Boating in Tam Coc - one of the best things to do in Ninh Binh

Best things to do in Ninh Binh

5/5 - (9 votes)

Outstanding with towering limestone mountains, peaceful rivers, sacred and mysterious historical and religious relics, the “hidden gem” Ninh Binh is the perfect destination for tourists who love nature and adventure travel, looking forward to seeing a different side of Vietnam tourism. Let’s explore the best places to visit and top things to do in Ninh Binh with Smile Travel now!

Ninh Binh - the Halong Bay on land

Ninh Binh – the “Halong Bay on land”

 

Read more:

>> 10 best attractive places to visit in Hanoi

>> Top 10 best places must see when visiting in Halong Bay

>> Discover Top 5-star Cruises You Should Experience Once in Halong Bay

Top things to do in Ninh Binh

1. Boat trip in Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex

Trang An is a Ninh Binh landscape recognized by UNESCO as a World Natural and Cultural Heritage site.

Considered a “Ha Long Bay on land”, Trang An attracts tourists with its diverse system of limestone mountains and natural caves. Visitors coming here will enjoy the wonderful natural picture and have relaxing moments with a unique spiritual cultural space.

One of the best things to do in Ninh Binh is visitors will have the experience of taking a boat ride through the rivers and lakes to admire the scenery and admire the beauty of the landscape. During the journey, visitors will see caves, valleys, streams, ponds, limestone mountains, historical relics, unique architecture and typical cultural features. While traveling, you will be able to chat with the boatman to hear their daily stories, and you can experience boating to make the trip more interesting.

Trang An

Trang An

2. Climb up to Mua Cave

Mua Cave – one of the best places to visit in Ninh Binh, located at the foot of Mua Mountain in the Trang An World Heritage Complex, also known as Ngoa Long Mountain because on the top of the mountain there is a dragon-shaped statue lying spread out. long. Visitors can visit Mua Cave at any time of the year because this tourist destination always has its inherent natural beauty. In particular, when you come here from May to June, you can admire the extremely beautiful golden rice fields.

Mua Cave - Smile Travel

Mua Cave – Smile Travel

To admire the majestic natural scenery and vast golden rice fields stretching in Tam Coc, you must reach the top of the mountain. I’m sure this is one of the top things to do in Ninh Binh to make your trip meaningful and wonderful. You need to overcome the challenge of 486 stone steps, flanked by ancient and majestic dragon and phoenix reliefs. Therefore, sneakers will be a suitable choice instead of high heels. Please prepare a small bottle of water to quench your thirst on the way to conquer the top of Mua Cave!

If you want to take photos with lotus flowers and like quiet countryside scenery, you should go to Hang Mua between June and July. Early morning is the ideal time to take photos, at this time there are few people and Ninh Binh weather is also good, it’s not too hot. And from after 8:00 a.m, it will be sunny, so please be careful.

climb up to the mua cave- smile travel

Clim up to the Mua cave- Smile Travel

3. Boat trip on Tam Coc River

Boating in Tam Coc always brings excitement and curiosity to travel addicts, deserves to be the best thing to do in Ninh Binh. An activity that is not new, not strange but still interesting and always attracts the attention of many tourists from near and far when visiting Tam Coc.

Tam Coc Bich Dong in Ninh Binh

Tam Coc Bich Dong in Ninh Binh

Experiencing boating in Tam Coc is one of the most interesting things to do in Ninh Binh. This is a pretty cool activity to explore the hidden beauty of Tam Coc Bich Dong. You will have the opportunity to admire the vast green rice fields, immersed in the limestone mountains of three small caves (Hang Ca, Hang Hai, Hang Ba). Only by rowing a boat in Tam Coc can you fully discover the “gift” that nature bestows here.

The boating journey in Tam Coc seems simple as it floats down the romantic Ngo Dong River, but in fact it brings a wild charm of mossy rocky mountains and clear blue sky and water here. makes you fall in love with no way out.

If you go to Ninh Binh without trying Tam Coc boating, it would be a pity. This place is only about 7 km from Ninh Binh city center, and is even close to some other interesting attractions such as: Tam Coc, Bich Dong Pagoda, Thung Nham Bird Park… Let’s quickly move to Tam Coc Ninh Binh right away.

Boating in Tam Coc - one of the best things to do in Ninh Binh

Boating in Tam Coc – one of the best things to do in Ninh Binh

4. Visit Bich Dong Pagoda

Nestled in the middle of the Truong Yen range in Ninh Binh, Bich Dong Pagoda – one of the best places to visit in Ninh Binh, is proud to be on the list of wonderful landscapes of the region. With its pristine natural landscape and a bit of serenity, the pagoda is an ideal destination for those who want to temporarily get away from the noise of urban life.

Coming to Bich Dong Pagoda after the Lunar New Year in Vietnam, visitors can also participate in extremely vibrant festivals here.

Bich Dong Pagoda not only “attracts” tourists during the ripe rice season but also captivates people’s hearts with its beautiful, peaceful scenery every time the lotus season comes. Under the quiet, solemn appearance of the pagoda, suddenly hidden among the green of jade limestone slabs, the lotus pond exudes a heart-touching beauty, winding like soft strokes adorning a painting. Paintings of wild nature are full of emotions, making the scene even more vivid, bringing a sense of purity to a spiritual place.

Bich Dong Pagoda

Bich Dong Pagoda

5. Discover Hoa Lu Ancient Capital

Travel to Ninh Binh, one of the places tourists must visit is Hoa Lu ancient capital – a place with a history of more than 1000 years. Hoa Lu ancient capital has experienced many ups and downs of the Vietnamese people, is a place to preserve historical relics through many eras as well as become a testament. The country’s history dates back thousands of years. This place is an architectural complex, and each architecture has its own unique features, all creating the ancient and heroic look of ancient historical relics. The historical traces still remaining in the relic complex are very diverse and rich, including the architecture of city walls, royal citadels, caves, temples, tombs and many other types of valuable architectural works. history and high culture.

Visitors can come to Hoa Lu at any time of the year. However, spring is the most beautiful time as well as many festivals are held, so this is the right time for you if you want to participate and experience the bustling, crowded atmosphere of these festivals. If you are someone who likes quiet and wants to enjoy the peaceful space of this place, you can choose to go on the remaining days.

Most notably, there are still two relics here: King Dinh temple and King Le temple. These are two monuments built around the 17th century with extremely elaborate and unique sculptures on wood and stone.

HOA LU ANCIENT CAPITAL

Hoa Lu Ancient Capital

 

Tourists can refer to some Ninh Binh tour from Hanoi with Smile Travel below:

>> Tour 6D5N In Hanoi – Hoa Lu – Tam Coc – Halong Bay

>> Tour 4D3N Hanoi – Hoa Lu – Tam Coc – Halong Bay

>> Tour 2D1N Hanoi – Trang An – Bai Dinh Pagoda – Tam Coc With Smile Travel

6. Trekking in Cuc Phuong National Park

Cuc Phuong National Park possesses a diverse ecosystem, with the characteristics of a tropical rainforest. Coming here, visitors will have the opportunity to admire the beautiful natural scenery, participate in ecotourism, camping and relaxation activities. From April to May is the ideal time for tourists to start a tour of Cuc Phuong forest because this is the butterfly season in the forest, millions of butterflies fly together, creating an extremely impressive scene, suitable for tourists who love taking virtual photos. In particular, trekking here is one of the top things to do in Ninh Binh because it will leave visitors with a memorable experience of a lifetime.

Cuc Phuong National Park in Vietnam

Cuc Phuong National Park in Vietnam

Currently, Cuc Phuong National Park officially opens tours by electric car to see fireflies and wild animals at night.

The tour will travel by electric vehicle through the forest with a length of about 5 km to watch fireflies, see wild animals at night such as deer,… look at insects and explore the nightlife in the forest. Visit rare animals such as pangolins, civets, squids, wild cats, otters and loris. Interesting, isn’t it? Don’t hesitate any longer, come to Cuc Phuong National Park right away!

Butterfly season at Cuc Phuong National Park

Butterfly season at Cuc Phuong National Park

7. Enjoy specialties food in Ninh Binh

Ninh Binh mountain goat

Grazing on rocky mountains, goat meat in Ninh Binh is extremely firm and chewy, visitors to Ninh Binh must definitely try this dish once. Meanwhile, goat meat here is also processed into many delicious dishes with different preparation methods such as: goat spring rolls, steamed goat, grilled goat or the most famous is goat with ginger soy sauce – an extremely nutritious dish. 

Ninh Binh mountain goat - the speciality dish in Ninh Binh

Ninh Binh mountain goat – the speciality dish in Ninh Binh

 

Ninh Binh scorched rice

Different from other scorched rice dishes, scorched rice in Ninh Binh is made from a mixture of dry and sticky rice, through many stages of drying and deep-frying to produce batches of crispy, fragrant scorched rice. Scorched rice is often eaten with shrimp paste or fried green onions, or more strangely when eaten with goat meat, heart and kidney and a rich sauce. Surely, you will forever remember the crispy taste of scorched rice.

Ninh Binh scorched rice

Ninh Binh scorched rice

 

Ninh Binh mountain snail

Surely you have tried many types of sea snails, river snails,… with Ninh Binh mountain snail dish, surely few people have tried it. Mountain snails are often located in Tam Diep limestone caves, and it is not easy for you to enjoy this dish, because snails only come out from April to August, the rest of the time they lie deep in the crevices. stone.

If you want to eat this unique and delicious dish, you have to come at the right time to have the opportunity to enjoy it. With its chewy, crunchy snail taste and natural sweetness, and a faint taste of traditional medicine, you will be fascinated just by eating a simple steamed snail dish. Or you can also process snails into salads, steamed with ginger, stir-fried with tamarind…

Ninh Binh mountain snail - a special food in Ninh Binh

Ninh Binh mountain snail – a special food in Ninh Binh

 

Fish salad

Fish salad is a delicious dish that you should not forget to taste when visiting Ninh Binh. The dish is prepared quite elaborately and delicately to remove the fishy smell of the fish, combined with new sticky rice to create an extremely impressive delicacy.

Guests will enjoy a salad with green vegetables and certainly cannot forget the taste of the special dipping sauce called “coc” mixed with the familiar spices of lemongrass, chili and pepper. contributes to making the fish salad more special.

Fish sald

Fish sald

 

Read more some North Vietnam Tours, Central Vietnam Tours, South Vietnam Tours recommends by Smile Travel:

>> Combo Hanoi Halong Bay Tour 5 Days 4 Nights

>> The Best 5D4N Tour Package In Central Vietnam

>> Tour 4D3N Ho Chi Minh- Cu Chi- Mekong Delta Full Day

Above are the top things to do in Ninh Binh that tourists must try once. Smile Travel hopes that our suggestions will help tourists better understand Ninh Binh, its activities and specialties. If you want to go on a full, cheap, quality Ninh Binh tour, please contact Smile Travel immediately for advice and support in booking a tour via hotline/ WhatsApp/ Viber: (+84) 941776786 or send a message via email: info@smiletravel.com.vn.

 

Smile Travel is one of the fast growing Tour Companies in Vietnam. We are as Inbound and Outbound Tour Operator Licence No 01-1051/TCDL-GPLHQT. We specialize in tailor-making and customizing individual, Couple, family and group tours throughout Indochina destinations.

Our Tour:

Halong Cruises Tours, Vietnam Classic Tours, Hanoi Daily Tours, Danang Daily Tours, Ho Chi Minh Daily ToursBiking and Motorbike Tours,Vietnam Beach/ Relaxing Tours,Vietnam Muslim tour in Hanoi,Vietnam Muslim tour in Danang ,Vietnam Muslim tour in Ho Chi Minh,Vietnam Eco Tours,Vietnam- Laos Tours,Vietnam- Cambodia Tours,Vietnam- Myanmar Tours,

Our Travel Services:

Tour Guide, Car/Motorbike For Rent, Visa to Vietnam, Bus Tickets, Bus Tickets, Flight Tickets, Train Tickets


--------------------------------------------------

Head Office: