Rice paddies along both sides of Ngo Dong River in Tam Coc don their yellow-gold harvest cloak, giving visitors a chance to take a boat tour through ripened fields surrounded by limestone karsts.
Unlike other places in Vietnam, Tam Coc only has one rice crop per year due to the rise in the river’s water level during the monsoon, making farming on its banks impossible. May and June are the busiest rice harvesting months in the area.
This year, Ninh Binh Province has created a giant folk painting that depicts the image of two carps looking at the moon on rice fields to catch tourists’ attention.
In the middle of the two caps is a simulated image of a lotus flower and below there are ripples of water, reflecting local people's prayers for a year of peace, prosperity, good weather and good harvests.
The only way to go explore the "golden season" in Tam Coc is a two-hour boat tour winding down Ngo Dong River that charges VND150,000 (US$6.40) and requires at least four passengers for a trip.
Due to hot weather, passengers are required to take an umbrella or wear a hat to avoid the heat.
The cruise proceeds through the scenic landscape and goes through three beautiful limestone caves – Hang Ca, Hang Hai and Hang Ba.
Ca is the largest cave in Tam Coc. It is 127 meters long and more than 20 meters wide, followed by Hai Cave which is about 60 meters long. Ba Cave, about 50 meters long, is the smallest, but considered the most beautiful in the area.
Not far from Tam Coc is Hang Mua (Dancing Cave), dubbed Vietnam's miniature Great Wall of China.
Legend has it that King Tran Thai Tong, who reigned from 1225 to 1258, ordered the construction of the Thai Vi Temple, and often visited the place to enjoy dancing and singing, and hence the name Dancing Cave.
After walking up 500 white stone steps to the top of the mountain, visitors can admire spectacular views of Tam Coc with its yellow paddy fields below.
