Day 17: The early bird catches the worm

Early in the morning, at seven o'clock, we got on the scooter and headed towards Paradise Cave. On the way, we immersed ourselves in the beautiful nature of Phong Nha National Park. After a short walk through the jungle, we arrived at the entrance of the cave. Luckily, we decided to wake up early, so we were the first visitors on site and could explore the magnificent cave in peace. When we reached the end of the cave after three kilometers, we quickly took a few photos and enjoyed the silence until we heard the first tour group approaching. From that moment on, silence was gone. Asians are just loud, which we only really noticed in Phong Nha. On the way back, we had to push through a few groups, as the cave was filling up with tourists faster and faster. When we arrived back in Phong Nha at noon, we had some lunch and checked out. Fortunately, our host was able to help us with the public bus, which picked us up directly from the hotel and cost only one euro per person. We took the bus for just over an hour back to Dong Hoi, where our train to Hue was departing in the afternoon. When we arrived, we walked for half an hour to our hotel, where we were warmly welcomed with tea and fruit. To end the day, we had European food at the Ristorante Risotto, which was located 30 meters away from our accommodation.