Ninh Binh – Halong in the paddy-fields

Today we’ll mostly be posting boat photos! The spectacular limestone scenery of Vietnam’s UNESCO-listed Trang An in Ninh Binh Province. The spectacular region certainly lives up to its name  – ‘Halong in the paddy-fields’ – but unluckily the weather was a bit overcast on the day we visited so our photos conspicuously fail to do justice to the landscapes. With our somewhat limited photographic capabilities, (we’ll blame it on a dodgy lens), we had a lot more success taking close up photos of boats and boat-persons than the awesome vistas of rugged, albeit mist-shrouded, crags, mountains, caves and lakes that comprise the picturesque area of Northern Vietnam’s Ninh Binh.

Several areas of this limestone range have been set up for visitors and where small rowing boats take you across lakes and waterways and through underground tunnels amongst the cliffs and crags, such as above and below at Trang An.

Judging by the number of boats some of these sites can get pretty busy with local tourists at weekends though there are always less known, but equally scenic, alternatives.

 

Good to see that locals still make use of the waterways as well as visitors though.

Also very pleasant is taking a bicycle along the narrow lanes that run aside many of the waterways which as well as providing a different viewpoint also gives the chance to ride through some of the local villages and farms as well. Needless to say, there are plenty of pagodas scattered amongst the lakes and hills too so there’s a  bit of walking involved as well as cycling and boating.

 

 

Sublime scenery and a wonderful place to spend an afternoon, the caves and mountains of Ninh Binh are not to be missed if you’re travelling through northern Vietnam and are included in both our Vietnam tours: Hanoi to Saigon and World Heritage Sites of Vietnam.