Should you feel adventurous climb up to Mua Cave (Hang Mua). Sitting on top of hill 500 steps above ground, this temple is both a challenge and a delight. While the temple is somewhat unimpressive, the views over Tam Coc are stunning. The climb is paved but steep in sections, so bring water and allow an hour return. Mua Cave is 5km from Ninh Binh and is a popular stop on Tam Coc tours.
How to get to Ninh Binh
How to get from Hanoi to Ninh Binh
You can travel from Hanoi to Ninh Binh by train, by bus, by private car or join our daily tours.
- By TRAIN: From Hanoi, you can reach Ninh Binh city by train. A journey from Hanoi to Ninh Binh by train takes approximately 2.15 hours with Vietnam Railways. There are 6 daily trains from Hanoi to Ninh Binh. Departure times are 6:00am, 9:00am, 1:10pm, 2:30pm, 7:30pm and 8:10pm. Ticket price starts from 78,000 VND (3,4 US$) for a hard seat.
Hanoi Railway station is located at 120 Lê Duẩn, Hoàn Kiếm District, Hà Nội. It is about 3km far from Hanoi Old Quarter.
As Ninh Binh train station is located in the center city, you can get to other attractions easily.
Once you arrive at Ninh Binh Railway station, you can take a taxi to get to Tam Coc (6 km away) or Trang An Complex (9.1 km away)
- By BUS: There are frequent buses departing from Hanoi and the journey takes 1.5-2 hours. The local and tourist buses (Hoang Long, Grouptour…) leave from My Dinh, Giap Bat or Nuoc Ngam bus station. The price is from 70,000 VND (3 US$). High-quality cars with modern and new interior equipment are available for 150,000 VND (6.4 US$).
- By PRIVATE CAR: If you travel in a group, you can book a private car to get to Ninh Binh from Hanoi. The price is 70 US$ for 4 seaters, 75 US$ for 7 seaters and 88 US$ for 16 seaters.
- Daily Ninh Binh tours from Hanoi: There are several tour companies offers day tours from Hanoi to Ninh Binh. Most of them will cover Tam Coc – Bich Dong or Trang An. The price starts from 32 US$.
How to get from Hai Phong, Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay to Ninh Binh
There are buses going to Ninh Binh directly from Hai Phong, Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay.
- In Hai Phong the buses leave from Niem Nghia and Cau Rao bus stations.
- In Cat Ba Island you can book a comfortable bus operated by Cat Ba Express or Full Moon Party Hotel. The price is from 320,000 VND (14 US$)
- In Halong the buses leave from Bai Chay bus station. There is no train connection between Hai Phong, Halong and Ninh Binh.
If you are coming from Da Nang, Hue or Dong Hoi, you also have both the train and bus options. The train going to Hanoi from Da Nang, Hue or Dong Hoi stops in Ninh Binh so shouldn’t be too hard to get into one.
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