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Despite room unavailability, three Hanoi families had two days of exciting experiences amidst the butterfly and firefly season in Ninh Binh.
Hanoi Mom Shares Camping Experience in Cuc Phuong on April 30
This journey, undertaken by Thuy Loan on April 30 last year after two weeks of planning, explores Cuc Phuong National Park in Ninh Binh during the butterfly and firefly season. Loan shares her experience for families with young children.
During the trip, numerous challenges arose, such as overloaded visitors in the forest, fully booked rooms in all three forest areas, and adverse weather forecasts. Three families shifted to camping overnight and self-catering.
On the first morning, two cars departed from Hanoi at 9:30 AM. Due to the holiday, the highway was congested. By noon, the group arrived at the lunch venue, a restaurant at the Trang An tourist area, offering premium mangoes for 35,000 VND per kg.
Continuing our journey, the vehicle proceeded towards the Cuc Phuong National Park. The road was relatively empty, with a couple of vehicles slowly making their way into the forest. Upon arrival, we purchased tickets at 60,000 VND per adult, 10,000 VND per child, and 20,000 VND for each car. Then, we headed towards our final destination - Xom Bong, one of the three main areas in the forest, alongside Bia Rung and Ho Mac.
The forest trail was quite narrow, making it a bit challenging for two vehicles to pass. At that moment, there were not many butterflies on either side of the road, but the next day, during the morning hours of 9-10 am, butterflies were more abundant, shining brightly under the sunny sky. The air in the forest was genuinely cool and refreshing, in stark contrast to the crowded and smoky atmosphere of the city. Stepping into the forest also meant all phones losing functionality due to the lack of mobile signal. At this point, phones served only two functions - taking photos and acting as flashlights at night.
The entire group arrived at Xom Bong around 4 pm. The camping area, referred to as the 'airport,' was an empty grassy space in front of four Luong houses, surrounded by the majestic mountains of the forest - an ideal spot for camping. This place had neatly arranged concrete slabs ready for tent setup. With a professor from a university and an automation engineer in our group, setting up the tents was a breeze. We, consisting of nine adults and six children, set up a large and a small tent, spraying insect repellent throughout the camping area to fend off mosquitoes.
Food had been pre-prepared at home, so all we had to do was heat it up: reheating sticky rice, pulling the meat off boiled chicken, and putting bones into a pot to cook noodles. The menu was quite diverse, featuring shredded pork sticky rice, boiled chicken, chicken noodles, kimbap, kimchi, goat meat (since noon), burnt rice, assorted fruits (watermelon, apple, citrus, mango), and instant porridge for the kids.
Food was stored in a foam cooler with ice, accompanied by a natural mineral water container, and a 20-liter water jug for cooking. Near the camping area, there were shared restrooms and showers, but the water was somewhat cold. In this area, there was no electricity (only a generator running for three hours in the evening for four Luong houses), so it was essential to bring various types of lights. Guests could cut banana leaves for plates, and wood could be gathered from the forest for burning. Some 'neighbors' enjoyed roasting meat over a fire. Everyone gathered for dinner, free from mosquito bites.
As we neared the end of our meal, a swarm of fireflies approached. The kids quickly rushed to catch fireflies and released them into a bottle (they even took some into the tent for the fireflies to sleep alongside). Everyone was laughing joyfully, running around the camping area in several rounds without feeling tired.
At 9 pm, everyone gathered into the tent for a night's rest. Initially, the tent was quite warm. As the night fell, the temperature dropped, and dew covered everything. Luckily, we brought blankets and huddled together, staying quite warm. At this time, a staff member began collecting camping fees (30,000 VND per adult). We started with four groups setting up tents in the evening, but by night, only our group and a group of friends remained. The other two houses just set up tents for evening activities, as they all slept in Luong houses.
It was the first time for the kids to spend the night in a camping tent, so they were very excited. At 6 am, everyone was awake. The kids jumped up, ran 4-5 rounds around the field for exercise, then did personal hygiene and had breakfast. A simple breakfast with bread, pate, and porridge but eating amidst nature made it extraordinary.
My family enjoyed some leisure time, letting the kids play and run around until 9 am, then we dismantled the tent and packed up to leave. On the way back, we encountered more butterflies than the previous evening. The whole group stopped for sugarcane juice at Ho Mac area.
At this point, there was heavy traffic entering, and our family couldn't get out. We turned into the rescue ranger area (ticket: 350,000 VND for the whole group, using an electric car with a guide). After that, the management opened another exit for groups to leave, concluding a delightful and interesting experience. Every child wanted to stay and play more.
Note that if you leave immediately, remember to bring a jacket, long clothes, and a blanket and pillow. Lights are indispensable for camping (flashlights, motion sensor lights, rechargeable lights, etc.). Additionally, bring mosquito repellent spray and anti-itch cream.
According to Thuy Loan/Vnexpress
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Reference: Travel guide from Mytour
MytourApril 19, 2018
