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Ninh Binh is a town lying only 95 kilometers away from Hanoi to the southeast (about a 2-3-hour journey). With mountains in the west and northwest, and coastal parts in the east and south, Ninh Binh is a great place for anyone with an interest in nature.
Ninh Binh features beautiful scenery with hundreds of limestone monoliths topped by dense greenery. A quiet river flows through the monoliths and caves are formed in them.
The picture reminds me of a very famous site in Vietnam: Halong Bay. However, this Halong is on land instead of water; thus, Ninh Binh is also called "the Halong Bay on land".
Ninh Binh offers a charming and poetic picture of landscapes and historical sites. As a result, Ninh Binh has been an attractive destination for spiritual, community, and ecotourism.
Visitors can travel to Ninh Binh at all times of the year, each season brings a different appeal.
In the spring, this place has very pleasant weather, not too cold or too hot. This is a good time to go but you should expect a crowd as spring is the festival season in Ninh Binh.
The pagodas, temples, and traditional festivals here attract a large number of domestic tourists. They combine the sightseeing with a religious trip to wish for a new year full of luck.
Bai Dinh pagoda
In a vast space, the pineapple fields stretch as far as your eyes can see. The green (April - May) or yellow (June-July) color winding on the hillsides, extending to the horizon creates a peaceful and pleasant image. It becomes even more beautiful if you come here at sunrise or sunset.
Cuc Phuong National Park is home to more than 400 different butterfly species. The butterfly season in Cuc Phuong begins when the early summer rains begin. After a rain when the forest is lightened up with sunshine, you will see thousands of butterflies flying.
Tam Coc is a beautiful valley of greenery and charming water. From late May to early June, when the rice is ripe, the whole area is dyed with a shiny yellow. It is an interesting experience to admire the gorgeousness of Tam Coc from the top of the mountain.
Seen from above, the rice fields along with the Ngo Dong River wind along the mountains like 3 soft silk ribbons stretching endlessly.
At the foot of the towering limestone mountains in Bich Dong is a vast immense field of lotus. The lotus flowers will start to bloom from late June creating a pristine picture like a cool summer dream.
It is so enjoyable to take a leisurely walk on the bamboo path amidst the beautiful lotus lagoon.
The lotus flower of Bich Dong pagoda
The lotus season in Bich Dong is not the only chance to admire the fragrance of lotus blooming. If you miss that season, you can check out the off-season Japanese lotus fields in the Mua cave tourism area.
From late October to early November, the whole land is covered with an idyllic rural beauty of yellow ripe rice. This is a nice time for leisure cycling through the yellow fields, enjoying the fresh breeze.
The end of winter is the blooming time of the reed flower. Along the road to Trang An, Bai Dinh, or Hoa Lu, you will see a vast area of white reed flowers.
It is a nice experience to immerse in the majestic natural scenery of a vast pure white color.
It is easy to get to Ninh Binh from Hanoi by many different means such as buses, private cars, or motorbikes.
You can check out the North-South railway to experience the train service in Vietnam. The train departs from Hanoi station (120 Le Duan Street) 4 times per day.
It stops at Ninh Binh station (01 Hoang Hoa Tham Street). From there you are free to move to your accommodation or hike a bike to move around.
Train from Hanoi to Ninh Binh
But for the short distance of only 93 km south of Hanoi, the most common option to go to Ninh Binh is by bus or car.
In the case of using a bus, the Hanoi - Ninh Binh route has dozens of trips a day, starting from 5:00 am to 11:00 pm. The bus service is provided by some operators such as Sao Viet, Cuong Hung, Hoang Long, Vu Thuong, Gia Minh, Hien Tinh... Travel time is about 2 hours, and the lowest price is 80,000 VND per person.
The Hanoi - Ninh Binh route offers good sightseeing so using a motorbike is not a bad idea. If you go on your own, follow Giai Phong Street, pass Giap Bat bus station, turn to Phap Van - Cau Gie highway, then follow Phu Ly direction to Ninh Binh. Travel time does not exceed 90 minutes.
Ninh Binh has many options for accommodation from budget motels to luxury hotels. Here are some Ninh Binh hotels that are commonly found on customers' reviews:
Ninh Binh Valley Homestay is an ideal place for tourists who love to be close to nature. The homestay is built in a large valley in the peaceful countryside of the Hoa Lu district.
Surrounded by water and mountains, you can watch the sunset down below the mountains every afternoon right from your room. You can also see storks returning to their home in the valley for sleeping.
Ninh Binh Valley Homestay
The bungalows here are designed with natural materials such as wood, bamboo, and leaves. Hence, all the rooms are cool in summer and warm in winter.
At any location of the homestay, you can also overlook the green nature. This will be an unforgettable experience for any guest staying here.
If you want somewhere simple and peaceful, you should try Chezbeo Valley Bungalows. Here you will get home and have a peaceful feeling when waking up every morning with a green natural space around.
Chezbeo is situated in Kha Luong village, Hoa Lu, near Tam Coc, Bich Dong. From this place, visiting famous landmarks in Ninh Binh is very convenient.
Chezbeo attracts tourists at first sight because of its completely different design. Not solid houses but thatched cottages located in the middle of space are where you will spend your night. You will have the feeling of hiding in the mountains and forests, facing the water.
Some other hotels and resorts:
1. Vissai Ninh Binh Hotel
Address: 848 Tran Hung Dao Street, Ninh Binh City
2. Emeralda Resort Ninh Binh
Address: Dam Van Long, Gia Van, Gia Vien, Ninh Binh
3. Thanh Binh Hotel
Address: 31 Luong Van Tuy Street, Ninh Binh
Not only a nature reserve, but Van Long wetland is also an attractive landscape.
Van Long is known as "the bay without waves" because when traveling on a boat on the lagoon, visitors will see the flat water like a giant mirror. The water surface reflects every carving of limestone mountains.
Van Long Reserve in Ninh Binh
This biodiversity destination is home to many cultural and spiritual elements. Besides the interesting feeling of sitting on the boat admiring the lagoon, visitors also have a chance to discover the wildlife of 50,000 birds of 40 species.
Cuc Phuong was the very first national park in Vietnam. It is also the country's largest nature reserve and an ideal destination for ecology and the environment.
Located in the foothills of the Annamite Range, Cuc Phuong has verdant limestone mountains and lush valleys. The karst mountains house a large number of caves. Many caves are now accessible for exploration.
Here you can admire the beautiful natural landscape and explore the amazing diversity of flora and fauna. It is home to 461 species of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish.
Populations of the park furthermore include 2,000 types of vascular plants and thousands of classes of insects. Many of them are endangered.
Trang An is one of the must-visit tourist destinations in Ninh Binh. The site is made up of hundreds of karst peaks permeated with valleys, surrounded by cliffs. This spectacular landscape has been recognized by UNESCO as a natural and cultural heritage.
Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex
Many of the limestone monoliths here are partly submerged. A poetic river winds through the mountains, forming countless mysterious natural caves. Exploration of the caves has revealed archaeological traces of ancient human activity. It shows that the human occupation has existed there over a continuous period of more than 30,000 years.
Trang An also has some temples and pagodas for religious activities. Ripe rice fields around small villages create a peaceful countryside picture.
Bai Dinh is a complex of Buddhist temples on Bai Dinh Mountain which consists of an original old temple and a newly built larger one. It is the country's largest complex of Buddhist temples and a popular site for Buddhist pilgrimages.
Bai Dinh is famous for many records of Vietnam, Asia, and Southeast Asia. Some of them are the pagoda owning the largest gold-plated bronze Buddha statue in Asia, the longest Arhat corridor in Asia, and the largest bronze statue of Maitreya in Southeast Asia...
Bai Dinh holds a large festival on the 6th day of the lunar year attracting huge crowds. The new temple hosts Buddhist ceremonies and the old temple carries traditional rituals.
Covered an area of 3 km2, Hoa Lu was Vietnam's capital in the 10th and 11th centuries. The ancient capital is an important national relic complex and one of the four core elements of the world heritage Trang An.
The ancient capital used to have both the Inner and Outer Citadels, palaces, temples, and shrines. The capital was surrounded and protected by limestone mountains as defensive walls.
Hoa Lu nowadays no longer has citadels. It is like a rice field broken by limestone mountains. The whole relic now has a planned area of 13.87 km2. The beautiful landscape and historic value of the remained temples are the main attractions of Hoa Lu.
Besides, it is an interesting experience to join the annual festival hosted here in the third lunar month. The festival consists of ceremonies, games, and a fair.
The Phat Diem Cathedral (often called Phat Diem Stone Church) is a Catholic church complex of about 22 hectares.
The cathedral was built in 1892 in the traditional Vietnamese style. It, yet, was blended with European neo-Gothic stone walls. The walls, yet, were decorated with pictures of Eastern religious symbols like dragons, tortoises, unicorns, and phoenixes.
Hence, Phat Diem is considered an eclectic blend of Vietnamese and European styles. The eclectic design appears as if the towers of a Gothic church had been roofed with pagoda roofs.
Phat Diem is regarded as one of the most beautiful churches in Vietnam and the "Catholic capital" of the country.
Part of the Trang An Heritage site, Tam Coc-Bich Dong is a must-visit site when traveling to Ninh Binh. It includes two different attractions: a flooded cave system Tam Coc and a series of mountain pagodas Bich Dong.
Tam Coc, literally meaning "three caves", consists of the Ca (first) cave, Hai (second) cave, and Ba (third) cave. All three caves and the different shapes of karst landscapes are formed by the Ngo Dong River crashing into the cliffs throughout centuries.
Tam Coc - Bich Dong
The waterway is the only way to visit Tam Coc. Tourists sit on small sampan boats rowed by local people along the river. The trip starts from Van Lam village, through stunning rice paddy fields, limestone karsts, and caves. It takes about 3 hours to go and back.
You can choose to visit Tam Coc in the Spring when the weather is pleasant and the air is fresh. But actually, Tam Coc and its paddy fields show their best from May to July when the rice is in the harvest season.
Bich Dong, meaning "green cave", is located ~2 km from Tam Coc wharf, and leans on Bich Dong Mountain of Ngu Nhac Mountain. The complex was built in 1428 with three separate pagodas: Ha, Trung, and Thuong Pagodas.
The pagodas are in ascending order. Ha (Lower) Pagoda is at the foot of the mountain. Trung (Middle) Pagoda is on the mountainside. Thuong (Upper) Pagoda is located on the mountain's top.
The only way to access the pagodas is steep stone steps. The way is long but what is waiting for you at the end is worth your climbing. The higher you trek; the more amazing scenery you see. The complex is a perfect combination of wood and stone architecture characteristics, natural caves, and mountains.
Inside the pagodas, you find statues of Buddhas of Three Times, Thousand-armed Thousand-eyed Bodhisattva Guan Yin, and Baby Buddha. There are also many other priceless statues and worshipping objects creating a solemn ambiance.
Once up to Thuong Pagoda, tourists can see the Ngu Mon (Five Gates) field and a panoramic view of Tam Coc-Bich Dong.
1. Crispy burned rice
Referring to Ninh Binh's specialties, the first dish that people think of is probably burned rice. To make this dish, they slice cooked rice into round shapes and then dry it in the sunshine.
The dried rice is then deep-fried in the oil until turning yellow and crunchy. Burned rice is best served with salted shredded meat mixed with spices and chili sauce.
2. Mountain goat meat
Being grazed on the rock mountains, goat meat in Ninh Binh has a much better taste than those raised on the hills. Goat meat here is cooked into many delicious dishes with different processing methods.
You can enjoy the meat that is steamed with lemongrass, grilled with leaves, or stir-fried with coconut. The most famous dish is rare goat meat rolled with unripe banana, star fruit, fig leaves, and some slices of ginger. The roll is then dipped in Vietnamese soy sauce.
Mountain goat meat
3. Steamed glutinous rice with ant egg
Ninh Binh's ant eggs are mainly exploited in the rock mountains of Nho Quan. After being washed gently with warm water, the tiny eggs are mixed with seasonings, and dried onions and then fried with chicken fat.
The crispy eggs will be kept in banana leaves to get more flavor then put on steamed glutinous rice. The unique aroma and taste of this dish will be strange but bring you an unforgettable experience.
4. Nhech fish salad
Nhech fish salad is a very delicious and famous dish of the Ninh Binh people. The salad is processed quite meticulously in many stages until there is no fishy smell.
The salad dressing is a harmonious mix of lime juice, chili, lemongrass, and pepper. It is the finesse that will make you eat once and remember for life.
5. Eel vermicelli
Eel vermicelli is not a strange dish for anyone coming to Vietnam because it is found in many alleys, markets, and restaurants in Hanoi. But do not ignore it when visiting Ninh Binh, because eel vermicelli here has a unique feature.
Only small eels with brown-pink backs and yellow bellies are chosen. They are washed carefully with vinegar, mixed with spices, and then fried in hot oil until crispy. The fried eel is put on a bed of vermicelli that is grown locally.
Fresh and ripe banana flowers, bean sprouts, and vegetables are other important ingredients. The mix can be eaten dry or with bone broth.
6. Kim Son sticky rice wine
This is a specialty of the Muong ethnic people in the Nho Quan region. To make good wine, every ingredient must be chosen carefully. Only high-quality sticky rice that is grown in the region and harvested in the winter-spring season is used. Thus, this wine is also called winter-spring wine.
Sticky rice is mixed with natural water and yeast, then cooked and brewed in large jars for at least 3 months. The taste and aroma of the wine are so good that it leaves a strong impression on anyone right on the first sip. Kim Son sticky rice wine makes for a good gift for your loved one.
7. Yen Mac Fermented Pork
Yen Mac is a mountainous town located in the south of Ninh Binh. This town is famous for its delicious fermented pork. The dish is a mix of pork thigh and sliced pork skin. These ingredients are seasoned with chili, garlic, fish sauce, sugar, and salt, and then fermented for a specific time.
The fermented pork has a very characteristic sour, sweet, garlicky taste. It is often served with guava leaves and chili sauce.
8. Mountain snails
Mountain snails in Ninh Binh have a different taste to those you have in the central city which are from rivers or seas. You can only enjoy this kind of mountain snail from April to August. The snail meat is very firm and crunchy because they feed on the natural plants in the limestone mountains.
Mountain snails
The snail dishes have different variations but the boiled one is still the best choice. It is served with a special fish sauce made with secret methods of Ninh Binh locals.
9. Rice paddy crab with betel leaves
Rice paddy crab with betel leaves is a popular dish in Ninh Binh. This dish has a very delicious flavor that visitors should try when visiting the ancient capital.
The crabs used in this dish are collected from rice fields. They are carefully cleaned and roasted with sliced betel leaves.
The paddy crabs have a natural sweetness as their main food is all from nature. The flavor of the crab combined with the aroma of the betel leaves creates a mouthwatering taste.
Day 1: Hanoi - Bai Dinh Pagoda - Trang An Complex
6h:00: Depart from Hanoi to Bai Dinh Pagoda. Along the way, stop for breakfast at Phu Ly (Ha Nam Province).
You can buy a tram service ticket to go around the pagoda because the entire area is quite large.
If the time allows, move to King Dinh-Le Temple, only about 4 km from Bai Dinh.
12h:00: Lunch and rest.
14h:00: Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex.
15h:00: Back to Ninh Binh city, check-in hotel, have dinner, and stay overnight here.
Day 2: Phat Diem stone church - Van Long Reserve - Hanoi
7h:00: Have breakfast and move to Phat Diem stone church (about 1 hour). Every Sunday morning, local people gather in the church for a ceremony.
Have lunch near the church or back to Ninh Binh City.
13h:00: Depart for Van Long Reserve.
15h:00: End the Ninh Binh tour, you get back to Hanoi.
You can replace one of the sites with Cuc Phuong National Park. Visitors who have been to Trang An can choose Tam Coc Bich Dong instead. If your time is not limited to 2 days, a 3 to 4-day trip will be good to discover all the beauty here.
It is recommended for all tourists coming to Vietnam to spend time in this pretty and unspoiled province.
The beautifully peaceful scenery, historic sites, and delicious food will not make you bored. Ninh Binh is a rendezvous of what you are looking for in a trip to a specific Vietnam countryside.
Thank you for watching this article, we hope it will bring something useful for you. We look forward to seeing you in Vietnam, especially Ninh Binh.
What's more, don't hesitate to contact us or you can leave a comment and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
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