very cool in hot weather.
Blood cockles stir-fried with bamboo shoots: Red, sweet blood cockles stir-fried with bamboo shoots, turmeric, garlic and onion. Bamboo shoots were tasty, very fragrant. This dish impressed me the most.
Mantis shrimp with tamarind sauce: Already cut on both sides, easy to peel. Sweet meat, rich tamarind sauce, topped with peanuts.
Fried squid with lolot leaves: Fresh egg squid, crispy fried, fragrant with lolot leaves, eaten with soy sauce.
Clams steamed with laksa leaves and pineapple: Clams were cleaned carefully, no sand. Sweet, aromatic, easy to eat.
Crab soup with Malabar spinach: Ground crab, sweet broth, fresh vegetables, very suitable for summer.
Steamed shrimp: Each plate had about 8 big shrimps, firm and fresh meat. However, the minus point is that they did not clean the shrimp heads. When peeling, liquid from the heads splashed out, dirty hands. Meat was delicious but it would be better if cleaner.
🌙 Dinner (13 USD/person):
Dinner I chose to sit on the balcony, open space, evening sea breeze was very cool, no need for air conditioner or even a fan. Sitting in the breeze, listening to the waves, eating and chatting – very relaxing.
Steamed sea crab: Not big but firm meat, sweet, eaten with salt and pepper with lemon.
Fried squid: Familiar dish, crispy and not too oily.
Chicken, mushroom and corn soup: Soft chicken, fragrant mushroom, sweet corn. But it was a bit watery, like soup, not thick like real “soup”.
Green mango salad with jellyfish, pineapple and peanuts: Cool salad, jellyfish crunchy, mango slightly sour, pineapple sweet.
Steamed shrimp: Same as lunch – tasty meat, but the head was not cleaned.
Fried corn with butter: Good for kids, fragrant and tasty.
🌊 Hai Tien beach – Quiet, clean, nice for taking photos
After meals, I walked to the beach. And I must say, Hai Tien beach is really beautiful: clean sand, cool air, and not crowded. The thing I liked most was a nice rock beach near the sea, very beautiful for photos. I took some nice photos here.
This area also has electric cars, sea-view drink shops, beach chairs... Not too crowded, but enough for a peaceful trip.
📌 Conclusion
If you are thinking between Sam Son and somewhere else in Thanh Hoa, I honestly suggest: try Hai Tien beach once. Clean, quiet, not too touristy – and especially very reasonable prices for both food and stay.
And Bien Xanh Hotel is a good choice for a short, relaxing trip. There are still some small things to improve (like cleaning shrimp heads), but overall this trip was really worth it.