Ninh Binh Things To See & Do

Things To See & Do

Best Things to Do in Hoa Lu Ancient Capital

Best Things to Do in Hoa Lu Ancient Capital

Hoa Lu Ancient Capital is one of the first capital of Vietnam in the 10th century, attracting a number of tourists from all over the world. Visiting Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, you will have a chance to admire charming natural landscapes with cultural-historical values of precious monuments in this ancient land.[incredible_toc] Hoa Lu Ancient Capital 1. Historical Values of Hoa Lu Ancient Capital Far about 100km from Hanoi to the south, Hoa Lu Ancient Capital is a national-level important cultural-historical relics. This is also the first capital of Vietnam with numerous historical landmarks. In 968, the King of Dai Co Viet (an old name of Vietnam) established his capital at Hoa Lu in 42 years (968-980) as a ruler. After that, Hoa Lu Ancient Capital also existed for 29 next years of the Early Le dynasty (980-1009) and the last year of the Ly dynasty (1009-1010). In 1010, Ly Dynasty transferred the capital to Thang Long (Hanoi now). Since then, Hoa Lu is known as the ancient capital. 2. Things to visit in Hoa Lu Hoa Lu has many palaces, pagodas, tombs and pavilions that were built by different dynasties. Despite going through many centuries, Hoa Lu has been home to many beautiful sites to visit. Visiting here, you will have a chance to understand more about the history of Vietnam and can join many traditional cultural festivals. The ancient capital is a magnificent and majestic palace which is surrounded by rocky mountain, spectacular scenery and numerous calm lakes, which makes Hoa Lu’s picturesque landscape. Accompany Incredible Asia Journeys to find out the best things to do in Hoa Lu! 2.1. Dinh Tien Hoang Emperor Temple (King Dinh Temple) King Dinh Temple On the way to King Dinh Temple, you will see Ma Yen Mountain which looks like a saddle. You have to climb up 265 steps getting to the top of the mountain to see King Dinh Temple.  King Dinh Temple is one best places to visit Ninh Binh with unique architectures in Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, worshipping King Dinh Tien Hoang (King of Dai Co Viet Dynasty). Over the centuries, the temple has remained its stunning architectural works. It was built of grey stone and situated on the mountaintop. From here, you can also admire panoramic views of Hoa Lu Ancient Capital. The temple is divided into three shrines: the outer one is Ngo Mon Gate), the middle is called Thien Huong and the inner worship of King Dinh Tien Hoang. After Ngo Mon Gate, there is a stone bed of King with a pair of Nghe (a kind of mythical animal in the ancient time) standing on both sides. 2.2. Le Dai Hanh Emperor Temple (King Le Temple) King le Temple is located at the foot of Ma Yen Mountain to the south. The temple has the similar architectural design with King Ding Temple, but smaller. It is also divided into 3 parts: front shrine, Thien Huong house and the sanctum worshipping Le King. Festival in King Le Temple 2.3. One Pillar Pagoda in Ninh Binh (Nhat Tru Pagoda) Nhat Tru (also known as One Pillar Pagoda) is an ancient pagoda from the 10th century, which is located in the Hoa Lu Complex. The pagoda also preserves many antiquities attached with the history of the ancient capital, especially the stone scripture pillar in front of the pagoda. The pillar was made of stone, has an octagonal body functioning as a prayer book and a stone lotus on the top. Today, Nhat Tru Pagoda is still a spiritual place of the locals and tourists. On January 15 annually, a worship ceremony takes place to pray for the peace of the nation. Nhat Tru Pagoda 2.4. Tam Coc – Bich Dong (Three Grottos - Green Pearl Grotto) From Hoa Lu, you can take a short distance to Tam Coc – Bich Dong, a harmonious architectural ensemble attracting tourists all over the world. Tourists to Tam Coc - Bich Dong will actually feel the stretching mountain views, stunning caves, and charming waterways of the rice paddies along the beautiful Ngo Dong River. Tam Coc - Bich Dong is beautiful around 4 seasons, each season has a unique beauty. Summer is considered the most beautiful season of the year with clouds and the green rice fields starting to turn into a sparkling yellow. Tam Coc – Bich Dong has become “a terrestrial Ha Long Bay” and a fascinating and attractive destination in Ninh Binh. Click here to see our Tam Coc Bich Dong Day Tour From Hanoi. Along the Ngo Dong River 2.5. Annual Festival in Hoa Lu Ancient Capital Hoa Lu Festival, the national cultural heritage in the northern Ninh Binh, is taken place on April 5, or the 9th day of the third lunar month of the year and lasts 3 days. During the festival, there will be many other cultural and sports activities, including a requiem, a temple gate-opening ceremony, and displays of colored lanterns and flower garlands, and performances of folk games. It will be an interesting experience for you if you travel to Hoa Lu this time. Hoa Lu Ancient Capital Festival Click on the link to see the best trips to visit Hoa Lu Ancient Capital and Ninh Binh: Hoa Lu - Hang Mua – Tam Coc Day Tour, Hoa Lu - Trang An Full Day from Hanoi, North Vietnam 5 Days Group Tour, Discover Hoa Lu Tam Coc & Halong Bay, Hoa Lu Tam Coc Day Trip. 3. What to eat in Ninh Binh Hoa Lu attracts tourists not only by the beauty of the ancient citadel but also by its delicious dishes. Goat Meat is one of the dishes you should not miss by all means. The meat is fresh and delicious to be served with ginger, lemon, chili, citronella, and some other kinds of herbs and spices. This is a great dish and also very healthy. Another special food is Rice Crust which is made from cooked rice and a fried mixture of different spices including fried beef, pork, onion, dried mushrooms and tomatoes. It’s easy for you to find the places selling the rice crust throughout destinations of Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, Bai Dinh Pagoda or Tam Coc – Bich Dong. Rice Crust in Ninh Binh 4. How to get to Hoa Lu Ancient Capital 4.1. By busYou can take a bus to Ninh Binh from stations in Hanoi (it can be Giap Bat Station or My Dinh Station). There will be a bus to go to Ninh Binh every 30 minutes from 05.00 AM to 11.00 PM every day. It will take you about 2 hours to get to Hoa Lu. You must pay for your ticket from 100,000 VND to 200,000 VND per person.  4.2. By car or motorbike From Hanoi, you will go to Giai Phong St., turn to Phap Van – Cau Gie Highway, the moving to Ninh Binh Province. It will take you 90 minutes to get to Hoa Lu. 4.3.By trainYou will go to Giap Bat Railway Station to take a train to Ninh Binh Railway Station. After that, you have to take a taxi to go to Hoa Lu.

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Best Things to Do in Ninh Binh

Best Things to Do in Ninh Binh

Vietnam’s tourism industry is setting its sights firmly on Ninh Binh for the coming years. The region has seen a quick development in recent times and will soon see a lot more as the sometimes-oversaturated regions of Halong Bay and Sapa are turning tourists into alternative destinations in Northern Vietnam.[incredible_toc] Ninh Binh claims a huge amount of activities to do throughout the entire province and tourists visiting now will be able to boast of going to Ninh Binh ‘before it was cool’. For anyone with a few spare days free in Hanoi, follow us in this Ninh Binh guide as we will list the top 5 best things to do in Ninh Binh. The Beauty of Ninh Binh 1. Boating in Ninh Binh The quintessential Ninh Binh activity; sitting on a sampan boat rowed by a local villager using their feet. The tranquillity factor is high with this serene activity, enjoyable in several locations around Ninh Binh Province. 1.1. Where To Take Ninh Binh Boat Tour its magnificent limestone complex and beautiful landscape. Thus, taking a boat tour to witness the natural beauty is a must-do activity. Tam Coc is easily the most popular place to relax on a boat. The magic of floating down the Ngo Dong River between its rice paddies and under its dark caves remains long in the memories of visitors to Ninh Binh. As beautiful as it is, Tam Coc can sometimes get a little crowded, making other destinations a little more preferable. Trang An is also a fairly well-known boating destination for its wide river and undulating scenery, but the risk of crowding during good weather is also quite high. The best alternatives are the untouched wetlands at the Van Long Scenic Reserve, as well as Kenh Ga, a beautiful floating village translating to 'Chicken Canal' for the chickens plucked in the local hot springs. Then, if you wonder boat tour in Tam Coc or Trang An, which one this better? Contact Incredible Asia Journeys to help you plan your Ninh Binh tours from Hanoi with personalized interests! 1.2. When To Take Ninh Binh Boat Tour High and low seasons in Tam Coc are completely dictated by the rice harvest. For the best scenery, head there between May and July when the rice is a beautiful shade of gold. The main draws of the other locations are not based on rice, so as long as you can avoid the wet season between July and September and maybe the cold season between December and February, then Trang An, Van Long Scenic Reserve and Kenh Ga are all attractive options. Boating in Ninh Binh 2. Climbing in Ninh Binh Of all the things to do in Ninh Binh that afford the best views, climbing to the top of one of the gorgeous limestone mountains and surveying the golden rice from below will be one of the most memorable. 2.1. Where to Climb in Ninh Binh The 450 winding stone steps of Lying Dragon Mountain pose a small challenge for anyone looking to get that perfect photo of Ninh Binh. The mountain stairs are very accessible; just 6km out of Ninh Binh City; also featuring Mua Cave at the bottom and a huge dragon statue at the top. Climbing in the Lying Dragon MountainBich Dong Pagoda at Tam Coc Village, one of Ninh Binh tourist attractions also offers great views from its peak and features many interesting religious highlights along the way. Part of the climb heads through a temple built into a cave and just beyond the pagoda’s inner walls lies a small lake to which you can descend past wild mountain goats. 2.2. When to Climb in Ninh Binh Again, the rice-harvesting season provides those most remarkable views, but any time after Vietnamese New Year will do nicely because of the fresh abundance of sprouting green rice. Try to avoid the July to September wet season if possible as the rain can make the steps of both Lying Dragon Mountain and Bich Dong Pagoda very slippery. 3. Cycling in Ninh BinhThere are so many things to see in Ninh Binh that sometimes walking around just isn’t fast enough. Motorbikes are one alternative, but nothing beats the slow serenity of a bicycle ride. 3.1. Where To Cycle in Ninh Binh Many of Tam Coc’s cyclists are amazed at the landscape when the view from the village road opens up for miles around them. Naturally, Tam Coc is the busiest place for bicycles and motorbikes sharing the road, but there is a large, beautiful area around nearby Thung Nham Bird Park, which sees very little traffic. Vietnam’s first-ever national park, Cuc Phuong, provides a bit more of a challenge than the flatness of Tam Coc. Hilly in parts but definitely manageable, Cuc Phuong boasts 40km of road that circles around the inside of the park, flanked by jungle on both sides with stops for checking out prehistoric caves and attractive segments of wetland throughout. 3.2. When To Cycle in Ninh BinhAlong with all the rest of the top things to do in Ninh Binh, avoiding the rainy season is your best bet. Locally rented bicycles in Tam Coc that are fine during the dry season can sometimes skid during the wet (that’s why they cost $1 for a full-day rental). More substantial bikes can be rented at the entrance to Cuc Phuong and much of the path is shaded, meaning that the small hills can be traversed during the summer with little sweaty backlash. Cycling in Ninh Binh 4. Ninh Binh Sightseeing Aside from Ninh Binh’s many sites of natural splendor, the province features a great amount of remarkable and very surprising architecture from the many stretching roots of its history. 4.1. Where To Go Sightseeing in Ninh Binh Home to a plethora of religious buildings of different faiths, Ninh Binh’s remarkable Christian and Buddhist architecture is some of the most fascinating in the country. None more so than Phat Diem Cathedral, an amazing blend of European and Sino-Vietnamese construction that demonstrates the region’s devotion to God. Hoa Lu is the more expected Vietnamese scene, but not one that lacks anything in comparison to Phat Diem Cathedral. Hoa Lu was the capital of Vietnam for 44 years; the two kings that ruled during this time have been immortalized in two magnificent temples here; visiting both on a day trip from Hanoi is a very popular activity in Ninh Binh. There is no shortage of Buddhist and Christian buildings in Ninh Binh. Chau Son Monastery, Non Nuoc Pagoda, and Thai Vi Temple are just a few that add a religious element to the diverse province. Therefore, there are many places to visit in Ninh Binh in your sightseeing tour! 4.2. When To Go Sightseeing in Ninh Binh These religious buildings are available to view at any time, but naturally, they get busy around the holidays. Hoa Lu gets a bit full for its festival around April (depending on the lunar calendar) and Phat Diem gets busy during Easter and Christmas. If you’re into religious culture then this might be a great time to check out these stunning sites, but more casual tourists might want to steer clear. Trang An Complex Heritage 5. Go Trekking in Ninh Binh If cycling the shared road with motorbikes is too dangerous for you, then you can’t get safer than your own two feet. 5.1. Where To Go Trekking in Ninh Binh It’s harder to find a more wholesome thing to do in Ninh Binh than trekking through Cuc Phuong National Park. Towards the northern end of the park, there are various treks available of different lengths. A 3-hour return trek to a thousand-year-old tree is one of Cuc Phuong’s big draws, whereas the longer treks require a bit more planning – a 6-hour return trek to the Khanh Village where the Muong hill tribe live, or a 2-day trek to a further away Muong Village with cave stops in between. Around the rest of Ninh Binh, there are no well-known trekking routes established yet. The road between Tam Coc and the Mua Cave is a very scenic one and worth a look for anyone into trekking, but Cuc Phuong is the only recognized trekking route. 5.2. When To Go Trekking in Ninh Binh Trekking in Cuc Phuong National Park in Ninh BinhThe oppressive heat and insistent rain of summer make doing the Cuc Phuong treks quite the task. March is known for its humidity in Northern Vietnam, so try to avoid this too. Most other times will do nicely.

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