Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park

We briefly considered removing Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park from our route to save time and spend a few extra days elsewhere. Thank God, and Friedl, that we didn't. Friedl (a dear friend) and her boyfriend traveled Vietnam two years ago and strongly recommended that we not skip the national park. So, 2 nights in Phong Nha were on our plan.

Here, there is mainly one thing: caves! The largest cave, Son Doong, can only be seen with a 7 day trekking tour, which costs a whopping 3,000 USD.

Of course, we could afford it, but we simply had no interest in the cave. ;))

Instead, we decided to visit the Paradise Cave and the Dark Cave. Before the Paradise Cave, we went to a waterfall, which led to a short hike and climb through the jungle. Since our only sneakers were unfortunately still in our stolen scooter, it was quite a challenge with flip flops.

After the waterfall, we climbed over 500 steps up to the Paradise Cave. With high humidity and heat, it was quite sweaty. But it was more than worth it.

We have to admit that we were quite skeptical about the whole cave thing. Are we even interested in that? Whether it's stalactites or stalagmites, it didn't matter to me before. But we were absolutely amazed by the Paradise Cave. It's incredible and almost incomprehensible how gigantic and beautiful this cave is. The whole time, I felt like I was looking at a picture or a wallpaper.

After the Paradise Cave, we went to the Dark Cave. The advertised highlight there is a mud bath in the cave, which is supposed to be very good for the skin. In addition, there is a water fun park outside the cave. We were also very, very skeptical about this whole thing, but we still participated.

And again - it was so, so, so funny. We had a great group and a lot of fun. We entered the cave on a zipline and after a tight climb into the deepest part, we took a dip in the mud bath. Certainly not everyone's cup of tea, but we had our fun. After that, we kayaked, swung ourselves 5m above the water on nets, and jumped in the water with additional ziplines. The visit was definitely worth it!

In the evening, we sat together for a self-made BBQ with an American and two Germans.

On our second day in the park, we rented a scooter and rode through the jungle. Incredibly beautiful nature and stunning vegetation! We also made a stop at Nuoc Mooc Spring to hike through a small nature trail and then swim in a river. We were mostly alone at this beautiful spot and were able to enjoy the coolness of the river wonderfully.

Then, the wonderful time in Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park was unfortunately over and it was time to take the night train to Hanoi.

It was beautiful! If you ever find yourself in Vietnam, definitely do not miss this great place.