Paradise and Phong Nha caves

by Sophie · 13th January 2014

We stayed overnight in the super quiet and non-touristy town of Dong Hoi in order to visit two of the best limestone caves Vietnam has to offer. They were spectacular.

Paradise cave is far from everywhere, and guards have been known to turn away tourists who have ventured there alone, so we took a tour. There were 8 of us and we made up about 50% of the total cave visitors that day! The cave is still a bit of a secret, having been discovered in 2005 and opened up to the public in 2011. It is considered to be the longest dry cave in the world. It was spectacular, every turn provided a stunning view better than the last.

We were unsure if the slightly more popular Phong Nha cave could match up to Paradise, but it offered a very different experience. The cave is accessed by a 30minute slow boat ride. Once inside, the engine is cut, and the boat is paddled 1km into the cave. Gliding along was so serene and it was a lovely way to soak up the views.

These caves were so incredible, we actually aren’t sure if we should visit caves again, they just won’t match up!

Later that evening, after struggling to find any restaurant within a 2km radius in the coldest, wettest evening we’ve had since arriving in asia, we took a (slightly grubby) sleeper train to Hanoi…