Thanh Hoa is a significant province in North Central Vietnam, renowned for its rich history and numerous scenic attractions. Thanh Hoa City is located around 160 km away from the capital city, Hanoi. To the west, Thanh Hoa shares a border with Laos, spanning 192 km along challenging and mountainous terrains.
To the north, it borders the provinces of Ninh Binh, Hoa Binh, and Son La, encompassing a border length of 175 km. To the south, it shares a border with Nghệ An Province, spanning over 160 km of geographical boundary. Finally, to the east lies the East Sea (South China Sea), with a coastline stretching approximately 102 km.
Thanh Hoa city (Collected Photo)
Thanh Hoa is considered a large province in terms of both area and population, ranking 5th in terms of area and 3rd in terms of population in the whole country. This region is also the homeland of 7 ethnic groups: Kinh, Mường, Thái, Dao, Mông, Thổ, and Khơ Mú. Each ethnic group contributes its own unique cultural identity, creating a diverse and vibrant tapestry of Thanh Hóa’s cultural landscape.
During the hot summer days, if you’re looking for a refreshing destination that’s not overly crowded, Thanh Hoa is a fantastic suggestion. This region offers serene beaches, untouched forests, an intricate cave system, and limestone mountains.
Alongside its impressive historical sites, Thanh Hoa boasts a total of 1,535 cultural and historical relics, including 134 nationally recognized relics and 412 provincially recognized relics. Some of the renowned relics include Nui Do Mountain, Dong Son archaeological site, Ba Trieu historical site, Le Hoan’s legacy, Nha Ho Citadel, Lam Kinh historical site, Ba Dinh Square, and Ham Rong historical site.
When should you travel to Thanh Hoa?
Not too far from Hanoi, Thanh Hoa is quite suitable for vacationing every summer (Photo: Cừu Bé)
At each time, Thanh Hoa will bring on its own beauty. Therefore, this place gradually becomes the desired destination of many travel lovers. Thanh Hoa has a typical climate of all three regions: the coastal area, the midland region and the mountainous area. You should choose the schedule corresponding to each of the most beautiful seasons in each tourist area, specifically as follows:
- Coastal area: The coastal area of Thanh Hoa has high temperature, hot summer, not too cold winter with famous places such as: Sam Son, Hai Hoa, Hai Tien. You should go around April to August. Note that there will be storms around July-September, so please to remember to check the weather before you go.
- Midlands: moderately high temperatures, relatively cold winters, and moderately hot summers. This area actually does not have many famous tourist attractions in Thanh Hoa, so you can come at any time.
- Hilly areas: The hilly area of Thanh Hoa is quite cold in winter, cool about summer. This region borders the Northwest Vietnam region, so it also has a lot in common with the climate here. Winter is usually quite cold, summer is cool but prone to heavy rain and flash floods. This area is suitable for those who like to go backpack such as the western lagoons of Thanh Hoa and Pu Luong. You can go around April-June or September-November because it hasn’t rained too much at this time.
Directions to Thanh Hoa
Private vehicles
The distance from Hanoi to Thanh Hoa city is about 160km, of which the first 100km is the Hanoi – Ninh Binh highway and connects to the new Mai Son highway, so it is relatively easy to move if you go by car. It only takes about 2.5 hours to reach Thanh Hoa city.
If you drive motorbike, you will follow route 1A. If you want to go to Sam Son and the coastal districts, you just need to follow route 1A. If you want to go to places like Pu Luong or Muong Lat, you can move in the direction route 6 through Mai Chau of Hoa Binh. If you are traveling with a family or a group of friends, it is very convenient to use a private car or rent a car to go.
Public transport
Flights of Thanh Hoa will stop at Tho Xuan airport (Collected Photo)
You can travel by motorbike, other car or train. If you take a bus, you can catch the bus at My Dinh and Giap Bat bus stations and the bus runs on weekdays. For famous tourist destinations such as Hai Tien, Sam Son, Hai Hoa are busing that run to the place. For Pu Luong, there are currently no bus to this area, most have to use personal vehicles or take a car to Ba Thuoc and then find a taxi to continue.
If you choose to travel by train, it is only suitable if the tourist destinations you choose are not too far from Thanh Hoa station. In addition to options such as bus, train. If you are in another country, you can take a plane to Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh city. In Thanh Hoa, there is Tho Xuan airport, 45km west of Thanh Hoa city center.
Moving in Thanh Hoa
Because Thanh Hoa province is quite large, the network of bus routes in Thanh Hoa is also relatively large, you can use these bus routes to move to the districts. Taxis is still the main means of transportation for tourists from far away.
If you want to rend a motorbike here, it will probably be difficult to find because tourism develops quite strongly, but in Thanh Hoa, motorbike rental services are not popular.
Staying in Thanh Hoa
The relatively large hotels in Thanh Hoa are mostly concentrated on the city (Collected Photo)
Hotels, motels
Although Thanh Hoa has developed tourism for a long time, the number of outstanding hotels is almost nonexistent. The number of 4-5 star hotels is a few, the rest of the hotel system is only acceptable to the basic amenities. But the room rates for the peak season are very high. In addition, you can also find budget motels.
Homestay
Homestay was built mainly in the Western Thanh Hoa area, located next to Pu Luong nature reserve of Ba Thuoc district. This area has the advantage of beautiful mountain scenery, have many typical cultural features similar to the Northwest Vietnam people.
Tourist places in Thanh Hoa
Sam Son Beach
Sam Son city is a famous beach tourist destination in Vietnam (Collected Photo)
Referring to Thanh Hoa, it is impossible not to mention Sam Son beach, up to 6km long. Located 16km from the center of Thanh Hoa City, Sam Son beach annually welcomes a large number of tourists in the summer. The beach stretches, the sand is golden, the water is clear. Therefore, swimming is an indispensable activity when you come to Sam Son beach.
Hai Tien Beach
Hai Tien attracts tourists by its peaceful and wild beauty (Photo: Thủy Tin)
In addition to Sam Son, Hai Tien is also getting a lot of attention to its clean beach and less garbage because there is no alluvial deposit. Not only clean, this beach is also 12km long, so Hai Tien has been invested by Thanh Hoa as the focus of sea tourism in the province.
With a long sea route, fresh air, clean beaches, unspoiled scenery, and good service quality, Hai Tien has attracted a large number of tourists.
Hai Hoa beach
Hai Hoa beach is located in Hai Hoa commune, Tinh Gia district, 40km from Thanh Hoa city. Like Hai Tien beach, Hai Hoa beach has only been known in recent years. The landscape here is still unspoiled with a long stretch of fine white sand, cool blue water.
Dong Beach
Dong Beach (Photo: Ngọc Linh)
Dong Beach, also known as Nghi Son Beach, is located in the territory of Nghi Son peninsula. This is one of the emerging tourist destinations, there are still not many exploitation units, so it keeps the wild and idyllic beauty with fresh and cool nature. The best time to explore this tourist destination are probably from May to August.
Pu Luong Nature Reserve
The rice fields in Pu Luong (Collected Photo)
Pu Luong Nature Reserve is about 130km northwest of Thanh Hoa city, in the territory of two districts of Quan Hoa and Ba Thuoc. It covers an area of more than 17,600 hectares with rich flora and fauna. This is a place that attracts many young people that love to move.
If you come here, you should not miss the top of Pu Luong, which is over 1700m high and visit to Son-Ba-Muoi, Kho Muong, and waterfalls in Hieu village. In particular, you will see a lot of wooden waterwheels in Thai villages next to the golden rice fields on the hill around September – October.
Ham Rong historical site
Ham Rong Bridge (Collected Photo)
Ham Rong is a place that has entered the history of Thanh Hoa land. Located on the Ma River, this place is also known for its natural attractions, river complexes, mountains, and caves. In Ham Rong relic area, there are many attractive attractions such as: Ham Rong mountain, Mat Rong cave, Ham Rong Truc Lam Zen Monastery, Ngoc mountain, and Canh Tien mountain. In particular, it is impossible to ignore the Ham Rong bridges spanning the Ma River, which has appeared since the beginning of the 20th century.
Also in Ham Rong area, on the south of Ma River is the ancient village of Dong Son. This is also an attractive attraction for those who love the typical peaceful countryside scene of the North Vietnam.
Ham Rong Bridge
Ham Rong Bridge has a very important traffic position as the only railway bridge that crosses the Ma River. This is a very famous bridge during the Vietnam War. The old Ham Rong Bridge built by the French in 1904 was a steel arch bridge without a pillar and was destroyed by war. In 1962, the new Ham Rong bridge was built and inaugurated in 1964.
Dragon Eye cave (Long Quang cave)
Outside Long Quang cave (Collected Photo)
Dragon Eye Cave (another name is Long Quang Cave) is located on Ham Rong mountain in Thanh Hoa, about 100m from route 1A (old) and only needs to go through 23 stone steps to reach the cave entrance. This place is associated with many historical stories from the reign of King Le Thanh Tong. At present, in the cave still keep the stele with the poem of King Le Thanh Tong (1478) and King Le Hien Tong (1501).
Ham Rong Truc Lam Zen Monastery
Truc Lam Ham Rong Zen Monastery belongs to Truc Lam Yen Tu Zen School (Collected Photo)
Truc Lam Zen Monastery is located on C4 hill, in Ham Rong ward, Thanh Hoa city. The project was started construction in 2010 on an area of 9 hectares and owns a prime location behind the mountains, in front of the Ma river with quiet space, fresh air, beautiful scenery.
Ba Doi Pass
Ba Doi pass is a place located in the most mountainous area of Bai Luc Son, ie 106 mountains, contiguous between Thanh Hoa and Ninh Binh provinces. The pass appears in Ho Xuan Huong’s poetry. It is a combination of passes on Tam Diep mountain, a mountain range located between Ninh Binh and Thanh Hoa, running to sea in the northwest – southeast direction, with 3 peaks.
Canh Chim lake
Canh Chim lake (Collected Photo)
This lake has a total area of about 201,000m2 with 33,000m3 of water reserves. The name Canh Chim lake was born because the forerunner said that when looking down from above, the lake looks like a bird spreading its wings. Canh Chim Lake is a nationally ranked scenic spot.
Cua Buong cave
Cua Buong cave system includes 3 caves: Co Tien cave, Dao Nguyen cave and Cua Buong cave, located between Tuong Son and Dieu Son mountains. Although the entrance to the cave is not too high, to get up, visitors have to follow the path created by hundreds of stone steps. Cua Buong cave includes many natural caves such as Trinh cave, Dao Nguyen cave (Cua Bong cave), Co Tien cave, Nguoi Xua cave, and Quang Trung cave.
Trinh Cave – the first cave that visitors will discover (Collected Photo)
Legend has it that at the end of 1788, when Emperor Quang Trung led the Tay Son army went to the North Vietnam, he joined forces with Grand Master Ngo Van So, Scholar Ngo Thi Nham… establish the Tam Diep – Bien Son line. When returned to Phu Xuan, through this land, Nguyen Hue had two couplets to thank the saint, now those two sentences are still kept at Cay Vai temple, also known as Ba Gieng Tien temple (belonging to Nghia village).
Dong Son Village
Since the beginning of the 20th century, the name Dong Son has been well-known as an archaeological treasure. Due to its thousand years of history, the village has the structure of purely agricultural villages, featuring the most typical architecture of northern villages.
Touring the thousand-year village, tourists will be firstly impressed by the archaeological vestiges of Dong Son Culture, which has been famous all around the world since the mid-1920s. They will be then impressed by characteristic elements of Vietnam’s traditional villages with small lanes, ancient pagodas, temples, communal houses, and wells. To reach small lanes, tourists can only enter the village through the main gateway.
Ma Hao Waterfall
Ma Hao Waterfall (Collected Photo)
Ma Hao waterfall is located at the foot of Chi Linh Mountain, with an altitude of over 1,200m above sea level. It has been known as a beautiful and pristine waterfall that contains many mysteries.
Ma Hao waterfall has been likened to “a girl who fell asleep in the forest of Thanh Hoa land” because its captivating beauty has not yet been popular. Visitors can immerse themselves in the cool water and enjoy the fresh air of the mountains. Ma Hao Waterfall is also a great destination for camping and picnic activities.
Muong Lat
Muong Lat is as beautiful as other famous places in the Northwest Vietnam (Collected Photo)
This is a highland district of Thanh Hoa province, up to 200km from the center of the province. Muong Lat borders Laos, has a very beautiful natural landscape. Muong Lat has a total natural area of nearly 81 thousand hectares, with more than 40,000 people belonging to 6 ethnic groups (including Thai, Mong, Muong, Dao, Kho Mu and Kinh).
Travel to Muong Lat, visitors will feel the images and emotions of soldiers in the anti-French period in the immortal poem “Tay Tien” wrote by poet Quang Dung in 1948. Muong Lat has a border gate of Ten Tan. With the neighboring country Laos, there is a border marker for the number 281.
Coming to the land of Muong Lat, visitors will admire the scenic spots such as: Dai Hoa Pagoda, stele commemorating the Western advancing army, know many unique folklore treasures of the ethnic groups and enjoy culinary specialties with bold flavors of the Muong.
Tu Thuc cave
Inside the Tu Thuc cave (Collected Photo)
The cave is located on Tam Diep mountain range, in Nga Thien commune, Nga Son district, next to route 10, more than 10km southwest of Phat Diem town. Tu Thuc cave, also known as Bich Dao cave, is a limestone cave system located on the majestic Tam Diep mountain range. This cave is associated with the legend of Tu Thuc meeting a fairy.
Mai An Tiem Temple
Mai An Tiem temple in Nga Son district (Collected Photo)
The temple is located in Nga Phu commune, Nga Son district. Mai An Tiem is a pioneer in building Nga Son land. His watermelon is a precious product of this land. Every year, Mai An Tiem festival takes place around March 12-15 of the lunar calendar. The temple is designed in the shape of the word Dinh, with 5 front halls and 3 harem compartments.
Ba Dinh uprising base
Historical relic of Ba Dinh war zone (Collected Photo)
Ba Dinh war zone is located in Ba Dinh commune, 3 km from the center of Nga Son district to the northwest. This is a historic site that has been ranked in the national level. The Ba Dinh uprising was one of the uprisings of the Can Vuong movement towards the late 19th century of the Vietnamese people against the French colonial yoke, which took place in 1886-1887 in Ba Dinh, Nga Son district. This Ba Dinh place has been named after Ba Dinh square in Hanoi.
Dong Quan waterfall
Dong Quan waterfall (Collected Photo)
Dong Quan waterfall is located in Dong Quan village, Hoa Quy commune, Nhu Xuan district. This place is located about 60km south of the city center and is one of the tourist attractions near to May waterfall and Thanh Hoa Elephant Waterfall.
People coming here just need to walk about 150 meters upstream along the cool clear stream to reach the top of the waterfall, on both sides of the stream are large wooden trees with an ancient appearance.
Cong Troi waterfall
Cong Troi waterfall (Photo: chanchan.kt22)
About 10 minutes from Yen Cat town by car, coming to Cong Troi waterfall, visitors seem to be lost in a completely different space. If coming from Hanoi, follow Ho Chi Minh road to undulating asphalt roads, visitors have lost in a charming place with primeval forests and white waterfalls.
Cong Troi waterfall is made up of streams, large and small streams on Bu Mun mountain, with an altitude of over 1000m above sea level.
Chin Gian temple
Chin Gian temple (Collected Photo)
Chin Gian temple was built at the beginning of the 14th century at Pu Cho Nhang called Ten Pom (Temple on the mountain) in Khoang village, Chau Kim commune, Que Phong district. At the end of the 18th century, the temple was moved to Pu Cam in Kim Khe village, Chau Kim commune, Que Phong district.
Here, the Temple is made of a house on stilts with thatch roof, and worships God’s, worshiping the God’s daughter and worshiping the people that built the village. Chin Gian Temple is located on top of Pu Pom hill (Round Hill) 250m high in Thong Nhat village, Thanh Quan commune, about 38km from Yen Cat town of Nhu Xuan district. Every year, the Chin Gian temple festival takes place on the days from February 14 to 16 (lunar calendar).
Co Luong cave
Locate on Co Luong mountain, in Kham village, Hoi Xuan commune, this is an attractive destination for tourists that are passionate about exploring. The cave is thousands of square meters wide, composed of three distinct floors with many layers of valuable stalactites. Here visitors will admire the pristine stalactites with a history of hundreds of years, with different shapes such as turtle, bed, well, terrace fields, waterfall. The mouth of the cave is located near the top of a mountain and faces the Ma River. It takes half a day to visit the entire cave system.
Lam Kinh relic site
Map of Lam Kinh relic site (Collected Photo)
Lam Kinh is located in Xuan Lam Commune, Tho Xuan District, Thanh Hoa Province. It is 50km from Thanh Hoa City towards the Northwest. Here, tourists have a chance to visit a well-known historic relic related to the life and career of King Le Thai To, a famous king in Vietnamese history, and the uprising of the Lam Son troops in the 15th century.
Vinh An cave (Tien Son cave)
The mountain cave is as beautiful as Phong Nha Ke Bang cave (Collected Photo)
Tien Son cave in Thanh Hoa is the most beautiful cave in Thanh Hoa. This place is near from the Citadel of the Ho Dynasty. This place was once likened to “Phong Nha – Ke Bang”, an ideal stopover when traveling at nature and sightseeing in the North Central Vietnam region. Vinh An cave includes water cave and mountain cave, water cave is called Kim Son cave, to go you have to go by boat.
Citadel of the Ho Dynasty
Citadel of the Ho Dynasty (Collected Photo)
The Citadel of Ho Dynasty built in 1397, composed of the Inner Citadel, La Thanh Outer Wall and the Nam Giao Altar covers 155.5 ha, surrounded by a buffer zone of 5078.5 ha. It is located in accordance with geomantic principles in a landscape of great scenic beauty between the Ma and Buoi rivers in Vinh Loc district.
Being the capital of Viet Nam from 1398 to 1407 and also the political, economic and cultural centre of North Central Viet Nam from the 16th to the 18th century, it bears exceptional testimony to a critical period in Vietnamese and South-east Asian history when traditional kingship and Buddhist values were giving way to new trends in technology, commerce and centralized administration.
Old house
The construction of more than 200 years in Tay Giai village, Vinh Tien commune, Vinh Loc district, 200m from The Ho Dynasty citadel. This is one of the 6 preserved old houses of Vietnam. This old house was built in 1810, belongs to the 7th generation Pham Ngoc Tung of the Pham family.
Cam Luong god fish stream
Cam Thuy god fish stream (Collected Photo)
Cam Luong Fish Stream is over 150m long, 3m wide, and home to thousands of gioc fishes (spinibarbichthys denticulatus) with variety of different sizes (big one weighs about 30kg). During the day, schools of fishes swim from the cave of Truong Sinh Mountain to the stream through a small cave’s entrance. At the end of day, they swim back to the cave. The water in the stream never be dry. The deepest water level during the rainy season is only from 50 – 80cm. Especially, the water is clear and no fishy smell year-round although thousands of fishes live here.
Tien Nong stork beach
Almost 5km away from Giat town of Trieu Son district, Tien Nong commune has a garden of stork of more than three hectares. It is usually called island of stork because it lies among a large expanse of water. Tien Nong Stork Island has been considered as a gift endowned by nature to the land of Trieu SonThanh Hoa and people here, which impress tourists in Vietnam travel by the beauty of nature and many storks.
Voi waterfall
Voi waterfall eco-tourism area (Collected Photo)
Voi waterfall located in Thanh Van commune, Thach Thanh district has long become an attractive tourist attraction for tourists. Compared to many other waterfalls, this waterfall is not too high, only about 5m. However, the freshness of the water flowing through the sedimentary rock creates a special.
The origin of the name Voi waterfall originates from the story of King Quang Trung’s march. In the past, Quang Trung – Nguyen Hue marched to the North. When passing through the Tam Diep mountain range, they discovered a water hole, so they stopped to drink water and rest.
May waterfall
May waterfall is about 100m long, including 9 large and small waterfalls (Collected Photo)
May waterfall is considered the most beautiful waterfall associated with the legend of 9 love levels. May waterfall is located on Lang Su stream, Thach Lam commune, Thach Thanh district. May waterfall is only about 50km from Thanh Hoa city center, so it is considered an attractive destination for your Thanh Hoa trip.
Ben En National Park
Ben En National Park seen from above (Collected Photo)
Ben En National Park consideration as “Ha Long Bay on land of Thanh Hoa”. Favored by nature, the beauty is pure, pristine. It attracts millions of visitors every year. Beside Pu Luong Nature reserve center. It’s also a great pride of Thanh Hoa people.
A special thing is that this place stretches between Nhu Thanh and Nhu Xuan districts, about 45km from the center of Thanh Hoa city in the southwest direction. Ben En National Park has many precious biological species, with 1389 plant species, 1004 animal species, 66 mammal species (with 29 named species in the Red Book of Vietnam).
Located 46km from Thanh Hoa City to the southwest. Ben En National Park is an extremely attractive destination for anyone who loves the wildness of nature. If you have visited Ba Be, Tam Dao, Cuc Phuong … then surely you will not be disappointed when coming to Ben En.
Cuc Phuong National Park
Cuc Phuong National Park (Collected Photo)
Cuc Phuong national park was established on 7th of July in 1962. Total acreage is 22.200 hectares. Cuc Phuong national park has a part of Ninh Binh, Thanh Hoa and Hoa Binh province and it is far from Hanoi about 100km. Cuc Phuong National Park is located about 45 kilometers north of Ninh Binh. In which2/3 of Cuc Phuong national park belongs to Ninh Binh province.
This national park is not only rich about plants but it is also very popular for animals. The Cuc Phuong “zoo” has more than 450 types of vertebrates, in which there are about 89 kinds or animals, 307 types of birds, 110 kinds of reptiles, 65 types of fishes and 2000 kinds of insects. Especially you can catch many butterflies covering crowdedly around the park. A world of butterflies with sparkling and magical colors gathers in the park most actively in April and May.
Thanh Hoa food
Thanh Hoa fermented pork rolls
Thanh Hoa fermented pork rolls (Collected Photo)
The main ingredients used for Thanh Hoa fermented pork rolls are pork skin, pork, ground roasted rice, and guava leave or dinh lang leave (Polyscias fruticose). The secret lies with the spices to be used which cooks decline to disclose. Fresh lean meat and pork skin from shoulder or hip of pig are chosen because they offer the best chewy texture.
The pork is wrapped in banana leaves which should be still fresh and thick. Before being wrapped in banana leaves, the pork is covered entirely with a thin clear plastic sheet. The process of fermentation is also a key to the preparation. After two to three days of fermentation, the pork meat rolls are ready for use.
Thanh Hoa Seafood
You can enjoy seafood right at the seaside restaurants (Collected Photo)
It is not surprising that one of the delicious dishes in Thanh Hoa that you should enjoy is seafood. At Hai Tien beach resorts, there are always boats catching fresh seafood every day. You can taste it if you go to the beach in Thanh Hoa.
Thanh Hoa shrimp rolls
A special delicacy of Thanh Hoa province (Collected Photo)
The sea in Thanh Hoa Province is the home to 12 species of shrimp which have high nutritious and economic value. To make the dish, fresh shrimp are peeled and pounded to become pasty. Sauté the half-fatty and half-lean pork before slicing into thin pieces. Then mix the prepared pork with shrimp paste, pig’s nape fat cubes and chopped fresh rice noodles.
Add the mixture with chopped dried garlic and onion and a dash of fish sauce, pepper and a little Gac fruit (Momordicaco chinchinensis) before stir-frying over high heat. The stuffing is then rolled on small sheets of fresh rice noodles before being grilled over hot charcoal.
Khoai Tep cake
Banh Khoai looks like Southern pancakes (Collected Photo)
The Khoai cake is processed like Southern pancakes, but the ingredients are fresh copper shrimp, celery, cabbage, and dill. The cake is rolled up and eaten with fish sauce. This cake is eaten with marinated figs and sweet and sour fish sauce. You can easily find this dish in Truong Thi, Dao Duy Tu, Han Thuyen and Vuon Hoa markets in Thanh Hoa city.
Thanh Hoa rolls cake
Thanh Hoa rolls cake (Collected Photo)
Thanh Hoa rolls cake has a very unique delicious taste that is not confused with any other place. The cake leaves are transparent, as thin as paper, but surprisingly supple. Wrapped in the cake leaves are minced meat, shrimp, shiitake mushrooms, wood ear, … Mixed outside is fried crispy fried onions. Rolls cake dipped in lemon peppers sauce, if you try a piece, you won’t want to stop.
Ich cake
Ich cake in Thanh Hoa (Collected Photo)
Ich cake has a round shape, inside is shrimp meat, eaten with sweet and sour sauce, very soft and delicious. Sold a lot at the markets of Vuon Hoa, Tay Thanh or a few sidewalk shops on Dinh Le Street, Ich cake is always attractive to eaters and often runs out of stock early.
Nam Ha bread
Nam Ha bread is quite famous for Thanh Hoa city (Collected Photo)
If you have the opportunity to visit Visit Hoa, you will hear a lot about Nam Ha heirloom bread in Truong Thi street. Bread with traditional taste unchanged for more than 20 years. The filling is very diverse for you to choose, the most delicious are fried spring rolls sandwich, dried beef sandwich, roasted meat.
Rang Bua cake
This is a familiar cake in the North (Collected Photo)
Rang bua cake got its name as its shape looks like a rake used for farming. The cake is made of rice soaked in water and grinded in lime water. Then the rice flour will be boiled until half-done and husked one more time so that the flour can become viscous, sticky and leathery. The process of making the dough is very important as it decides the cake’s quality.
Nhe cake
Nhe cake is made like floating cake, but it is cooked with molasses (Collected Photo)
Nhe cake is one of the famous “specialties of Thanh Hoa”. Up to now, no one can remember and explain why Nhe cake has such a unique name. Just know that this cake has been around for a long time and has been passed down from generation of generation. This Thanh Hoa specialty cake is sold by street vendors on the way. If you want to enjoy, you can also go to Vuon Hoa market.
Nga Son raw fish salad
Nga Son raw fish salad (Collected Photo)
There is one specialty that cannot fail to mention that is the raw fish salad. Nhech fish is an aggressive fish that can live in both salt and fresh water, and looks quite similar to an eel. Raw fish salad is served as many different types of leafy vegetables such as lemon leaves, fig leaves, basil, perils, mint.
In the past, salad is a rustic dish, only encapsulated in Nga Son district, but today, Nga Son raw fish salad has appeared in many restaurants in Vietnam.
Dam Set perch
You can enjoy Dam Set perch all year round (Collected Photo)
Dam Set, a village in the Xuan Thien Commune, Tho Xuan District, lies next to the downstream of the Chu River. The land has many canals, paddy fields and lakes with rich sediment. The natural environment are favorable for the growth of the perch. For that reason, the flavor of Dam Set’s perch is like no other.
It is not very difficult to prepare the fish. However, there are some techniques to avoid the smell of the fish and to avoid being stabbed by the sharp fins. The easiest way to do it is to grill. The Dam Set’s perch soup is another special dish that you should not miss also. An interesting combination of vegetables and the fat of the perch will create a delicious dish that no one can say no to it.
Goat fermenting rice husk Nga Son
The most famous Nga Son rice husk goat dish is in Nga An (Collected Photo)
When traveling to Nga Son, in addition to the famous dish, you can go to Nga An to enjoy dishes from goats. Rice husk can be considered the secret, the most unique feature of Nga An mountain goat.
Thanh Hoa specialties as gifts
Sticky Rice Ginger Peanut Bars (Che Lam)
Lam tea is a famous specialty of Vinh Loc district (Collected Photo)
This traditional treat is prepared with roasted glutinous rice that is milled into a fine powder before it’s combined with peanuts, ginger, and either molasses or sugar. The mixture is continuously stirred until it develops a consistency of a sticky, pliable dough which is then flattened and coated in rice powder.
Thorn leaf cake (Banh Gai)
Few people know that Thanh Hoa also has a specialty of Gai cake (Collected Photo)
Gai cake originated from Mia village, located in Tho Dien commune, Tho Xuan district, Thanh Hoa province. The cake is made from high quality rice flour mixed with thorn leaf paste, filled with stirred-in-sugar green bean and wrapped in many layers of banana leaves. It’s believed that eating the cake frequently improves the quality of one’s sleep, prevents blood clots, relieves headache. When you remove the banana wrapping, the cake will have a special dark color and the lovely aroma of thorn leaves. The cake is best when served cold.
Ba Lang fish sauce
Ba Lang fish sauce is quite famous for Thanh Hoa (Collected Photo)
In the Hai Thanh, which is famous for its marine resources, fresh anchovies are caught directly in the sea, undergoing rigorous processing and incubation for a long time, creating a pure fish sauce product named “Ba Lang Fish Sauce”. Ba Lang fish sauce has a delicious taste, have a wave of waves and a yellow color.
Travel itinerary
Thanh Hoa is a very interesting place to travel (Photo: Ngọc Linh)
Sam Son 2 days 1 night
Day 1: Hanoi – Thanh Hoa – Sam Son Beach – Ham Rong Bridge
In the morning of the first day at 7am, move from Hanoi to Thanh Hoa city. About 11am you take advantage of lunch, then return to the hotel, motel to store and rest. In the afternoon, move to Sam Son, 15km from the city center.
You can ask the hotel reception to call for a taxi, on the way you will have the opportunity to visit places such as Trong Mai Islet, Doc Cuoc Temple, Co Tien Mountain, Truong Le Mountain…. In the evening, return to the hotel to rest and have dinner.
Day 2: Thanh Hoa city – Ho Dynasty citadel – Lam Kinh relic site – Hanoi
In the morning you can visit the Ho Dynasty citadel, in the afternoon you can visit the Lam Kinh relic site.
If you prefer to travel by train to Hanoi, there will be 2 trains of suitable hours departing from Thanh Hoa station at 11:56 (SE8) and SE6 train departing at 15:35.
Pu Luong 2 days
Summer is the best time to go to Thanh Hoa (Photo: Việt Long)
Day 1: Hanoi – Mai Chau – Pu Luong
From Hanoi, you follow route 6 to Hoa Binh pass Mai Chau. If you like, can stay in Mai Chau for 1 day and then continue the journey the next day. If you continue, you follow route 15 in the direction of Co Luong junction, here you will go along the Ma River for a section and then turn into route 15C. This route 15C you go in the core of Pu Luong Nature Reserve.
From Hanoi to Pu Luong follow this road to 180km with a time of about 4 hours, so go early to get to Pu Luong in the afternoon. Evening rest in Pu Luong, you can choose homestay in Pu Luong.
Day 2: Explore Pu Luong
Get up early in the morning to explore a few places around Pu Luong such as Kho Muong Cave, discover Thai culture. From Kho Muong, go down to Pho Doan, then continue to Hieu waterfall, go to Son-Ba-Muoi villages and then go straight to Lung Van (Hoa Binh) to watch the clouds. From Lung Van turn to route 6, you will return to Hanoi.
Another option of day 2, you skip Lung Van and go back to Cam Luong fishes stream, follow the Ho Chi Minh road to Hanoi. This itinerary also goes through Cuc Phuong Nature Reserve, so if you have time, you can spend 1 more day playing Cuc Phuong before returning to Hanoi.
See more: Discovering Pu Luong: A Traveler’s Guide
See more: Sam Son Travel Guide: A Seaside Paradise in Vietnam
See more: Exploring the Beauty of Hai Tien Beach: Travel Tips
Discussion about this post