Best of Ninh Binh Day Tour: Hoa Lu, Trang An, Tam Coc, Hang Mua

The day was incredible. I had Thanh as my guide, and he was exceptional from start to finish. I was picked up at 7:25 AM at the Hanoi Opera House since I wasn't staying in the Old Quarter. On the way back at 7:00 PM, they dropped me off one street away from my accommodation because there was a heavy downpour. I highly recommend this excursion!

good itinerary and time control is good, and really recommend to take a 11luxury mini van, we just got 4persons in car, super comfortable and efficient for everything we even finished the tour quite early back to hanoi downtown :)

The trip was nice, but definitely felt too short! We had a good group, Six of us from the Ph and a few international tourists. Sadly, we didn't have enough time to hike to the top of the mountain because our guide only gave us an hour to explore. We mostly stuck to the lily garden and the photo spots. Going up requires a lot more time and energy, and the stairs are honestly an accident waiting to happen if you don't have the right shoes. They're incredibly slippery and not very accessible, especially for heavier folks like me. Definitely do a separate, solo trip if the summit is your main goal. The food was decent though, and we all left happy with the meals. Big thanks to our guide Raymond, too! He’s moving on to a new job after 4 years of guiding, and we're so glad we caught him right before his retirement from the role. Wishing him all the best!

What an amazing day, got picked up from Hanoi Opera House at 7am with a nice Van. First stop was Hoa Lu, which was the ancient capital of Vietnam, back in the 10th century. We took a bicycle ride and had a very nice lunch, consisting of rice, beef, goat and soup. The second stop was Tranh An, which was a 2 hour boat ride, this was nice with breathtaking views of cliffs and rainforests. They have 2x Starbucks, so you can enjoy refreshing drinks. Finally, we stopped at Hang Mua, which had a massive 500 step hike, which was tiring but very rewarding at the top. The views were spectacular and picturesque, highly recommend. There’s plenty of stops along the way to catch your breath, before reaching the summit to the top.

the tour started off strong by starting to climb up stairs at the mua cave. the climb up was challenging, the steps were either too narrow or too high up for a person like me with short legs. then we had a buffet lunch but didn’t go cycling since we were tired from the climb. we decided to stay behind and grabbed coffee. after, we went to trang an and rowed for maybe two hours. the view was beautiful, the weather was also good this day. our guide was tiger, very good at communicating the history of vietnam.

The entire process was smooth and well-organized from start to finish. All the details were clearly communicated via email and WhatsApp, making everything easy. The tour lasted a full day, which felt just right to explore the highlights without feeling rushed. Our guide, Mr. Luca, truly elevated the experience. He shared insightful and engaging information about Bai Dinh, Trang An, and Mua Cave in a calm and clear manner, making each stop more meaningful and enjoyable. Despite the intense heat that day, the breathtaking views made everything worthwhile. Each destination offered something unique, and the scenery was simply exquisite, especially at Trang An and Mua Cave. The buffet lunch was another highlight, offering a wide variety of dishes to choose from. It was satisfying and a perfect break in between activities. This tour is perfect as a side trip. It’s a well-balanced itinerary for those who want to see nature, culture, and scenic landscapes all in one day.

Overall trip was lovely! We had the amazing Arthur as our guide and he was very knowledgeable all throughout the tour. They are very flexible as well. They really check in if you’re enjoying so far and sees that you will enjoy the trip. It was wet when we got the Hoa Lu Capital but that didn’t stop the trip. We went ahead rain or shine. The weather got better as we traversed Trang An and the view is so worth it. Arthur provided us instructions and made sure everything was smooth from our tickets to getting us our boat. I really recommend this day trip. We loved it even with bad weather so I can only imagine what it will be like with the perfect weather.

ad an amazing Ninh Binh Day Tour! Everything was well-organized and smooth from start to finish. Special shoutout to our tour guide, Henry, he’s incredibly smart, knowledgeable, and genuinely funny, which made the whole trip even more enjoyable. He kept the group engaged while sharing interesting facts about the places we visited. Highly recommend this tour for a fun and hassle-free experience!

dan was our tour guide, extremely knowledgeable and passionate about his work. communciate day before around 9-10p for exact pick up time details at your hotel. i think 11 seater van is worth the update because the car ride is about 2 hrs and its very spacious with lots of leg room and seat is wide with charging usb slot available. bring cable if you want to charge via usb or usb c. its super hot today so bought water multiple times, if you have a canteen bring your own water bottle and fill it with ice. mosquito spray as the shrine area lot of bugs. then lunch was a good spread of local Vietnamese food, no need to order it just keeps on coming out with new dishes. pretty good. after lunch tam coc boat ride (i decided to change last min to tam coc and guide gave partial refund in dong. ) boat ride is 1.5 hrs some boats have umbrellas for free some dont, highly recommend a hat or bring your own umbrella bc no shade. then the last place hide is brutal but scenery is nice

Definitely great value for money. Our guide was helpful, letting us rest when needed and gently reminded us to wake up as we arrived at a destination. The hike up Hang Mua was tiring under the heat, my advice is to stay at the bottom or near the bottom if all you want are photos, not too worth it treking all the way up. Trang An was great, a 2hr boat ride passed by surprisingly fast, the scenery was ethereal. The ancient capital was just a brief stop, not too much to see, but still interesting to hear about vietnamese history.