Bai Dinh Pagoda - Ninh Binh A to Z Travel Guide

Bai Dinh Pagoda is a spiritual destination located in Bai Dinh - Trang An eco-tourism complex with a history of more than 1000 years old which attached to Dinh dynasties, Tien Le houses, and Ly dynasty. Follow Authentik Travel, let’s discover everything you need to know before going to this one of the most spiritual tourist attraction in Ninh Binh, Vietnam.

All you need to know for a trip to Bai Dinh Pagoda

Where is Bai Dinh Pagoda?

Bai Dinh Pagoda is the largest Buddhist complex consisting of several temples. It is located on Bai Dinh mountain in Gia Sinh commune, Gia Vien district. Bai Dinh Pagoda is 5 kilometers to the Northwest from Hoa Lu Ancient Capital and 12 kilometers from Ninh Binh city. It has a 539 hectares campus including 27 hectares of the old and 80 hectares the newly built areas. Bai Dinh Pagoda hornorlywelcomes thousands of travelers each year.

Best time to visit Bai Dinh – Trang An?

During Spring , from February to April, you can expect days to be warm and nice and it is the best month for Bai Dinh Pagoda trips. Visitors can combine spring traveling, sightseeing, praying for luck in the temple and participating in big festivals in both Trang An and Bai Dinh. However, this time is the peak season in term of tourism, so there are a huge number of visitors, which leads to overload and overcrowding. Therefore, if you do not expect  that situations, you may travel to Bai Dinh at another time in the year.

Entrance fee to the Bai Dinh Pagoda

Bai Dinh Pagoda’s campus is very large, visitors can take an electric car to up to the pagoda if you do not have much time. The fee is 30,000 dong/ turn (about $1.3 for each person). It takes more than 3 hours to explore Trang An by boat. Each boat can accommodates around  4 to 5 people. Boat fare is 200,000 VND ( about 9$) each person. At the peak season in term of tourism,there are a huge number of visitors so there will be often crowding with people at the ticket booth  and boat stations. You need to outsmart and avoid pickpockets and thieves.

Tourist Attractions Inside Bai Dinh Pagoda

Going to Bai Dinh Pagoda, visitors may choose to see  famous sights with many mysterious stories.

1.  Hang Sáng, Hang Tối - ( Bright Cave, Dark Cave)

After passing 300 stone steps up and almost near to Tam Quan, visitors will look at a slope next to, it is a fork which is the way to Hang Sang and Hang Toi. Hang Sang is a place worship Gods and Buddha. Hang Sang means a light cave in Vietnamese and  it is also full of natural light like its name. At the gate of the cave, there are 2 God statues have grave and fierce faces. Deep inside the cave are the Buddha image. Hang Sang is 25 meters depth, 15 meters width and 2 meters height. At the end of the cave, visitors see the temple of the sacred God named Cao Son.

2. The Temple of Nguyen God

From the fork (up to the Tam Quan gate) is the temple of Nguyen God. The temple is an architectural item belonging to Bai Dinh complex. It was designed with a great location with a view of the mountains and river. There is the statue of a Buddhist monk named Nguyen Minh Khong placed in the temple. To remember his sacrifice, people carved the statue and placed on Bai Dinh Pagoda. In addition, he is also worshiped in many places in Ninh Binh.

3. Giếng Ngọc - Jade well

It is said that the monk Nguyen Minh Khong used the water from the well to cook medicinal herbs for the king and the people. Around the stone railings form a large circle, standing down from the main palace overlooking Ngoc well, which stands out among the vast green covered campus, the jade green water color is the highlight of Bai Dinh pagoda overall. This is also the pagoda's well recorded the largest record in Vietnam.

Records of Bai Dinh Pagoda

With the unique architecture and long history, Bai Dinh Pagoda has become a famous ecological and spiritual tourist destination in the North in general and Ninh Binh in particular. There have been 8 records of Vietnam as well as of Asia in Bai Dinh Pagoda such as the largest bronze bell in Vietnam, the highest and heaviest Buddha statue in Asia, the largest gold overlaid Tam The statues in Vietnam, The largest bronze Buddha statue in Southeast Asia, the pagoda has the largest Arhat corridor in Vietnam, the pagoda has the most Bodhi trees in Vietnam etc

Notices when going to Bai Dinh Pagoda

1.You should bring comfortable sneakers instead of wearing high heels to protect your feet as well as being convenient for moving because you will have to climb pretty a lot.
2.You should choose the polite clothes when entering the temple, avoid shorts, tank top or short skirt to show your respect in holy places like temples or pagodas
3.At Bai Dinh Pagoda, there are many shops selling souvenirs and specialties. However, the price on the mountain is much higher than the outside. You should go to the foot of the mountain to have a cheaper price.

Above is all the experience of Bai Dinh Pagoda that Authentik Travel has synthesized. Wish you all have a meaningful pilgrimage here.

Related articles:
Ninh Binh Travel Guide
Trang An - Ninh Binh A - Z Travel Guide
Tam Coc - Ninh Binh Travel Guide
Kenh Ga Hot Springs - Ninh Binh Travel Guide
Hoa Lu Ancient Capital - Ninh Binh A to Z Travel Guide
Thung Nham Bird Gardens - Ninh Binh Travel Guide