Mũi Điện (Cape Đại Lãnh)

About this place

Mũi Điện, also called Cape Đại Lãnh, is a headland running into the sea from a spur of the Trường Sơn range in central Vietnam, in Hòa Xuân commune, now part of Đắk Lắk province, about 27 km southeast of Tuy Hòa in a straight line, or about 35 km by road. Old maps called it Cap Varella. Vietnam's Ministry of Culture recognised it as a national scenic site in 2008. It is counted among the most easterly points of the Vietnamese mainland and one of the first places in the country to see the sunrise. A lighthouse was built on the cape in 1890 and rebuilt in 1995; its grey cylindrical tower is 26.5 metres high, with a small yellow house beside it. The cape rises steep and rocky above the sea, covered in grass and shrubs, with huge rounded granite boulders scattered down its slopes and at the water's edge. From the lighthouse the view takes in a wide bay of blue-turquoise water, green hills and the small sandy Bãi Môn beach below. Visitors climb steps and a steep path up to the lighthouse. Many come before dawn to watch the sunrise, then go down for a swim at Bãi Môn. The climb is tiring in the heat, so carry plenty of water.