Trang An Boat Tour, Ninh Binh

It’s known as the Ha Long Bay of the land. About 150 kilometers from the famous Vietnamese bay where hundreds of islands form a natural wonder is another equally as impressive landscape. This one, known as Trang An, is nowhere near the coast, though. The mountains are connected by rice paddies, not water. You can cycle to them, not sail. And – best of all – they are not full of foreign tourists. Such is the joy of a Trang An boat tour.

Trang An Heritage Complex is a part of Ninh Binh province, it is about 100km away from Hanoi city center. If Halong holds an impressive and magnificent beauty, Trang An will be its best rival. Though smaller in size, you will be lost in a wonderland with the karst mountains, lush green forests, sparkling and crystal-clear river and the endless rice field running to the horizon.

In general, the cost of entrance fees & boat trip of three routes is the same ( 200.000vnd/ person) on a shared- rowing boat (maximum 4 people/ 1 boat). You can choose your own private boat & pay all the cost of 4 seats ( 800.000vnd) for your privacy & your chosen boat tour route to explore Trang An Scenic Landscapes. All routes are beautiful with the same time duration ( 2,5-3 hours) pleasantly journeying along the rivers, viewing picturesque mountains, mysterious caves & nice walks to visit ancient temples. However, each of them has its own characteristic features that you should compare and select the route that you like to discover Trang An beauty.

Route 1: Trang An Pier - Trinh temple -Dark Cave- Bright Cave - Nau Ruou Cave- Tran Temple - Ba Giot cave - Seo Cave - Son Duong cave - Phu Khong temple - Khong cave - Bao Hieu Pagoda - Tran cave - Quy Hau cave - Trang An Pier.

The first route offers you a chance to visit more caves ( 9-11 caves): long, short, light, dark caves. In the season, when the water level is high, the caves are flooded, we can not visit ( updated announcement by management board on-site ). In this route, you can visit 3 spiritual temples & pagoda including Trinh Temple dedicated to four head mandrins of Dinh dynasty, ancient Tran temple with a nice trekking route through mountain to visit a stone temple worshipping Tran Quy Minh saint, and Phu Khong temple worshiping loyal mandarins in Dinh dynasty, who did bury the King Dinh Tien Hoang secretly somewhere, then killed themselves to keep that secret - burial site of the king forever. Great to know about the information of Vietnam history in 10th & 11th century when Ninh Binh was chosen as the heart of Vietnam.

Route 2 : Trang An Pier - Lam cave - Cao Son Temple - Hang cave - Thanh Truot cave - Suoi Tien temple - Dai cave - Vu Lam palace - King Kong village - Trang An Pier.

The second boat tour route is recently opened and attract more travelers than the first one because of King Kong's village to visit en route. With only 4 hidden caves you can visit on boat journey but natural with their beautiful stalactites hanging down. The shape of the mountains is also magnificent & picturesque. The river water is clear to view aquatic plants living on the river bed. Nature is quite pristine with forested mountains & green valleys of reeds & bushes. This route is not with hard climb but interesting walks to Tran temple, to Vu Lam worshipping palace of Tran dynasty, and especially to a sample village of aboriginal people, recently set with many simple bamboo huts, red hangovers & friendly local villagers – the same as the village you watch in the latest Kong movie : “Kong: Skull Island “.This route is an interesting combination of a movie screen with real-life experience of shooting location in "Kong: Skull Island".

Route 3 : Trang An Pier - Trinh Temple - May Cave - Dot cave - Suoi Tien temple - Dai cave - Vu Lam Palace - King Kong village - Trang An Pier.

The third route was recently opened and added more choice for visitors. This boat route is only limited with three caves on your journey but you are exposed to the longest & the most beautiful cave in Trang An ( May cave of 1000 meters long & naturally beautiful stalactites). The journey is some connection of route 1 & route 2 with sightseeing to three temples ( Trinh temple, Suoi Tien Temple & Vu Lam Palace), to three caves ( May cave, Dot cave & Dai cave) and to King Kong village. If you love to visit the longest & most natural May cave & Kong movie 's setting village, you should choose route 3.

I chose the most famous route which is Route 2 with the Kung Skull Island stop. The best time to visit Trang An it in the early months, from January to March, when the weather is dry and cool. This is the festival season of Bai Dinh Temple, so you can combine the boat tour with visiting the temple. However, this is the peak season so the place may be crowded and you have to wait a bit until you can get on your boat.

Or if you want to enjoy the beautiful golden rice field, you should go in late May and early June, when the rice ripens. This season is a bit hotter and the sunlight may be strong, but there will be fewer tourists.

Some small thing you should bring is water, light snack, hat, sunglass because you will have to spend a lot of time outside, directly under the sun. So it’s better not to get burned and dehydrated.  You should also wear comfortable and travel-friendly clothes since you will be moving around a lot.

In the middle of the river, there is a pavilion where local musicians playing traditional music. It is simply relaxation to the ears, mind, and soul. 

The waterway is much narrower here and the boat comes close to the shore of reeds. Mountains surround us in almost every direction and, if it wasn’t for the tunnel, it would feel like we were in a lake. At the other end, there’s another tunnel and we go through it and emerge in another part of the landscape.

Some row-through is too low especially to those who are tall. So do watch your head and don't focus too much at looking around or taking photographs. You do not want to drop your camera here.

The final stop is the Kong Skull Island movie set. There is a little walk here before you will get to the village.

Finally, we get to the movie set. The first thing we saw is the gunship that is used in the movie. If you haven't watched the movie yet, so I better not telling you anything specific about the storyline.

This gunship basically is not moving and there is no engine to make it move either.

There is a village with fake villagers which you will also see them in the movie. They play the major role of survival. However, I do not remember the people in the movie looks like Vietnamese though. They more look like an African to me.

Taking pictures with the people there, you will need to give them some tips. It is about 10,000 - 20,000vnd per person. If you give them more, they will do more exaggerating pose for you. 

They cook some local small bites for sell too. Looks like a realistic village somehow. Some people may think this spot is not interesting of all since everything is just props and fake people. Well, if you think that way, you can always choose the other 2 routes. People choosing this route is to witness how a Hollywood movie set is like.

The boat women will always get to rest when they make every each stop. If you are pity your boat woman, there is always an extra oar in the boat where you can help in rowing.

Trang An Boat Tour is highly recommended because you really get what you pay. Longer ride than you experience at Tam Coc boat tour and you get to see more things too! The best of all there is no nuisance people who will bother you to pay more tips and cursing you for not.

Total Damage: 200,000vnd per person

Ambiance: 5/5

Service: 4/5

Price: 4/5

Recommended?: Yes

Opening Hours: 7.00am - 4.00pm (daily)