I am a sleepy head. There is no doubt about it, and as a girl who can sleep through thunder storm and my brother's snores, I have no justification for that comment. But surprisingly, there is one thing that can wake me up at 5 a.m and get off my blanket despite the cold weather of the Northern Vietnam in February – Trang An Complex.
About Trang An Complex – The Land of Peacefulness and of Kong
Trang An is a magical landscape that has geological age of about 250 million years, located in the North of Vietnam just 2 hours from Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam. The landscape of Trang An, Ninh Binh was created by the change of the earth, climate, and sea. Degradation Sea brought in hundreds of valleys, caves and lagoons. The lagoon is home to many wetland ecosystems, limestone forests, archeological sites and cultural and historical sites. You probably have already seen Trang An’s lagoons and mountains in the infamous movie Kong – Skull Island, which brought great attention of many people to this Northern destination of Vietnam.
Transportation to Trang An Complex
Transportation to Trang An, Ninh Binh is accessible in Hanoi. You can travel to Ninh Binh and visit Trang An either by bike or by bus, coach, etc. Most vehicles can be easily hired in Hanoi, there are a lot of tourism agencies that sell travel packages and deals to Ninh Binh. I highly recommend you bargain when deal prices with them. Ideally, the cost of transportation to Ninh Binh from Hanoi should come in the range of 200k VND/day for bike, and 600k VND/day for car. You can also rent vehicles in Ninh Binh to drive to Trang An, the fee-range is also similar with the cost in Hanoi. The cost of accommodation is also affordable, it depends on the type of accommodation, as in everywhere else in the world.
Trang An Complex Grottoes Tour
Back to the information how Trang An was able to wake me up at 5 a.m. It was because had I been late, I would not have a seat in 1 of 2000 boats that serve tourists in Trang An. The most valuable experience at Trang An is to float through the place’s most picturesque landscapes by boat in Trang An Grottoes tour, rowed by local.
To witness Trang An’s infamous lagoons, river and hidden historical shrines among the trees you have to start from Trang An's boat deck, where there are 2000 boats awaits for you and more than 12 000 tourists at peaked time. I travelled to Ninh Binh, Trang An in “Tet festival“ (Lunar New Year). Therefore, it is not the best time to travel to famous tourist attractions in Vietnam, because the amount of people travel there in Tet festival is insane!
But no worries, I have heard from locals inhabitants of Trang An that the best time of the year to visit Trang An is in July or August. Only then, the Trang An , Ninh Binh's weather is very comfortable. It is not too hot or humid, and also not too cold and dry. The amount of visitor is also moderate, not over-crowded like when I travelled to Trang An in Tet.
Ninh Binh and Trang An Landscape Complex consists of many different locations to discover. If you are the one who seeks for serenity and tranquility feelings that are hard to get in the city, you can visit Trang An Grottoes tour, Ninh Binh and Trang An - Tam Coc - Bich Dong Scenic Landscape. Or if you want to pursuit your quest to learn Vietnamese History, visit the Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, and the Hoa Lu Special-Use Forest, or embark on a spiritual path at Bai Dinh Pagoda where many ASEAN regional-record artifacts exist.
Ninh Binh, Trang An gave me the most amazing feelings, I felt small among the vastness of nature and felt giant among the historical structure that was built on the vertical cliffs of Acient Trang An’s mountains by my ancestors. I felt serenity among the foggy weather of Ninh Binh in spring and felt astonished listening to the historical events that happened in this Northen land of Vietnam.
Reminiscing about the beautiful landscape of Trang An makes me want to become a poet, let’s finish this off with a small poetry in the style of 6 words poem:
Trang An, once went, never forget.
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