Quick View
Ba Be is Vietnam’s largest natural lake and the heart of Ba Be National Park. The park and the surrounding area are limestone country, so lakes, waterfalls, caves, and unusual rock formations abound. The whole area is richly forested and is home to many ethnic minority communities. Ba Be National Park has been recognized as a Natural World Heritage Site by UNESCO. This tour offers you a fun adventure at a comfortable pace with plenty of time to enjoy the magnificent surroundings.
General Information
Tour route: Hanoi – Bac Kan – Ba Be – Hanoi
Duration: 3 days, 2 nights
Tour Customizable: Absolutely! (Tell us your specific requirements in the inquiry form)
Level of Difficulty: Medium Trek
Activities: 20 – 25km trek
Percentage of Trekking: Jungle 40% – Trail 60%
Elevation: 150m – 600m
Small-Group Tour: 12 people
Brief Itinerary
Day 1: Ba Be National Park Sightseeing Tour (L, D)
Day 2: Tham Phay Cave Expedition (B, L, D)
Full Itinerary
Day 1: Ba Be National Park Sightseeing Tour (L, D)
Our local guide will pick you up from your hotel in Hanoi to travel to Bac Kan before starting an exciting day in Ba Be National Park. After having lunch in a local restaurant, we will drive to Pac Ngoi, a village of the Tay people where stilt houses are built in the traditional style. You walk through the village to learn about the life of the people in the Ba Be Lake area.
Drive further to Hua Ma cave, through the field, this is a dry cave with numerous stalactites like a forest of rocks, but to conquer this cave, you have to climb more than 300 steps. A beautiful valley behind the mountains is Na Slai village where there is another Tay village and a high waterfall falls from the top of the mountain. You can swim in this waterfall and take a walk to visit some local houses. Tonight, we will stay overnight here.
Day 2: Tham Phay Cave Expedition (B, L, D)
After breakfast, You’ll reach Tham Phay Cave, the hike starts with a steep uphill, leading into the forest. Some rock at the top, and then a similar slope before the trail fades and you enter the valley. Turning west of the trail is a large patch of rock for you to find your way through, with the help and direction of your guide and safety team. The precarious entrance is at the end of the forest. Enjoy some snacks before starting to explore
the cave. Tham Phay Cave is a beautiful stream cave with two underground river tributaries, where you will experience narrow passages, craggy mountains, and some deep pools with very nice photo opportunities. Plants and algae cover many calcite formations.
Going deeper into the cave, you will find many unusual features of the cave such as the ceiling dome and many layers of rock, giving the walls a striking appearance. You will spend about five hours exploring this 5km deep river cave, which geologists have not discovered so far. Of course, we will provide you with the necessary equipment, such as helmets and powerful headlights. The cave expands considerably as you go through the original entrance and offers some great opportunities for excellent photos. Enjoy a few snacks before continuing the journey to explore the 2nd path of the cave system that possesses miraculous stalagmites millions of years old, dangerous sinkholes, and heat flow at the bottom. Leaving Tham Phay, you will return to the cave entrance and travel to Coc Toc village, at night you will stay overnight at a beautiful traditional house on stilts.
Day 3: Boat Tour on Ba Be Lake (B, L)
After breakfast at the homestay, you will set out on foot to Bo Lu Wharf. From here you will take a three-hour boat trip, touring peacefully around the lake. This is a great time to jump into the water for a swim to cool off or just relax on the boat. The trip will take you along the slow-flowing river, giving you gorgeous views of the dramatic mountains, valleys, and natural caves. There is also a good opportunity here for some bird and butterfly spotting – the national park is home to a wonderful diversity of flora and fauna.
The boat will then take you through the tunnel of Puong Cave, with its spectacular array of stalactites and stalagmites. You may also get the chance to see some bats here, as the cave is home to a colony of thousands. You will continue down the Nang River, the boatman will stop at a riverside to visit a Tay ethnic village, a walking tour through the village to see how people here work on the fields. Reaching Dau Dang Waterfall, we have lunch at a nearby riverside village restaurant. Returning to Ba Be Lake, you will visit An Ma Temple, take a short trek through the jungle, and reach the wharf. If you still have energy, you can do a kayaking tour. After that, we will travel back to your Hotel in Hanoi. Your Vietnam tour package to Ba Be ends.
