Appearancely, online posts are written by copyrighters for marketing purposes, rather by people who actually been there. Photos and details on Google Maps aren’t placed exactly where they are. And frankly, not many locals know where to get there (until when you’re < 5km near by).

So here is how you get there, and what should you expecting.

You want to get to Nam Cat Tien (not Cat Tien National Park)

The route to Cat Tien national park took me to a ranger station. From what they said, the area is more for expert. There will be wild, dangerous animals like elephants. I also step near by a chemicals warning area.

The exact place a tourist should go to called Thuyền Nam Cát Tiên on Google Maps.

One way to get there is on National Route (NR) 1A in Dầu Giây, took a turn to NR 20. Keep following NR 20 to Tân Phú, until you see a turn to Ta Lài. Make the turn and following the map above.

You’ll see a welcome gate at the destination. Buy a ticket for 60.000 VND/person (~$2.6USD), then take the ferry to the other side of the Dong Nai river. From here, you’ll start to discover.

Go early, or spend 2 days

It’s a huge area for one-day-travel. Once get in, there are 2 directions, each have different sign seeing. One is 16kms away, the other one is 7km away (from the ferry). There is also a near by area for camping.

You can hire a bike, or book sight seeing tour (a tour guide will drive you around).

For more convenient, don’t bring too much. Wear a walking shoes, water bottles. At day time, especially under the sun, try to wear dark color clothes to reduce the heat.

Overall, visiting is definitely a good experience for nature lovers. For one-day travel, you probably need less than 500.000 VND (~$21.5USD) if you decide to get there by bike. Those are including lunch,

Just remember, tourist should be visting Nam Cat Tien (not Cat Tien national park). Get some cash before hand (no ATM nearby). Get straight to Thuyền Nam Cát Tiên, hire a bike to book a tour guide to drive you around.

Hope you enjoy it.