HOA LU – MUA CAVE – TAM COC BOATING - BIKING

Overview

Our tour brings you to Hoa Lu and Tam Coc famed for its limestone outcrops and beautiful caves.

Hoa Lu – the remains are the temples dedicated to King Dinh and King Le, the two heroes who lived in 10th century and chose Hoa Lu to build the citadel of the capital city ( from 968 to 1009). Tam Coc – means three caves – considered as Halong Bay on land, sitting on a boat rowed by local lady in Hoang Long river.

Just a 2 hour drive from Hanoi, Ninh Binh is surrounded by a stunning landscape of lush green paddy fields and striking limestone outcrops and is a must if you plan to see the best of Northern Vietnam.

Our tour brings you to Hoa Lu (the old citadel from 968 to 1009) and Tam Coc (regarded as Ha Long Bay on land) famed for its limestone outcrops and beautiful caves.

Highlights

See the spectacular natural beauty and karst mountains of Ninh Binh – the “Halong Bay on Land”

Cycle through the beautiful countryside of Tam Coc

Itinerary can be further customized to savour your taste

Itinerary

08:00 Depart the hotel and drive for a few hours to Hoa Lu.

10:30 Arrive Hoa Lu the ancient capital of Vietnam.  In 968 a local warlord Dinh Bo Linh declared himself King and was known as King Dinh Tien Hoang. Hoa Lu became the capital, political, economic and cultural center for the next 41 years (968 – 1009) of Dai Co Viet which was how Vietnam was called at that time. 12 years of these were under the Dinh dynasty.  And 29 years later under the Le dynasty of King Le Dai Hanh.  In 1010, King Ly Thai To moved the capital from Hoa Lu to Thang Long – present day Hanoi. Hoa Lu thus became the former old citadel. There are now two temples built on the grounds of the old royal palace. One is dedicated to King Dinh Tien Hoang, the other is to King Le Dai Hanh. The visit offers a chance to learn more about the feudal dynasties and historical periods in Vietnamese history.

12:00 Depart Hoa Lu for Tam Coc. Enjoy lunch in Tam Coc at a local restaurant (please let us know in advance if you are a vegetarian or have special dietary requirements) – goat meat dishes is the local specialty.

Take a 5 minute walk to the boat station and then enjoy a lovely 2 hour boat trip to visit Tam Coc. Known as “Halong Bay on land”, Tam Coc has three limestone caves stretching along Ngo Dong river. The boat trip will take you on a relaxing journey along the river with stunning views of the limestone mountains, rice paddies and temple sites from Hang Ca (first cave) to Hang Hai (second cave) and Hang Ba (third cave).

15:00 Binking through local village and rice field in 45 minutes to 1 hours

16:00 – Arrive at Mua Cave and start an amazing trek up to the top of Ngoa Long mountain for watching the spectacular rice valley with precious view of the nature.

17:15 – Return to our bus and then come back to Hanoi.

19:45 – Drop you off at your hotel/stay. Trip ends.