If you have come to Ninh Binh and have not stopped by these stops, it is indeed a waste. Please follow Migo to explore the must-visit cultural attractions in Ninh Binh hey!

Bai Dinh Pagoda

Bai Dinh Pagoda was built by Zen master Nguyen Minh Khong in 1136. Visitors can visit landmarks in the ancient pagoda area such as the Jade Well, Buddha Cave, Mother Cave, Ancestral Cave, Dark Cave, Saint Cao Son altar. 

Since 2003, on the foundation of the ancient pagoda, Bai Dinh Pagoda has been restored and expanded by Xuan Truong enterprise with many architectures such as: Tam Quan Gate, Bell Tower, Quan Am Temple, Patriarch Hall, Tam The Palace, Stupa, Arhat Corridor... creating the landscape of the pagoda as it is today. 

Therefore, visiting Bai Dinh, visitors will be immersed in a sacred space with Buddhist architectural works with ancient colors from the time of King Dinh – Ly, to massive works associated with modern Buddhist culture. 

Visitors will be able to admire in front of the giant Buddha statues, which have been granted the largest record confirmation in Vietnam and the region such as the tallest and heaviest bronze statue of Buddha Shakyamuni in Vietnam (10m high, weighing 100 tons); The largest bronze statue of the Three Worlds in Vietnam, the largest bronze statue of Buddha Quan The Am in Vietnam, the heaviest bronze Diamond Statue in Vietnam, the largest bronze Maitreya Buddha statue in Southeast Asia...

Take a leisurely stroll slowly, feel the gentle breath on the spiritual path at the stone arhat corridor that has set a record as the longest arhat corridor in Southeast Asia. 500 arhats here are made by the artisans of Ninh Van stone village (Hoa Lu) – one of the long-standing craft villages dating back to the time of King Dinh of the ancient land capital. 

Photo: trangandanhthang.vn

The best time to visit Bai Dinh Pagoda every year is spring, around January to March of the Lunar Calendar. It is also the time when the Bai Dinh Pagoda festival takes place on the 6th day of the Lunar New Year every year, attracting a large number of Buddhists and visitors from all over the world to worship. 

Coming to Bai Dinh Pagoda at the beginning of the year, tourists from all over the world not only pray for a favorable year, happy work, but also can combine spring tourism and visiting Trang An scenic area.  

The 2nd appropriate time of the year is autumn, when the weather is cool, Trang An welcomes guests with the season of changing leaves and golden rice fields. The poetic and romantic scenery, and especially the number of visitors to Bai Dinh Pagoda is not too large as at the beginning of the year, it will be more convenient for you to enjoy the purity, lightness, dispel fatigue, and find your pure self in this land of Buddha.

References:

• Price of tram to visit Bai Dinh Pagoda: 60,000 VND/person
• Stupa ticket: 50,000 VND/person
• Tour guide rental price: 300,000 VND/tour

Photo: chuabaidinhninhbinh.vn

King Dinh Temple

King Dinh Temple is one of the must-visit cultural attractions in Ninh Binh you can't ignore it. Not only is it a place to commemorate King Dinh Tien Hoang and his sons, this is also a treasure trove of many valuable architectural art values of the Vietnamese people.

Located in Yen Thuong village, Truong Yen commune with a campus of about 5 hectares, the ancient temple is located in the main hall of the ancient Hoa Lu Capital, built in the style of "foreign domestic work". The path in the temple is in the shape of the Vuong. The buildings are symmetrical along the main road. Coming here, visitors can not only touch history through anecdotes and stories about the King who contributed to the unification of the country and the creation of Dai Co Viet, opening a new page of history for the nation. You can also admire the masterpieces of stone and wood without touching and embossed extremely uniquely, reflecting a brilliant art with the skillful techniques of Vietnamese artisans in the seventeenth – nineteenth centuries. 

The most prominent must be mentioned Long sieve (stone collapse carved in the shape of a dragon, used in sacrifices and worship) made of blue stone located right in the middle of the dragon yard. On rainy days, when it has just stopped, the dragon's face is sifted with water. The dragon scales carved on the dragon sieve are covered with rainwater and sparkle like silver inlay. From a distance, it looks like a dragon bending over, hovering on the dragon sieve reflecting the beautiful clouds and sky. The only ones are the dragon sieve of King Dinh temple and the dragon sieve in front of Ngo Mon Quan (Hue) which are currently recognized as two national treasures that are being preserved and preserved. 

Therefore, having come to Ninh Binh, you should definitely not miss this stop!

References:

• Opening hours: 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• Ticket price: 

- Adults, high school students: 20,000 VND/turn

- Grade 1 and 2 students: 10,000 VND/turn

- Children under 1m: free of charge

Photo: ninhbinh.tourism.vn

King Le Temple

Only about 300m to the North from King Dinh Temple, King Le Temple worships King Le Dai Hanh is also one of the must-visit cultural tourist attractions in Ninh Binh. 

Located in Truong Ha Yen village, the temple of King Le is located in the special relics of the ancient capital of Hoa Lu Ninh Binh. This place has a structure similar to King Dinh Temple but on a smaller scale. Built at the same time as King Dinh Temple, it is said that this place was built on the foundation of the old royal palace in the ancient capital of Hoa Lu.

When King Ly Thai To moved the capital from Hoa Lu to Thang Long (Hanoi), the local people rebuilt the temples of King Dinh and King Le on the foundation of the old palace to commemorate the merits of the two kings to the country. 

Visiting this ancient temple that is more than 100 years old, you will be able to admire the unique architecture made by the best artisans of Dai Viet in the seventeenth century. Coming here, visitors walk slowly on the stone steps to dry the traces of time, touch the cool mossy walls, admire the stone dragons, the majestic stone clams that silently guard a part of the nation's heroic past.

Under the shadow of green ancient trees, visitors will hear interesting anecdotes about the people who made history, the heroic saints of Vietnam in the past. To feel the slow passage of time, and listen to history whispering to the future to love and appreciate this land more. 

If visiting Ninh Binh during the 3rd lunar month, visitors also have the opportunity to attend the festival of King Le Temple and King Dinh Temple with many rituals and a bustling and sacred summer festival on 8-10 March of the lunar calendar every year. In the joyful festival atmosphere blooming in the spring air of Ninh Binh, visitors immerse themselves in the bustling festival or record the colorful image of a procession in the middle of the green rice fields of the girls in March. All of them create a Ninh Binh that is both poetic, unique, and imbued with the essence of the Vietnamese homeland extremely unforgettable.

References: 

• Opening hours: 8:00 – 17:00 
• Ticket price:

- Adults, high school students: 20,000 VND/person/time

- Grade 1 and 2 students: 10,000 VND/student/turn

- Children under 1m: free of charge

Photo: flickr

Phat Diem Stone Church

As one of the most beautiful stone churches of Vietnam, Phat Diem Stone Church is an ancient cathedral over 100 years old that was once known as the "Catholic Capital of Vietnam". 

This project was built for 30 years from 100% stone and ironwood materials on a total area of 22 hectares. 

The architectural complex of the church was built from 1875 to 1898 when it was basically completed, including a large church and 5 small churches (including a stone church built 100% of stone), a bell tower, 3 artificial caves and a system of ponds and lakes. 

The unique feature of this place is that the church is a Catholic building but intersects with many architectural features in the traditional pagoda style of the North with many curved roofs, bow bows, tiles, comedic noses, etc. This place also amazed many people because it was built from stone slabs weighing up to 20 tons, wooden trees weighing up to 7 tons, transported completely in a rudimentary way from neighboring localities. 

Coming here, visitors are also impressed by many exquisite carvings, many folk patterns such as four vases (pine, chrysanthemum, bamboo, apricot or lotus, apricot, chrysanthemum, bamboo...) combined with blue stone reliefs telling stories in the Bible.

Combining the unique beauty of the East and the West, Phat Diem stone church has become one of the must-visit cultural tourist attractions in Ninh Binh. 

References: 

• Address: Phat Diem town, Kim Son, Ninh Binh province
• Opening hours: 8:30 -17:30
• Admission price: Free

Photo: flickr/ VNExpress

Ninh Binh Museum

If there is a stop that can help you understand Ninh Binh most quickly in just a few hours, it is the Ninh Binh museum. One of the must-visit cultural attractions in Ninh Binh Another favorite of many tourists is the Ninh Binh Museum. 

Located in the south of Thuy Son Cultural Park, Ninh Binh Museum is designed as a prominent lotus flower in the middle of blue mountains with 4 sides decorated with fancy drum symbols. Entering the interior space, visitors will be extremely impressed by the fancy and attractive design.

This place is divided into many spaces according to different themes such as: Ninh Binh – the imprint of the ancient land, telling the story of the birth of a beautiful Ninh Binh with "pure and beautiful paint", with rich nature and the precious abundance of Cuc Phuong 1-0-2 or Van Long Wetland Reserve. This is also a place where visitors can learn about the traces of the ancient Vietnamese people who once appeared on the land of Nho Quan with bronze drums dating back to the time when the Hung King founded the country. You will be able to review the memorable milestones of the period of Dinh, Tien Le, Ly, Tran, Hau Le, and Nguyen turning over through vivid artifacts.

In addition, this is an opportunity to explore artifacts with 1-0-2 such as the collection of terracotta ducks, the collection of Buddhist scriptures along the Hoang Long River made of stone only found in Hoa Lu, including the super prayer for Dinh Rank Lang, or the repentance of Prince Dinh Lien, the eldest son of King Dinh Tien Hoang. Or the memorabilia of the resilient Ninh Binh soldiers during the two patriotic wars of the twentieth century. 

All those interesting stories, you can only find in the Ninh Binh museum. 

References:

• Address: Le Dai Hanh Street, Thanh Binh Ward, Ninh Binh City
• Opening hours: 7:30 – 11:30 and 13:30 – 17:00, days from Monday to Friday

Photo: covatvietnam.info

Thai Vi Temple

Mention must-visit cultural attractions in Ninh Binh it is impossible to ignore the relics associated with the Tran Dynasty – Thai Vi Temple – a sacred temple hidden in the mountains of Tam Coc. 

Located in Van Lam village, Ninh Hai commune, Hoa Lu, Ninh Binh province, on the Tam Coc sightseeing route, you will definitely stop to visit this temple, not only because of the most sacredness, ancient beauty, but also learn the story of the Tran kings when building the palace (where the king built palaces to rest when traveling traveling in places far from the capital). 

Thai Vi – an ancient temple hidden in the mountains and forests of Tam Coc

"Thao Ti Son Liem is an unparalleled holy place 

The Yellow Water Flower disturbed the first Tianzhou"

Roughly translated, the holy land here is unique, the rivers and mountains are winding, the flowers and grass are strange, like a fairyland. This couplet has completely depicted the beautiful landscape of this destination. Right at the temple gate is a large banyan tree that shades a large courtyard. On the right side of the temple is the Ngo Dong river, on the left is Coi Linh mountain, in front of the door is a clear gold well. Inside the temple is a typical Northern architecture with monolithic blue stone columns, golden painted diaphragms, doorways, harems, and worship halls with embossed and delicate carved wooden architecture, showing off the talent of the carpenter of the ancient capital. 

The most interesting thing is that when coming here, visitors will meet with the old man from the temple – the caretaker and tell visitors the history of the temple, about the anecdotes associated with the era of the glorious Tran Dynasty, or about the small house where King Tran Thai Tong practiced in the last months of his life. 

Photo: tripadvisor

Notes when visiting must-visit cultural tourist attractions in Ninh Binh 

When visiting spiritual and cultural attractions in Ninh Binh, Migo would like to remind you to note:

• Dress politely, discreetly, do not wear shorts, short skirts or wide-necked shirts when entering spiritual places, ensuring the beauty of fine customs and customs, reverence for the sacred beings who worship here.
• Comply with the regulations of the management board of the relic area, do not throw garbage, loud and noisy in public places.

Bai Dinh Pagoda, Vua Dinh Temple, Vua Le Temple, Thai Vi Temple, Phat Diem Stone Church... are all unique cultural and spiritual tourist attractions in Ninh Binh. Not only does it have cultural values that reflect its rich history, but it is also a precious art treasure that stores unique and humanistic values in architecture and landscape only in the land of Dai Co Viet capital at one time. All have been and will continue to contribute to creating an attractive Ninh Binh with blue mountains, imprinted with endless cultural values. 

Synthetic Migo