Ninh Binh 2 days 1 night Tour from Hanoi (Small Group of 9)

Posted By : 133pingl
My wife and I enjoyed the tour very much. Our tour guide nicknamed Bruce Lee is exceptional. My wife has an injury before the tour started. Bruce went out of his way to care for our needs, and arranged transportation to accommodate us. Despite of our circumstances he managed to give us a wonderful experience of Ninh Binh, which included the unforgettable
and delicious roast duck dinner.
We certainly recommend the tour and especially Bruce highly.
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Posted On : 2024-06-21 03:04:03

Posted By : ericho721
My fiance and I booked a two days-one night tour of Ninh Binh with Vietnam Stunning Travel through our hotel in Hanoi. It was $179 USD/person; which included travel, stay, food, and tour guide. What's not included are drinks, extra meals, goods/souvenirs, motorbike rental, and tipping for some services; this can be ~$30-50 USD additional depending on what you spend on. You can choose between a hotel or a bungalow for your overnight stay. We chose to stay at the Tam Coc Golden Rice Bungalow.

Our itinerary on day one entailed cycling to local farm fields and houses, hiking Bich Dong pagoda, lunch, hiking Mermaid cave, hiking and boating in Thung Tham bird park, and dinner. On day two, it was breakfast, hiking Hang Mua, lunch, Tam Coc river boat tour, and Hoa Lu ancient capital. The itinerary can change depending on the weather, your party, and your interests. You can also add a day to your trip if you want to do more.

We met with our local guide, Nam, once we arrived in Ninh Binh. Nam was very friendly and informative. He was born in the area, and his knowledge of history, agriculture, and surroundings was excellent. His English is good, he's courteous, and he stays with you to guide you the entire time. I highly recommend Nam as your local guide if you ever visit Ninh Binh.

Detailed:

We were picked up from our hotel at 7:15 am in a luxury van by a driver and a guide named Bruce Lee. We joined with other parties that were going to Ninh Binh for a day tour. It's a two hour bus ride south, and the transportation there was comfortable. The drive is what you might expect with the traffic anywhere in Vietnam. On the way down, they stop at a rest area where you can buy gifts, food and drink, if you'd like. It's intended for tourism.

Once there, we split up from the other parties and met with our local guide, Nam. We biked through local farms following Nam and visited a temple, and then hiked the Bich Dong pagoda. The bike ride was a good way to get around and see the landscape. Lunch was at the Spice Garden Tam Coc. They serve you a variety of local dishes. We enjoyed the green papya and thai basil salad as well as the other assortment of foods.

We weren't expecting the sun, heat and humidity; UV index 10, 96 F (36 C), and +80% humidty. After the first segment of cycling, Nam offered us motorbikes to navigate the rest of the destinations. It was $10 USD a day. We took him up on the offer and used the motorbike for the rest of our travel within Ninh Binh. We rode to Thung Tham bird park, which was up a 12% grade. This location included hiking, boat tour through a cave, and a walk through a garden.

Side note, there's a lot of physical activity on this tour. You're expected to bike or walk to all of the destinations, unless you're with another group in the van. If you are comfortable navigating the roads and traffic with a motorbike, I highly recommend you rent one.

Nam took us to dinner at a spot that is catered towards tourists. However, with Nam's recommendation, we tried the local roast duck, which was fantastic. We stayed in Tam Coc Golden Rice bungalow homestay overnight; it had the basic amenities and a pool. The bungalow is best suited for couples or a small group of people (<4).

The next day, we started at 8:00 and rode to Hang Mua, a hike up steps with an impressive view of the mountains and rice fields. Highly recommend this destination. The view was worth the hike. We had lunch at the Spice Garden again, parted ways with Nam, and met with up Bruce Lee, who was the guide for the rest of our tour. We proceeded to the Tam Coc river boat tour, where you're paddled through a river for an hour and half, and then we rode the van to the ancient capital Hoa Lu. Our tour concluded after that, and we were driven back to our respective hotels.

Overall, if you get a chance to do a day or two-day trip from Hanoi, take it. It's a nice way to explore, learn from locals, and experience other parts of Vietnam. Be prepared for heat, hiking, and physical activity. If you're in Ninh Binh, request Nam as your guide. Bring some cash to tip and purchase drinks and goods.
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Posted On : 2024-06-04 06:58:29

Posted By : Paco M
My wife (who is 4 months pregnant) and I traveled to Vietnam for the first time and they made our experience super easy and enjoyable, accommodating to our needs and ensuring we had a good time.

We had a problem with the flights and could not get to Hanoi at the original time, however, our guide Nien make sure to adjust the schedule and activities so that we could still make the best of our time.

With my wife being pregnant, we couldn’t do some of the activities because of the high heat and humidity, but they still made sure to give us plenty of time to rest, cool down while helping us decide on the best itinerary to still see the culture and experience the landmarks and tourist attractions that we wanted to.

I would highly recommend to go with them for any kind of trips, but fun, family, or relaxation .
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Posted On : 2024-05-30 03:44:47

Posted By : josephtran1979
We booked the 2D1N Nịnh Bình tour and it was amazing! We visited beautiful and interesting sites including pagodas and temples. Cycled through a village taking in the wonderful views and a boat trip on the river. As we were on a 2 day trip we had 3 tour guides; Hoa (aka Bruce Lee), Luong and QA. Each of them were brilliant, informative, friendly and made the trip! Would definitely book again with Vietnam Stunning Travel.
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Posted On : 2024-05-28 16:49:25

Posted By : DavidD4165
Excellent tour, Hoa was a fantastic tour guide who provided us with a great insight into the Vietnamese history and culture.
Hoa was able to tailor our tour/ activities to suit our needs.
Food was great and varied.
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Posted On : 2024-05-27 04:35:56

Posted By : Justin G
Friday host and driver. I had a very informative tour and lovely meal for lunch, even had the time to visit a farmers home.
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Posted On : 2024-04-30 05:36:07

Posted By : Ami_H
Excellent tour to Ninh Binh! From the get go it was seamless - Hoa and the transfers to and from Hanoi. To meeting with my guide Nam, who was extremely knowledgeable and friendly taking me around the highlights. The itinerary was comprehensive and all very organised. Explored the views from above Mua Cave and the lotus gardens, and then a cycle to and around the pretty Thung Nham Bird Park nature reserve. I really enjoyed being out cycling amongst the beautiful, scenic limestone karsts and rivers most of the trip!

Accommodation was basic, but exactly what was needed, with helpful staff and in central location. Another cycle ride on my last day to the pagoda and boat trip down the Ngo Dong river from Tam Coc. All meals were excellent in local restaurants, with dinner in the buzzy vibe in Tam Coc town. Would certainly recommend the tour!
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Posted On : 2024-04-22 22:46:55

Posted By : deborahlO6678QX
As someone from an urban city state (Singapore) who used to visit relatives in Malaysia plenty during my growing up years, this tour was a lovely reminder of a simpler life and all that natural beauty that the world and life has to offer.

Making the experience as smooth and pleasant as possible was my guide, QA, whose thoughtfulness really deserves commendation. He took pride in his work and truly cared about making the experience the best one possible for us tourists. It was a pleasure meeting him.

Might also be helpful to note that the differences between the 2D1N experience vs the day tour are mainly (1) visit to a bird sanctuary during sunset; (2) visit to a pagoda; (3) some spare time on both days to visit other places of interest in the area or just to take a stroll/enjoy a bar at night if that’s your kind of thing; (4) a couple more opportunities to try the local cuisine beyond the fixed set lunch provided on the day tour; and (5) experience staying at a homestay if you’re interested in that.
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Posted On : 2024-04-13 04:53:45

Posted By : LightPacker240405
Really enjoyed my trip to Ninh Bình and Tam Cốc. I had the pleasure of having 2 kind and knowledgeable tour guides for different parts of my 2 day, 1 night trip. Mr. Hoa and Mr. Luong were great at putting together an alternate itinerary given the heavy rain when I went. I had a solo motorcycle tour with Mr. Luong, stopping at Nham Valley, Lying Dragon statue atop a mountain, and other scenic sights. During the times I was with a group, Mr. Hoa took us to a farmer’s home and Hoa Lu Ancient Capital. The accommodation at a homestay was also very comfortable.
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Posted On : 2024-03-20 08:13:12

Posted By : thomasgZ4847CY
I did this trip as a solo traveller at the end of my trip to Vietnam and it is definitely the highlight of my time in the country. They picked me up from my Airbnb, despite being slightly outside of the advertised pickup area in the Old Quarter, which I appreciated. Transport to/from/within Ninh Binh uses the tour company's people carrier which is clean and comfy. I picked the two-day overnight stay which meant I stayed in a bungalow in a homestay arrangement by the river in Tam Coc. It's a great location, and in the evening you can head out for a tea/beer/explore in the local area.. it's a very serene location at night.

It's about a 90 minute drive to Ninh Binh, but it felt like it went a lot quicker. We had Quoc Anh (QA for short—I hope I spelled that correctly!) as our tour guide on the first day, and he started the tour by introducing us to various aspects of life in Vietnam. He has no shortage of interesting facts and kept us entertained on the drive down. You stop off at a store en route for a coffee and bathroom break.

There were more than enough activities to fill out the two full days, starting from around 7am the first day through to 4/5pm the next day. You get the evening to yourself from after dinner (7pm) through to breakfast the next day. Breakfast and dinner are at the homestay location, and lunch is at a local restaurant. I want to specifically mention the restaurant that you are taken to for lunch because the food there is absolutely unreal. No doubt the best food I had in the country while I was there, and the food is included in the price of the trip (not counting any drinks).

As I did the two-day trip, I had a separate set of activities from the party members only doing a 1-day trip. I got a separate tour guide to go round Thung Nham bird sanctuary in the afternoon on day 1, and another tour guide (Hang) to go to Bich Dong pagoda in the morning on Day 2.

All 3 tour guides were really nice, however one suggestion I would have for the tour guides would be to stick to using just one name for places they refer to—the tour guide kept referring to Hanoi as "Hanoi aka Thang Long" or something like that, which is the original Vietnamese name; they did similarly for other names of locations. I would suggest they only mention the historical Vietnamese name once, and afterwards just use the modern name ie Hanoi, as sometimes with the Vietnamese accent it was hard to pick out the various location names from the rest of the conversation.

All 3 of the guides were very nice, and special shoutout to the guide in the afternoon on Day 2, it was my first time ever riding on the back of a motorbike and I felt very safe throughout. One more thing—both QA and Hang are good photographers, they took some great photos of me, which I appreciate as a solo traveller as I didn't get too many more photos of myself outside of this trip.

One thing to note is that I was the only member of the group on the day who opted for the 2-day tour. I think the company had to change their plans slightly to accommodate this, as it meant it was just myself and the tour guide both in the afternoon on day 1, and in the morning on day 2, and it meant the hand-over to the different guide on day 2 was slightly confusing in the morning. Maybe something Vietnam Stunning Travel could look to improve, but once we got going, it was all fine so it didn't negatively affect the experience in the end.

The homestay I stayed in was really nice. They accommodated vegetarian food for breakfast and dinner. The bungalow was nice and spacious.

One last shout-out to the driver. The road from Hanoi to Ninh Binh is pretty chaotic, but he got us there and back with no issues, and the drive back in the afternoon on Day 2 was even smooth enough to get a bit of sleep in...

I won't spoil the experience by describing in too much detail about the specific locations, but overall I would definitely recommend this company and this trip. Ninh Binh is beautiful and Vietnam Stunning Travel definitely gave a great impression of it—hopefully I'll be back here one day!
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Posted On : 2024-03-10 01:11:59