The best ecotourism experiences in Vietnam

Struggle to find a place for eco tour in Vietnam? Here is the list of top 6 incredible ecotourism destinations for your hiking, trekking, sightseeing and discovering unspoiled natural landscapes in Vietnam.

Boat on Ba Be Lake

This beautiful lake is the largest in Vietnam. Nestled among surrounding mountains, Ba Be Lake sits northeast of Ha Noi. There are boat tours that will take you out into the smooth waters during the day where you can watch the mist rise off the water in the morning, admire the clear waters in the afternoon, and gaze at a romantic sunset in the evening. This dreamy location makes for an idyllic scenic trip so make sure to bring your camera.

A trip to Cuc Phuong National Park

140 kilometers to the south of Ha Noi, Cuc Phuong National Park is considered as the oldest nature reserve in Vietnam. Covering an area of 22 hectares of rainforest, this place is one of the most attractive ecotourism destinations when you travel to Northern Vietnam. Thanks to its botany diversity and long history, Cuc Phuong attracts not only tourists but also archaeologists who are long for exploring primitive life in Nguoi Xua Cave (Pre-historic Man Cave).

The most notable scenery in Cuc Phuong is thousands of vibrant butterflies flying in ‘butterfly season’ from April until the end of May. Tourists will be blessed by a colorful realm of 280 butterfly species gathering in the park. You can see butterflies landing everywhere, on the road, your cars and your helmets.

Boat trip along Ngo Dong River in Ninh Binh

Literally meaning “three caves”, travelers visiting Tam Coc – Bich Dong will be amazed by the Hang Ca, Hang Hai, and Hang Ba caves that are situated on Ngo Dong River in Northern Ninh Binh Province. Bich Dong refers to a beautiful pagoda complex built in the fifteenth century. This UNESCO World Heritage Site will take your breath away with its limestone mountains, lazy rivers, serene rice fields, and bright blue skies.

The gorgeous natural beauty makes this complex a top destination for ecotourism experiences in Vietnam. There is a wide range of day trips that include a visit to the ancient Hoa Lu Citadel and a boat ride along the Ngo Dong River.

Trekking through Ha Giang

Ha Giang province borders China in northern Vietnam. This remote, stunning location is perfect for travelers seeking a multi-day trekking experience. Trekking tours through Ha Giang range from 5-13 days and itineraries include touring breathtaking rice terraces, limestone karsts, and visiting minority villages. The view from the province’s Ma Pi Leng Pass is surreal. Trekking Ha Giang offers an excellent selection of tour packages, from quick hikes to two-week adventures. Note that the price depends on tour length and group size.

Biking Tours in the Mekong Delta

These multi-day tours begin in the southern city of Saigon, a bustling metropolis with a population of nearly nine million people. Seeing the city fade in the distance as you cycle into glorious natural surroundings is an amazing sight in itself.

Over the course of several days (4-6) you will cycle through fields of sugar cane, banana plantations, narrow country lanes, and across water channels. This is the perfect getaway from the big city for anyone with an affinity for traveling several days on a bicycle.

See more: Top beautiful towns in Vietnam

Biking and Trekking Tours in Sapa

Favored by nature, Sapa has long been a famous tourist destination in the northwest of Vietnam. Taking a tour to Sapa, you can contemplate a lot of strikingly beautiful landscapes with some famous destinations like Fansipan Mountain, Muong Hoa Valley, O Quy Ho Pass, Ethnic villages, etc.

Likewise, there is a wide range of forests and terraced rice fields that are extremely suitable to hold some fascinating activities in ecotourism. Sapa trekking tours will definitely offer the most authentic experiences and help tourists respectively experience their life and culture. The stunning views and scenery do not hurt either.

Source Internet

7 lakes in Vietnam that come straight from fairy tales

Vietnam is a country of beautiful lakes. If you are ever lost in these lakes, it is not a reach to assure that you will feel like being lost in real-life fairy tales.

1. Quan Son Lake

Just about 50km southwest of Ha Noi’s centre, Quan Son Lake is the perfect attraction for nature-lovers to enjoy on the weekend. It consists of 100 limestone mountains on its surface, making it an onshore miniature of Ha Long Bay. The best time to visit Quan Son is during the lotus season, which falls between mid-May and June. 

2. Suoi Hai Lake

Suoi Hai Lake, located at the foot of Ba Vi Mountain, is a reservoir built in 1958. It has a 4km-long system of main and supporting dams to reserve water from the Yen Cu and Cau Rong springs, giving the lake its name of Suoi Hai (Two Springs).

3. Dai Lai Lake

Dai Lai is bestowed charming scenery of mountain and water by the Creator. To the north of the lake is Tam Dao Mountain Range with untouched green forests. The harmonious combination between lake and mountains creates a vivid natural picture. Dai Lai area has a mild and cool climate thanks to Tam Dao Mountain Range and mountains of Cot Co, Mo Qua and Than Lan.

4. West Lake

West Lake (Vietnamese: Hồ Tây) is the biggest freshwater lake of northwest center of Ha Noi, Vietnam. One legend suggests that West Lake was shaped after the battle between Lạc Long Quân and a nine-tailed fox spirit, and that's why the lake was once called "Fox Corpse Swamp" (Đầm Xác Cáo). Another folk story claimed that original name of the lake was "Golden Buffalo Lake" (Hồ Trâu Vàng, or Han Viet: Hồ Kim Ngưu) because it was formed from struggle of a buffalo after the disappearance of her calf. As Ha Noi's largest lake, located right in the center of Ha Noi, West Lake is abundant with gardens, hotels, restaurants and other entertainment centers.

See more: West Lake shrimp cakes: the one food you have to try in Hanoi

5. Thac Ba Lake

Regarded as one of the largest artificial lakes in the country, Thac Ba lake was created during the construction of an electrical dam in 1970. Known as "Ha Long Bay in the high mountains", Thac Ba lake is famous for having 1331 islands and islets, which form caves around the mountain. After several hours of sailing on the water, travelers can visit beautiful caves such as: Thuy Tien, Xuan Long, Cao Bien Mount, etc.

6. Ba Be Lake

Ba Be Lake is the largest natural lake in Vietnam. It is located in Nam Mau commune, Ba Be district, Bac Kan Province. Having been formed approximately 200 million years ago, the lake is surrounded by limestone cliffs, which in turn are covered by primary forests. Ba Be Lake is a featured geographical science and is a biodiversity reservoir. It is a part of the Ba Bể National Park. It is home to a range of animals and plants.

See more: Beyond Ha Long Bay, lesser-known highlights of northeast Vietnam

7. Tuyen Lam Lake

Located in the south of Da Lat, Tuyen Lam Lake is the biggest lake in the area. It was created by Tia stream - head water of Da Tam River. Because of its various sources, Tuyen Lam is known as the lake where rivers, springs and forests meeting each other. 1000m above sea level, Tuyen Lam lake is designed to be an ideal destination of highland. Dry season lasts 6 months withour raining, but the lake is still full of water. Anyone going to Dalat, all spend their time to go to visit Truc Lam zen monastery, then buy ticket to go sightseeing around the lake, see some beauty spots such as Da Tien tourist site, Nam Qua tourist site, etc.

See more: Top cool places for taking photos in Dalat

Source: Internet

10 best places for cycling in Vietnam

Vietnam is well-known for its diverse nature, ranging from vast rice paddies to long coastline of mesmerizing beaches and enormous mountains after mountains.

But what makes biking adventure in this country possible and interesting is the dense network of roads that can get tourists anywhere they wish, be it remote or central.

1. Sapa

Sapa belongs to the mountainous northern area of Vietnam. The place possesses heavenly beauty with hovering soft clouds among mountain ranges. Along the biking route, tourists will have the chance to see the change in nature going up to higher altitude, encounter many ethnic minority people and experience the treacherous paths. Owing to the special feature of mountainous area, the rice paddies here are made as terrace along the slope of the hills, which turn to a beautiful yellow in during harvesting.

2. Moc Chau

Moc Chau is a small peaceful town of Son La province in Northern Vietnam. The place produces some the best tea in Vietnam. The place is becoming a tourist attraction among the avid travellers owing to its immense green tea plantation, situating on ranges after ranges of hills. The place possesses heavenly atmosphere when, during spring, wild flowers are blossoming everywhere amid the hovering mist.

3. Ba Be Lake and National Park

Ba Be belongs to Bac Can province, which is situated in the North of Vietnam. The landscape here is marvelous with towering limestone mountain, deep valleys, dense forests, waterfalls, caves and lakes. In addition, the national park possesses a rich biodiversity with hundreds of unnamed plants species and other hundreds of wildlife species.There are scenes of stilt home of the ethnic minority Tay along with Dao and Mong people. The most famous tourist site is Ba Be Lake. With a size of 8km in length and 400m in width, the lake deserves its title “the emerald of Northern Vietnam”.

4. Mekong Delta

The road in Mekong Delta (South of Vietnam) is much more comfortable for cycling than the mountainous parts. But the scenery is just as idyllic with rice paddies expanding to the horizon.There is a particularly dense network of rivers, canals and streams where people have their house, their boats and even markets floating on. Cyclers can experience quaint riverside towns, a dazzling variety of greens and colorful floating fruits on the rivers.

5. Cat Tien National Park

Cat Tien National Park is located in the South of Vietnam, roughly 150 km north of Ho Chi Minh. It possesses rich biodiversity of lowland tropical rainforest. Therefore, the park is the ideal place for mountain-biking and wildlife-spotting. Hours of cycling among the dense forest and breathing in the fresh air will definitely energize your souls and, at the same time, work up your muscles.

6. Cham Island

Cham Island is an unspoiled island about 18km offshore from Hoi An. The island has amazingly rich biodiversity and is recognized by UNESCO as World biosphere reserve. There are many ways to do cycling on the islands: you can either cycle along the coast and around the island to experience both the seascape and the green forest on the sides, or you can get visit a few fishing village by going deeper into the island.

7. Hai Van Pass

If you are looking for more adventure, Hai Van Pass should be on your cycling list. You can start off from Hue and aim to reach Da nang by passing Hai Van. The roads are paved but built on very winding road along with heavy-load trucks. However, the view along the road is terrific and worth the effort. There are imposing green mountains on one side and sharp cliffs against the ocean on the other side.

8. Da Lat

Da Lat is a city situated on the Langbian Plateau of Central Highlands of Vietnam. Most cyclers will choose to ride to the base of Langbian Mountain, then o along the forest trails to reach Victory Lake and Valley of Love. Cycling trip comprises of alternate uphill and downhill rides, through different territories and nature. What is more, there is some chance of passing waterfalls along the way as well.

9. Hoi An

Hoi An should deserve your consideration if you seek for a relaxing cycling trip. Cycling through the rural areas and into the city is an easy biking tour but can still provide you ample chance for nature sightseeing and opportunities to experience Vietnamese rural landscapes and lifestyles. Rice paddies, water buffalo, bamboo houses and bamboo ranges are the iconic images of Vietnam and now appear in front of your eyes. Hoi An city, however, offers a different view: a city once was thriving and prosperous and now is pretty and poetic.

10. Cat Ba National Park

Cat Ba National Park is based on an island in northern Vietnam and east of Hai Phong. This park is one of the most important nature reserves in Vietnam with large collection of animals and plants, some of which are unique to Vietnam. What is special about Cat Ba National Park is the wide ranges of experience you can get cycling around the park. There are plenty hidden beaches, waterfalls, caves, mountain by limestone and stunning valleys.

Source: https://hiasia.xyz/10-best-places-for-cycling-in-vietnam-v2.php