The Caves of Phong Nha

After a brief stay in Hue, I took a bus to Phong Nha. The small town is the base for many local and international travelers visiting the national park of the same name. Apparently, ten years ago, the main road in the town wasn’t paved and businesses were sparse. While the road is tarred and small businesses catering to travelers are plentiful, the town maintains its small town feel. The biggest attractions of the national park are the caves.

After meeting up with some other backpackers at a local hostel, we walked along the main road to the Phong Nha-Ke Bang Tourist Centre. This is where you can buy entrance tickets and rent a boat to go to the Phong Nha cave. Boats seat up to ten people and cost the same price regardless of how many people (up to ten) are in the boat. Thankfully we were able to divide the cost among seven of us. The return boat trip includes a captain and assistant. To visit this cave, a boat is necessary as a river flows through the cave.

While I’ve been to caves and caverns before, this was my first time exploring one with an actual river inside. During the war, the American military bombed the region heavily during the day. For protection, many local people lived in the cave. There was a field hospital, school, and living quarters among other things. As we floated through the cave, the sheer massiveness of it was impressive. It was like a small town into itself. As I walked around the caves, I remember thinking, “it’s truly amazing what millions of years can do”.

There are other caves in the park open to visitors as well. To my knowledge, none of these were used for similar purposes. The only other cave I visited was the Paradise Cave, and it was just as massive. I wouldn’t be surprised if entire communities and market systems existed in it at one point. While I didn’t visit the Dark Cave (named such because it has no artificial lighting inside), I was told that it was amazing and included a lot of fun activities like zip-lining, kayaking, and a mud bath. A motorbike ride through the national park was quite spectacular with sights to rival nature’s most picturesque scenes.

Be kind to yourself.
Onward.