Sunbay Homestay

We slept well, and the owners were friendly and helpful. The location made it easy to get around, right beside restaurants and the ferry, and there were reasonably priced food and drinks downstairs. The bed was comfortable and the AC worked. The main issue was cleanliness. The floor felt sticky and sandy, and the bathroom seemed to be overlooked while the bedroom was cleaned. We also had no hot water, so we had to shower cold. I hope they pay more attention to the bathroom and general cleaning.

The only dish I could eat was the stir-fried morning glory, which is hard to get wrong, so that earns the restaurant two stars. The deep-fried fish was tiny and seemed to come straight from the freezer; the meat around the bone was still raw. The satay squid was worse, rubbery, tasteless, and a very small portion, probably frozen too. Finding good food on Cham Island is hard, but I’m sure there are better spots. This review is only about the restaurant.

I went back for lunch the next day. The food was still good, but my chicken fried rice order turned out to be fried chicken with steamed rice. The lady took it back to fry the rice, though it wasn’t what I thought I’d ordered. The day before, I’d had chicken with lemongrass and chilli, and it was delicious and HOT. There was more chicken on the plate than I’ve had anywhere else in Vietnam. It’s a really nice place for lunch or dinner.

We booked two nights through Expedia, but rain meant there was no boat service to the island. A local person called the Homestay and was told to cancel. We passed that information on to Expedia, and they tried to contact the property to discuss it, but got no response. There was no refund. I’m not even sure whether the room was available, or what would happen if guests couldn’t get off the island. I’d be wary of booking unless you know you can reach it.