Cuc Phuong National Park is located on the border of three provinces Ninh Binh, Hoa Binh and Thanh Hoa, the main gate is in Nho Quan district, Ninh Binh. The distance from Hanoi to Cuc Phuong is 90km, the travel time is about 2 hours by road. The 48-hour journey in Cuc Phuong National Park is based on the experience of tourist Do Van Tuyen and VnExpress reporter.
Day 1
Morning
Departing from Hanoi to Ninh Binh city area via Phap Van - Cau Gie highway, travel time is about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Arriving in Ninh Binh, tourists can visit some famous places here such as Trang An tourist area, Bai Dinh pagoda, Tam Coc - Bich Dong, Mua cave, Am Tien cave (Tuyet Tinh Coc), Van Long lagoon.
Tourists should choose 1-2 of the above places according to their needs because time will not be enough. If you want to visit all the famous places in Ninh Binh, you need 3-4 days and a reasonable schedule.
Boating in Trang Anh. Photo: Duong Tri
"If you are coming to Ninh Binh for the first time, go to Trang An eco-tourism area first," said Mr. Tuyen. To enter Trang An, visitors will have to travel by boat, choosing a tour route according to their preferences. At some places, visitors will go ashore to visit, then continue by boat and return to the pier.
The tour takes about 3-4 hours. The entrance fee is 200,000 VND for adults and 100,000 VND for children under 1.4 m.
Noon
Take a lunch break with Ninh Binh goat specialties such as raw goat with lemon, steamed goat, grilled goat tripe with five spices, stir-fried goat, and crispy rice with goat meat sauce. Goat meat restaurants are concentrated in Ninh Binh city or near Trang An and Hoa Lu tourist areas.
Some suggested addresses: Chinh Thu, Duc De, Vua De, Luong Thuong.
Afternoon and evening
Travel to Cuc Phuong National Park, Nho Quan District. Visitors buy an entrance ticket for 60,000 VND per adult, free for children. Car parking fee is 20,000 VND. To camp overnight, the fee per person is 50,000 VND.
Now is the best time to camp in Cuc Phuong. April and May mark the start of the dry season after a wet spring. During the day, you will see swarms of butterflies flying everywhere and at night, fireflies are a sight to behold.
Camping in Bong hamlet area. Photo: Do Tuyen
There are two areas where tourists often camp, which are Mac Lake and Bong Hamlet. Mac Lake is 1.5km from the garden gate, Bong Hamlet is about 20km from the gate. "I chose Bong Hamlet because this area has a spacious, beautiful lawn, and is located in the middle of the forest, so it feels quite 'chill'," Tuyen said.
Set up camp and go for a walk in the national park. Visitors can walk or rent bicycles from the park. In the evening, return to the campsite to cook and have dinner. Visitors can prepare food from home, or order food from the garden. Food orders often include grilled chicken, grilled skewers, vegetables and fruits.
Overnight at camp.
"Because you have bought an entrance ticket, security here is guaranteed. You need to pay attention to cleaning up the campsite after leaving," Tuyen said.
Note that Cuc Phuong National Park has all the necessary accommodation and food services, so visitors can camp during the day and stay in a hotel at night. The campsite does not have grid electricity, only a generator for about 4 hours each night. You should prepare additional charging and lighting equipment.
Day 2
Morning
Visitors wake up to a fresh and green natural landscape. As soon as the sun rises, flocks of butterflies fly everywhere.
White butterflies flying in Cuc Phuong National Park. Photo: Do Tuyen
"Along the Cuc Phuong forest, there are butterflies of all colors and sizes. The butterflies flying around in flocks feels very surreal. Just sitting still and enjoying this atmosphere is enough," Tuyen said. Breakfast at the campsite.
In the morning, tourists who like to exercise should take a short trek of about 5 km from the Bong hamlet area to visit the thousand-year-old Chò tree. This is a giant Chò tree 45 m high, 5 m in diameter and has a circumference of more than 20 people to hug around. This Chò tree has rotted quite a bit and is no longer intact as before. However, trekking into the Chò tree area is also an experience.
Noon
Leaving Cuc Phuong National Park, have lunch at some nearby restaurants, enjoy the specialty "Bim to dan". This is the general name for dishes made from different types of birds such as sparrows, pigeons, roof birds, cuckoo birds, and teal birds.
Some suggested addresses: Tuan Tu, Thao Linh, Ngoc Phuong (local food restaurants) or Binh Dung, Nha La, Ky Chim (restaurants specializing in birds).
Afternoon
Visit Chau Son Monastery, built in 1939, about 10km from Cuc Phuong. The monastery is located in a quiet mountainous area, near the intersection of three provinces Ha Nam - Hoa Binh - Ninh Binh. When you first see the monastery, you will feel like you are in Europe.
Chau Son Monastery. Photo: Xuan Thu
According to the Ninh Binh Department of Information and Communications, the design of the monastery is in Gothic style with 0.6m thick surrounding walls and 1.2m thick columns, creating warmth in winter and coolness in summer. The highlight of the monastery is the columns designed into small symmetrical towers. Outside the church are paintings of Jesus carrying the cross and praying. Inside the church is a wide corridor with natural light. The garden space has hundreds of cool green trees.
The monastery is open from 8:00 to 10:30 (Sunday to 10:00) and from 14:30 to 16:30 (Sunday from 15:30-16:30). On some holidays, the monastery is closed.
Alternatives
Ninh Binh also has many famous attractions such as Phat Diem stone church, Dong Chuong lake, King Dinh - King Le temple, Kenh Ga tourist area; or join the tour to release wild animals such as birds, monkeys, reptiles, wild cats, civets into the wild in the primeval forest.
Tam Anh
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