The Best National Parks in Vietnam

Perhaps the most naturally stunning and well-preserved area in all of Vietnam, Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng is home to some of the largest caves in the world. The park, which shares a border with Hin Namno Nature Reserve in Laos, covers an area of nearly 900sqkm (347sqmi) and is often a stop for those following the Ho Chi Minh Highway. Gibbons and macaques roam the forests, yet it’s the sprawling karst cave systems that have earned Phong Nha a spot on the Unesco World Heritage list. Hundreds of miles of underground labyrinths run beneath limestone giants as they tower towards the sky.

A gem nestled in the northwest corner of the most popular and unfortunately most overdeveloped island in Vietnam, Phú Quốc is home to more than 1,000 species of plants and 200 species of animals. Increasingly rare old-growth forests run throughout the park, and dipterocarp trees climb to over 30m (100ft) in height. Hiking and camping are easily accessible from Gành Dầu village.

Cát Tiên is the closest national park to Ho Chi Minh City and an oft-overlooked gem. The lowland forests are the largest and most important in the country, home to gibbon, deer and wild boar. The nature trails are extensive and well maintained, and most can be completed without a guide and on bicycle. An excellent variety of lodging, from campsites to riverside bungalows, makes the park a great place to escape from the concrete madness of Saigon.

Floating in a sea of limestone peaks, Cát Bà serves as a focal point of iconic Hạ Long Bay. It should be a stop on any northern excursion. Much of the region resembles something out of Jurassic Park, as jungles shoot skywards into the mist. A number of beautiful treks of moderate difficulty lie in the confines of the park. Cát Bà is also home to the majority of the world’s remaining white-headed langurs.

Ba Bể National Park is home to a number of ethnic minorities, including the Tay, Dao and Hmong, and offers travellers the opportunity to experience life in traditional homestays. The park is made of towering limestone mounts that crash down to pounding waterfalls before settling in Ba Bể lake, the largest in Vietnam. Trekking in the region is superb and can be arranged via most homestays or guesthouses. Cavernous limestone grottos, hidden along the water’s edge, should be explored by boat as well.

The largest of all the national parks in Vietnam, Yok Đôn also happens to be home to some of the last remaining wild elephants and leopards in the country. However, over the years, poaching and illegal logging have decimated their populations, dropping the chances of seeing one to pretty much zero. Nevertheless, the park retains an off-the-beaten-track feel and is seldom visited by foreign tourists. Guided day and overnight treks through the dry forests are a great way to see it all.

Cúc Phương is one of the most accessible parks Vietnam has to offer, lying just over 100km (62mi) from Hanoi. The region can be explored on foot, motorbike or bicycle and is best travelled over two or three days. Minority villages dot the lands and can be visited on a number of guided treks. The park is also home to a vast array of flora and fauna, including some of the most endangered turtles in Thailand.

In a country experiencing rapid growth and popularity, it’s no real surprise that pristine natural areas are diminishing by the day. Côn Đảo National Park remains an outlier. Located 80km (50mi) out into the East Sea, this unblemished archipelago of green is reached by ferry from the Mekong or via plane from Ho Chi Minh City. The national park lies on the main island, Côn Sơn, and encompasses some of the most untouched coral reefs and white-sand beaches in the country. Endangered sea turtles nest along the shorelines, while the strange and friendly dugong, a cousin of the manatee, lounges in the clear waters of the park.

Bạch Mã lies hidden just west of the imperial capital of Huế, near the central coast of Vietnam. Dilapidated French villas, overrun by pine forests, peer out through the wilderness as mile-high peaks float in the distance. The park is home to some of the most dense and pristine ribbons of jungle in central Vietnam.