48 hours in Cuc Phuong

An overnight camping trip at Cuc Phuong National Park during butterfly and firefly season will be an unforgettable experience.

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, travel time is about 2 hours by road. 48-hour itinerary in Cuc Phuong National Park 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 points according to their needs because time will not be enough. If you want to visit all the famous places of Ninh Binh , you need 3-4 days and a reasonable schedule.

Boat trip 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 sightseeing route according to their preferences. At some places, visitors will go ashore to visit, then continue traveling by boat and return to the pier.

The tour takes about 3-4 hours. Entrance fee is 200,000 VND for adults and 100,000 VND for children under 1.4 m.

Noon

Take a break for lunch 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 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 butterflies flying everywhere and at night, fireflies are a brilliant sight.

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 prepare food and have dinner. Visitors can prepare food from home or order food from the garden. Ordered food usually includes grilled chicken, grilled skewers, vegetables and fruits.

Overnight at camp.

"Because you have bought an entrance ticket, security here is guaranteed. Please remember to clean up the campsite after leaving," Tuyen said.

Note, in Cuc Phuong National Park there are enough accommodation services so visitors can camp during the day and stay in the hotel at night. The campsite does not have grid electricity but only has 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, green 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 creates a very surreal feeling. Just sitting still and enjoying this atmosphere is more than 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 that more than 20 people can hug around. This Chò tree has rotted quite a lot 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 "Birds to get older". This is the general name of dishes made from different types of birds from sparrows, pigeons, quail, cuckoos, and teals.

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 first seeing the monastery, visitors will feel like they 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 the Gothic style with a 0.6m thick surrounding wall 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 8am to 10:30am (Sunday to 10am) and from 2:30pm to 4:30pm (Sunday from 3:30pm to 4:30pm). The monastery is closed on some holidays.

Alternatives

Ninh Binh also has many famous tourist 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

source