ANCIENT CAPITAL HOA LU & CUC PHUONG NATIONAL PARK

Early morning departure from your hotel for Hoa Lu with some 110km or two hours from Hanoi. Hoa Lu is a 10th-century first capital of Vietnamese . Laying in a flat valley surrounded by the karst mountain ranges rising on the water surface ,Hoa Lu had a natural wall protecting itself and a picturesque scenery.
First visit is to the 2 temples of the first 2 emperor of Viet Nam : Emperor Dinh Tien Hoang of Dinh Dynasty (968-980) - and Emperor Le Dai Hanh of Le Dynasty (980-1009).
After this visit, Have lunch and optional tours :
- Tam Coc ( Three Caves ) : Get on your private rowing boat , cruise through the picturesque river where the huge limestone karst mountain rising out of the green paddy fields
It's an option for you to climb up to Bich Dong Pagoda dating in 1428 and comprising of three structures: Ha, Trung, and Thuong Pagodas, in ascending order. Once you are at the top of Thuong Pagodas, enjoy the spectacular panoramic view of this terrain. Cruise back to Tam Coc town then overnight in Ninh Binh
Note: Please be awared that there're some vendors on their boats who try to sell their products to you . Please tell to your guide in case you feel uncomfortable .
In case you prefer a less visited place, Trang An, nearby Tam Coc is an alternative.
- Thung Nang valley : While presenting a similar landscape of Tam Coc with the river passing through the green rice fields where the vast limestone karsts rising out, Thung Nang still keeps a pristine feature with a rich fauna and flora system. Then you drive back to Ninh Binh for the rest of the day at leisure . Overnight in Ninh Binh

In the morning, from Ninh Binh, depart to Van Long nature reserve where you will enjoy a boat trip on the spectacular scenery. With an area of 3000 hectares, Van Long natural reserve has 32 beautiful grotto and the surrounding spectacular mountain ranges creates a natural wall surrounded a vast expanse of water with many kind of fish. In the Van Long forest, there has 457species of higher plants. In particular, it has 8 species recorded in Vietnam Red list. Animals have 39 species, 12 species of rare animals such as white shorts langur accounted largest number in Vietnam, chamois, Bengal slow Loris, Asian black bear, stump-tailed macaque… In the 9 species recorded in Vietnam List such as: king cobra, water monitor, oriental Rat snake, lizards…
From Van Long, Drive 40-minute to the first national park of Vietnam which established in 1962- Cuc Phuong National Park - one of the few tropical rain forests remained in the country. Upon arrival to Cuc Phuong National Park, have an orientation tour around the interesting Visitors Center to learn about some park's prestigious natural resoures and its valuable enviroment. Althoug some 135 mammals, including the Clouded Leopard, Delacour's Langur, Owston's Civet and Asian Black Bear make Cuc Phuong their home, you hardly see them , so instead going to the park, you can visit The Cuc Phuong’s Endangered Primate Rescue Center (EPRC) which was established in 1993 and is a project of Frankfurt Zoological.Society.The Center currently houses about 150 individuals of 15 species and sub-species in which 6 species nowhere else in captivity. These include Delacour’s langur (Trachypithecus delacouri), Hatinh (Trachypithecus laotum hatinhensis), Black langur (Trachypithecus laotum ebenus), Lao langur (Trachypithecus laotum laotum), Cat Ba langur (Trachypithecus poliocephalus poliocephalus), and Grey-shanked Douc langur (Pygathrix cinerea).
For anventure lovers, excellent hiking opportunities abound in the park are available and you could spend days trekking though the forest. Popular trails will lead you to several ancient trees, caves and Muong minority villages.
In the afternoon enjoy walking into the centre of the Park’s forest to learn more on the flora and fauna of Vietnam.
Then return to Hanoi .