Tam Coc rowing boat among rice paddy and karst scenery

You have ever felt surprised by wonderful beauty of limestones in Halong Bay. Then it is another speechless surprise for you to admire Ninh Binh’s karst. That can be Tam Coc or Trang An. Taking a seat on sampan will bring visitors a natural experience to discover surrounds of limestone and caves. The cruise promises to offer travelers chances of admiring the special beauties here. Those are limestone ceilings in the darkness and charming rice fields surrounded by caves and water.

It takes about 2 hours to get Ninh Binh Provice from Hanoi. This place is famous by two special boating-trip areas, namely Tam Coc and Trang An. It is also great thanks to the beautiful ambiance of trekking and hiking.

Tam Coc the great sampan trip among rice farm

The place is a very famous site about 90 kilometers south of Hanoi and 7 kilometres to the West of the Ninh Binh town.

The name Tam Coc which means 3 caves, is a beautiful combination of rice paddies, the river running across the rice paddies, the karstic rock formations and limestone caves.

The rock formations, caves, water and landscape have made Tam Coc to know popularly as La Halong Bay on land. You can also say this is a Halong Bay between rice paddies . More accessible than Halong Bay, Tam Coc squanders spectacular landscapes and exoticism.

To enjoy the full beauty of this natural landscape of Tam Coc, take  a small rowing boat plying the River Ngo Dong. In addition to the impressive landscape we can also enjoy the beauty of the rice fields. It is even more amazing when the seasons rice has turned yellow and ready for harvesting.

The three caves forming the name Tam Coc are in the middle of the rock formations in the area. The route gets across the River Ngo Dong, about 3 kilometers from the pier Van Lam. These cave names are the Hang Ca cave, Hang Giua cave and Hang Ba cave. The erosion of the mineral on the rocks has form the caves. The caves have no ground, making that the river runs through the middle of the caves.

Trang An the more beauty with less travelers.

However, Trang An is a new destination in Ninh Binh. It is now even a priority. Hence, imagine you are on a small boat rowed by a woman behind you. There is no engine and the oak keeps tapping the canal to go ahead. What is more, on the right and the left are green rice farms with local people is working on the farm. Ducks freely walk around to look for their fish as food on the rice farm. Further a bit is ranges of spectacular mountains of Kasrt topography. In addition to vast mountain ranges, trees are on top of mountains. If spending more focus, we can find many goats climbing on the mountains at the dangerous corners for leaves. It’s amazing, isn’t it? And how about sun bean from the hill lands softly on the green rice farms.

Such a tour in Ninh Binh has attracted a lot of attention to not only foreigners but Vietnamese people as well. With the purpose of avoiding the crowded, your trip should start in the early morning or after 15:00. Moreover, for the boating trip, let’s feel free to give local women a hand in rowing for extra power and shorten the time to get the destination.

Ninh Binh the peaceful time of walking

In addition to the trip on the boat, the cycling one is also available. Riding a bicycle through villages, you can enjoy the view of dozens of limestone hills, cathedral in French architecture from the war time and many others. Located approximately 4 km far from Ninh Binh, it is the area of some historical sites such as Dinh Le and Dinh Tien Hoang’s citadel. The remained temple has been presented since the 17^th century with a beautiful shaded garden.

Coming back to Hanoi, you can visit Phat Diem cathedral. The church is a huge  from the 19^th century built by a cluster of similar small building around. The site is great because it is  highlight for the special local blended architecture.