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 I
and some friends made a
private tour to Ninh Binh by motorbike
recently, some people said that Tam Coc and Trang An are
pretty similar and you don't need to visit both places.
We started from Hanoi at 6.00 am and after 3 hours
riding at average speed we arrived in Ninh Binh, our
first stop was Hoa Lu ancient capital, we visited
temples of King Dinh and King Le and some nearby places
and moved to Trang An in the afternoon, entrance fee
100.000 vnd (5 usd) per person for I really wanted to
take some photos of sunset in Trang An, travel time to
explore the caves in the area was about 3-4 hours, we
spent the night in Ninh Binh, came to Bai Dinh pagoda
the next morning before going to Tam Coc and Phat Diem,
and here are my review of the trip (see
attractions in Ninh Binh).
Local media recently used the phrase "Trang An was
discovered" however from my point of view the was
nothing to discover, for hundreds of years local people
still live there, they go fishing, grow rice in the
mountain valley and they used sampan boats to travel
through caves and tunnels as natural passage ways in the
area. In recent years people were not allowed to grow
rice any more as their land was recovered by the
government, they built dykes and dams, made the lake
deeper and created tunnels under the foot of the
mountains for the boat to go through.
Come back to our trip, we stayed overnight in Ninh Binh
city, actually Ninh Binh is only a small town, you can
save your money if you stay at a hotel in town rather
than in the tourist places like Tam Coc, Trang An or Hoa
Lu, from here you can rent a motorbike to visit tourist
sites, the path from Ninh Binh to Trang An and Bai Dinh
is very beautiful and romantic, you can stop on the way
and take pictures. Please note that Ninh Binh is most
beautiful at the end of May as the rice is ripe and the
whole rice fields look like a yellow carpet, however it
last only 2 weeks from the end of May to June, after
this time is harvest season and all the rice will be
cut.
The hotel we stayed in Ninh Binh was Queen hotel
(address 21 Hoang Hoa Tham street, tel 3871874), very
cheap, 120.000 vnd or 6 usd for an air conditioned room
and here you can rent a motorbike for 3,4 usd a day, I
personally didn't like Tam Coc as it was too touristy,
after lunch we walked to bus station and went to Phat
Diem cathedral (2 usd/person) and made an appointment
with the bus driver to pick us up in the afternoon when
we came back, we didn't want to go by motorbike as the
highway was under construction and very dirty.
For dinner we enjoyed goat, specialty of Ninh Binh, just
ask the restaurant Duc "goat" and everybody knows, the
restaurant is located in a small lane however it is very
big with a lot of people.
We got up early the next morning and went to Trang An by
motorbike, Trang An was worth visiting, I think it is
more beautiful than Tam Coc and more importantly the
boats rowers didn't expect tip from tourists like in Tam
Coc. I don't want to talk about the beauty of this
place, and let you come and discover yourself.
A hotel in Tam Coc I like a lot was Nam Hoa hotel, the
building is pretty big comparing to other hotels in the
area, just a few meters from Tam Coc boat station, the
lady owner of the hotel was very friendly and helpful,
the parking lot was big you don't need to lock the bike
at night, you can make a reservation by contacting Mrs
Hoa 0917 683 138
Eating: It is best to always eat at the hotel, at first
I did not know what to eat but the restaurant in Tam Coc
restaurant seemed always combined with accommodation,
our first meal at Viet Toan restaurant was overcharged.
Coming to Ninh Binh you cannot miss goat, especially
grilled goat, Tiet Canh De (goat blood soup) in Ninh
Binh is said to be the best however I don't like animal
blood. Burned rice is another specialty of Ninh Binh,
price at the market is 1 usd a box, in the restaurant is
2 usd a dish however don't try as the cooking oiled is
used many times over, I smelled the burnt fat and spices
are not strong
Tam Coc boating: total travel time is 2 hours return
trip, 7 usd for 2 people, the management board in Tam
Coc does a good job, there are about 1500 boats from
households and they take turn to row boat for tourists,
well, please have some money with you as the ladies who
row the boat will ask you for tip.
 Bich Dong pagoda, actually this is a pagoda built in a
mountain cave, nothing special for me as the pagoda is
small and the cave is dark, I just don't know why the
cave is called Bich Dong (means Blue cave) and it is as
dark as night, just go there and have a look although
there is not much interesting.
Kenh Ga or Chicken Canal is like an island, there is
only 1 entry by boat and you need to bring along some
snacks otherwise you cannot find a shop there, spending
the night here is not my liking as it is too boring and
quiet, my personal idea.
Bai Dinh pagoda: beautiful, huge and magnificent as
commented by other people however a big waste of money.
I myself don't like Bai Dinh pagoda because it is built
in Chinese architecture, just like a pagoda in Chinese
martial art movie, too many vendors along the way
Trang An: beautiful, wild and natural however the water
is dirty, perhaps because of too many tourists, this
place would be really picturesque if there is no
tourists ;) Ah yes, when you do the boat trip don't
forget to bring along a hat if you don't want to get
sunburned after the trip, and I was really happy with
the toilets in Bai Dinh area, clean and well attended,
much better than other public sites in Vietnam.
We regretfully didn't have time to visit Cuc Phuong
national park, 2 days more is needed if you want to come
to this area, maybe next time...
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