Ninh Bình, fondly called the “Hạ Long Bay on Land”, is a small province south of Hanoi—about 2 hours away by car. It earned its nickname because of the profusion of limestone formations similar to the UNESCO World Heritage Site—except that the outcrops are right there on earth and not on water. The province remains relatively unexplored, which is surprising since it boasts of stunning and unique landscapes that any traveler would surely fall in love with.
If Ninh Bình looks quite familiar, it’s probably because you’ve seen the film Kong: Skull Island. Tràng An, one of the top attractions in Ninh Bình, was used to shoot some of the movie scenes. Unknown to many, this place is another UNESCO World Heritage Site—it’s a 6,000-hectare special protection area where caves and lush vegetation blend with bodies of water, aquatic species, and sacred temples. It’s best explored by boat, as you would see later in this post.
With Ninh Bình being relatively close to Hanoi, it’s a perfect day trip destination if you would love to do a little exploring outside the country’s capital. Ideally, two days or more would allow you to see more of Ninh Bình, but if you have limited time, a day tour should be enough to show you the highlights. Such is my case in my recent Vietnam trip, so I actually did a day trip to Ninh Bình with KKDay.
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The tour is called “Bái Đính - Tràng An - Múa Cave Day Tour”, and, as suggested, it includes 3 main attractions, as well as hotel transfers (within Hanoi Old Quarter), entrance fees, boat fees, bottled water, and a lunch buffet. While there are several other day tour options, this was the one I chose because it includes two attractions in my bucket list: Tràng An and Múa Cave, or Hang Múa. Other choices go through Tam Cốc, which takes you to a river ride with views of paddies and karst stones; I also wanted to see this, but there are no tours that bundle Tam Cốc and Tràng An together (bummer).
To be honest, I was too lazy to try to figure out and plan a DIY Ninh Bình trip, so I just opted for this tour. Sad as I was to let go of Tam Cốc, I did enjoy the calming scenery in Tràng An as well as the amazing views from Múa Cave. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me backtrack a bit and show you how I got to Ninh Bình and to our first stop: Bái Đính.
At 7:30AM, our tour guide, Loan, picked me from up from my hostel. This is a group tour, so we went around Hanoi and fetched other participants (there were five of us). We drove to Ninh Bình via a luxury van limousine, which was spacious and very comfortable. Throughout the drive, Loan shared information about Ninh Bình and told us stories from her own travels as well. She’s an awesome guide, really—she went beyond the generic knowledge you can simply Google, and told us things we would never have known from the blogs and books.
After almost 2 hours of driving, we reached our first destination. Bái Đính is a cultural complex containing Buddhist temples and pagodas, including the largest in Vietnam and in Southeast Asia. It also features 500 La Han statues (all with different configurations and symbols) as well as the biggest bronze Buddha in the country, standing at 10 meters. We spent about 2 hours exploring parts of the 700-hectare complex, admiring the architecture and watching as Buddhist pilgrims pay respect to the buddhas.
We then left Bái Đính and proceeded to a restaurant, where we had a Vietnamese buffet lunch. To be honest, the food was not that good compared to normal fare in Hanoi, but I did like some dishes like the spring rolls and a mountain goat stew served with crunchy rice cake. Since other choices lacked the flavors I was looking for, I just stuffed myself with the two dishes mentioned and plenty of greens (I am addicted to shiso, or Vietnamese perilla leaf).
Once everyone was done eating, we headed to the Tràng An Eco-Tourism Complex. Our tour guide promised us a serene boat ride through water, caves, and karst mountains—and I was doubtful at first, when I saw the volume of tourists. However, once we were paddling through the amazing scenery, I understood what Loan meant. The sights were so beautiful that everything else will just seem to fade away. There’s green all over. Limestone boulders here and there. The gentle sound of the oar as it hits the river, the chirping of the birds. Occasionally a tourist would shout with excitement, but it was far from being annoying. There’s just nature and you.
We alighted a couple of times to see some temples and shrines, but the best part of Tràng An for me was simply being there on the boat, admiring the gorgeousness of it all; waiting for the next cave so I could duck my head; or grabbing an oar and helping our boatman paddle through the river. Don’t let the photos of life vest-wearing tourists dissuade you from going (I know, that shade of orange is an annoying sight, but you’ll get over it). But if you’re staying longer in Ninh Bình, you might want to visit Tràng An early in the morning, when there’s probably more chance of having the place all to yourself.
After that relaxing 2-hour (or was it three?) boat ride, we went to the final stop of the tour which is the Múa Cave. You have probably seen it on Instagram. That rocky viewpoint showcasing a river flanked by rice paddies and limestone formations, with the sunset amidst mist-shrouded peaks in the background? Yes, that’s Múa Cave. It offers a breathtaking view of Tam Cốc—but in order to see it, you must climb 500 steps. I had some knee issues during this Vietnam trip but I pushed myself to reach the top because the Múa Cave was what I went to Ninh Bình for. I’m glad I did—the views were astounding!
The place was pretty crowded during sunset time and some travelers were planting themselves right there on the stone barriers with their timelapses on, but I couldn’t care less. The amazing view as the sun hits the stones and casts gentle shadows was enough for me. Here’s a tip: bring water because you will need it during the climb. Also, an early morning visit might be more ideal—less crowded!
It was with some regret that I climbed back to the limo after the tour, thinking that I should have stayed longer in Ninh Bình. There’s something about all the nature around that just makes you want to get lost and live in peace there for even just a while. If you are traveling to Hanoi and Northern Vietnam soon, I highly recommend including Ninh Bình in your itinerary. In fact, if you were to choose only one side trip from Hanoi, make it Ninh Bình.
Vietnam is truly a country brimming with surprises—Ninh Bình is certainly one of the most beautiful among them!
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Here are some tips to make your trip to Ninh Bình more enjoyable:
• Wear comfortable footwear. There’s lots of walking (and climbing) involved, so better put those feet on something durable and comfy.
• Bring cash. Although there are several ATMs in the city, it’s wise to have cash ready for unexpected purchases.
• Staying for a few days? Rent a bike or a motorcycle. This will help you navigate around Ninh Bình on your own instead of waiting for taxis.
• The weather in Ninh Bình is cooler than in Hanoi. Bring a light jacket if you get cold easily.
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Note: as of writing, the exact tour that I booked via KKDay is not available in the website anymore. However, there are other options that you might want to check out (click here). Alternatively, you can book the tour directly with Aloha Vietnam for USD79/person. The whole tour lasts for about 12 hours, beginning from pick-up (7:30AM) to drop-off (around 7:00PM), and is inclusive of hotel transfers, entrance fees, boat fees, bottled water, and lunch.
Where to Stay in Ninh Bình
Staying in Ninh Bình for a day or two will definitely allow you to see more of the province and have longer much-needed downtime. The city center is quite uneventful and there's not much to see, so you might want to choose a hotel or homestay around Tam Cốc and Tràng An. Click here to choose your Ninh Bình accommodation.
Have you been to Ninh Bình? How did you find it? Can you recommend other side trips from Hanoi?
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