The Tam Coc boat ride is the most popular in Ninh Binh, because one of the entry points is steps from Tam Coc’s main corner, where restaurants, hotels, minimarts etc. converge. It’s lovely, but shorter and not as interesting as the Trang An boat tour. Tam Coc is also known for having much more aggressive guides, who will essentially refuse to bring you back to shore unless you give them a $20 or $30ish tip on top of the ticket price. The ‘galaxy grotto’ is awful in my opinion; they’ve lit the cave with brightly colored lights, many flashing or swirling.
Trang An Boat Tour, Ninh Binh | Vietnam
Though every village in Ninh Binh seems to have a boat tour, the best by far is the Trang An tour. There are 3 routes; all feature at least a couple caves and temples, and the beautiful mountain scenery of course. Each has its own merits. I chose Route 1, wanting to see the thousand year old temple. It’s so altered there’s nothing old there, so don’t expect much. Route 2 visits the King Kong movie set. They give you a map and time to choose when you buy the ticket, which is quite pricy.
An alternative to the boat tour is renting a kayak and going self-guided. I wish I had done this, because the guides don’t speak English and I didn’t learn anything, and was stuck on a boat with a woman who just wouldn’t shut up. I would have much preferred a few hours of exercise and some peaceful time in nature. There are so many professional guides rowing people around, a solo or duo kayaker could easily follow them along a route and not get lost.
There’s also a small museum in the ticket office with artifacts found in the area. It has some fossils, prehistoric stuff, bat trang pottery, etc.
