Attractions
Do Son Beach
Located about 22 kilometres southwest of Haiphong, Do Son is a small peninsula with a long sandy beach shaded by sandalwood trees and surrounded by pine hills. It was made famous by French expatriates and Vietnamese elites who turned the beach into a summer resort during the early 20th century. A summer residence of Vietnam’s last king is also located here. Nowadays, the beach welcomes tourists from all over the country. In summer, it gets crowded with local tourists.
Nghe Temple
Once a small shrine, Nghe temple was rebuilt and became a spiritual sanctuary in 1919. The temple is dedicated to Le Chan, a female general of the Trung Sisters’ insurrection (40-43rd century). Le Chan founded An Bien village, which later became Haiphong. The temple is located in the city near the municipal Theatre. It contains stone elephants, stone horses, stone ornate beds and statues.
Du Hang Pagoda
Du Hang Pagoda is one of the most ancient pagodas in Haiphong. The pagoda was first built during the early Le Dynasty (980-1009). It has gone through several renovations over the past centuries and listed as a historical site. The 3-tier roof Chinese style pagoda exhibits several interesting artefacts from the past such as Buddha statues, gongs, a prayer book, an ancient Buddhist script and traditional Vietnamese furniture.
The historical site of Trang Kenh
Located 20 kilometres east of Haiphong city, Trang Kenh is a natural area of limestone mountains, wonderful caves and vast lakes. The area is believed to be a large settlement of ancient people who lived here 4000 years ago. Between the 40s and 50s, it was used as a base of Haiphong civil and military forces during the resistance against the French.
The landscape of Trang Kenh consists of numerous limestone hills – resembling the ones in Halong Bay - and some strange caves. Among them is the cave, which houses a stone carved statue of one of prominent Vietnamese kings named Hung Vuong. Many small tunnels and fresh water streams are also found in this 18 metre high cave.
Cat Ba Island and National Park
Probably the most visited site in Haiphong, Cat Ba Islands is indeed an archipelago of more than 360 islands and a part of Cat Ba National Park. The park covers an area of 200 square kilometres of forests and marine sites.
Lying about 150 km east of Hanoi, the park is home to 600 kinds of plants and diverse wildlife such as wild white-headed langurs, deer, yellow monkey and macaques, to name a few. It has the largest area of tropical virgin forest in Vietnam. The park’s topography features towering limestone mountains - one of them reaches 322 metres above the sea level – grottos and white powdery beaches.
The islands are popular among local tourists and can be crowded during the weekends. However, plenty of peaceful isolated beaches such as Cat Trai Gai, Duong Gianh and Hien Hao are always available in many of its islets. Besides the beaches, travellers can rent a motorbike to tour around the island or take sightseeing tours at grottos and other islands. There are a lot of beach resorts and guesthouses on the main islands that cater to foreign tourists. The trip from Hanoi to Haiphong ferry terminal (Binh Port) is about 2 hours by bus. Then take another one-hour ride on a ferry to the main Cat Ba Island.
