Cat Ba National Park Vietnam: Everything You Need to Know

Cat Ba National Park (located on Cat Ba island, Hai Phong Province in the North Vietnam) incorporates some of the small islands and marine water and covers  an area of 26,300 ha, in which 17,300 ha is on the island and 9,000 ha is of the adjacent inshore waters. Once visiting to National Park, you will have a pleasant feeling from physical features to beautiful climate.

• Location: Cat Hai, Cat Ba, Hai Phong Province
• Opening Hours: Every day and 24 hours
• Entrance Fee: 80k / ticket / day

The Highlights of Cat Ba National Park:

The landscape of Cat Ba National Park is a karst limestone areas on the main island with numerous waterfalls, caves and grottoes. The rugged topography odd the park is marked by steep outcrops and bare rock areas with many seasonal streams such as Thung Luong, Hoi Trung Trang, Treo Com and Viet Hai.

Most of the rainwater flows into grottoes/ caves and follows underground streams to the sea. There are several small lakes and water ponds in the hills; the largest lake is Echo Lake- a permanent water shape with an area of 3 ha and about 50 m depth. Ninety percent of the Cat Ba Island is between 50 m and 200 m above sea level, for example Cao Vong Peak (331 m) and Hien Hoa Peak (302 m.

Why Is Cat Ba National Park So Special?

Cat Ba National Park is unique as it has a lot of interesting things to offer visitors, from different species to human history clues. Once visiting to Cat Ba Island, do not miss your chance to explore thí national park.

1. Biodiversity Values of Cat Ba National Park:

Because of the abundance of suitable moist niches within the limestone forest, National Park of Cat Ba has a rich and plentiful snail fauna. This is to support a diversity of natural habitats including mangroves, forested hills, small freshwater lakes, freshwater swamp forest, sandy beaches and coral reefs. In detailed. Among 839 vascular plant species have been recorded at Cat Ba National park, 25 of them have listed in the Red Data Book of Vietnam.

Due to the isolated nature of the island and high levels of local hunting, the diversity and abundance of mammals in Cat Ba are quite low compare to some other national parks in Vietnam. Among the fauna of national park, the most popular are primate and ungulate, in which monkey is from 104 and 135 individuals including from 50 to 75 adults. Also, the limestone habitat at the park is an ideal environment for a number of invertebrate species.

2. Human History Clues in Cat Ba National Park:

Cat Ba National Park has been considered as the cradle of human culture with many traces of ancient humans. Stone tools and bones has been founded at the sites indicate that primitive human was living in the caves and grottoes on the island between about 6,000 and 7,000 years ago. The example is Cai Beo Cave which is about 1.5 km south-east of Town’s Center, has been studied intensively.

What is the Best Things to Do in Cat Ba National Park?

Cat Ba National Park is a great place for trekking, hiking and outdoor activities. There are lots of touirst hiking groups coming here to conquer the trails, mountain peaks and Viet Hai Village in Cat Ba every year. Even if you are not an experienced hiker, you can easily book a tour guide to help you with this.

Exploring Cat Ba National Park, you will have chance to see one of the most beautiful landscapes in Vietnam and the copious ecosystem. Other tourist attractions such as limestone formations, numerous waterfalls, caves and grottoes are gorgeous, too.

How to Get to Cat Ba National Park on Cat Ba Island?

The fastest and easiest way to get to Cat Ba National Park is by local bus. It is not hard to find a local bus to Hai Phong from Hanoi bus station. It usually take you around 3-4 hours to go to Hai Phong. Then, you can take a taxi or private car heading to the national park.

What is the Best Time to Visit Cat Ba National Park?

Featured by tropical monsoon with two wet and dry seasons, the national park receives the annual rainfall from 1,700mm to 1,800mm. The annual temperature at sea level is between 25oC to 28oC associated with the moderate annual relative humidity is 85%.

Thus, the best time to visit Cat Ba Island and Cat Ba National Park is October and November when the weather is more pleasant to enjoy every activity here. The temperature will be cooler from December onward. You may encounter the rain in March and April, sometimes maybe typhoons and tropical storms. Meanwhile, the weather is hot and humid from June to August, so you may feel more tired when hiking in the national park.

Adventure Journey

See Related Articles:

• What Things to Do & Best Places to Visit in Cat Ba Island Vietnam
• Cannon Fort, Cat Ba Island: Location, History & How to Get There
• Accommodation on Cat Ba Island : Best Hotels and Places to Stay
• What Local Food to Eat and Western Restaurants in Cat Ba Island
• Cat Ba Island Nightlife: The Best Bars, Night Clubs & Food Market
• List of the Best National Parks for Wildlife Discovery in Viet Nam