Rural Vietnam first-hand

Through IndoChina Junk we booked two nights at sea in and one night HomeStay in Yên Đức on the return to Hanoi.

We had two great nights on the cruise – the four-cabin Prince 3 was comfortable and the other three couples on the boat made for sociable meals. Our tour guide, Đức, planned our trip to phase it away from the timings of the other boats (IndoChina take you to cruise the quieter Bai Tu Long Bay rather than the crowded Ha Long Bay but don’t think you will be alone!) and this made a big difference to our enjoyment of the scenery, the visit to a fishing village and our first experience of kayaking. He shared his deep knowledge of the environment and the traditional way of life of the fishing people and, together with the service from the great crew of Prince 3, made this a memorable trip.

The whole area between Hanoi and Hon Gai International harbour (the embankment point for Ha Long Bay) is very heavily industrialised. The road and buildings are black with coal dust from the mining operations Previous visitors had written supportive reviews on TripAdvisor and so we hoped for the best but we were filled with trepidation about the overnight stay we had booked at Yên Đức.

We need not have been concerned – it turned out to be a highlight of our 3-week holiday in Vietnam. Our host guide, Thuỳ, met us from the mini-bus (around one hour from Hon Gai) and we were treated like VIPS throughout our 24 hours in the village.

Anther couple had travelled with us on the minibus and returned with us the next evening. They stayed in the “luxury room” but, apart from that, had the same schedule of visits around the village as we had. We had chosen HomeStay to expose ourselves to as much of the local culture as we could. We stayed in Mr San’s house and we were pleased that it showed us first-hand how a Vietnamese family lives. We slept under a mosquito net on the hardest bed we have ever tried – but slept well (perhaps because Mr San was keen to share his rice wine with his visitors (Một, hai, ba, vô! (pronounced mot, hi, bah, yo)). We ate wonderfully well – Mr San’s wife was away (several hours drive away) helping her daughter look after the twin grandchildren and so Hue (a truly expert home-cook) prepared supper, breakfast and lunch, which we ate with Thuỳ, hue and Mr San. The bathroom facilities were clean but not luxury – apart from that we were delighted we had chosen the HomeStay option.

The 24 hours flew by. Thuỳ cycled in front and we followed on our bikes. We stopped and chatted with locals we passed. We visited rice fields, temple, community hall, an old house (and learnt about the owners ancestors), the village market, the war memorial to a French War atrocity (remembered but not dwelled upon) and brush-makers. We fished for our supper and ended the whole visit with the village water-puppet performance (Thuỳ was the announcer and drummer and Hue operated the rice-planting puppet).

We had the most wonderful relaxing experience. We learnt an enormous amount about life in a rural commune. Yên Đức Village is a rural oasis in the midst of the surrounding industry. We had the impression that the tourism that IndoChina Junk bring to the village enables brings much needed tourism funds directly to the community – providing an option for people to be employed in their village rather than in the surrounding works.

We highly recommend the visit.

Visited March 2016

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S éloigner des hordes de touristes pour 24h

Apres 24h sur une jonque dans la baie d halong, quoi de mieux que 24h en retrait des hordes de touristes au sein d un village reculé ? Notre séjour à Yen Duc ne dura que 24heures mais quelle douce parenthèse entre les bruits de scooter d Hanoi et l’usine à tourisme de la baie d halong.. Le village se trouve à mi parcours entre les deux sites et l agence Indochina Junk (via laquelle nous avions réservé notre croisière dans la baie) nous y a proposé un court séjour qui nous a enchanté. Seule une maison dans le village (Mr San) reçoit des visiteurs comme nous car nous sommes peu nombreux encore à tenter l expérience (3 à 4 visiteurs par mois). Nous avons était accueillis par notre guide Gi, une jeune vietnamienne de 23ans qui s est occupée de nous a la perfection. Avide de discussions en tout genre, nous avons parcouru le village à pied, puis à vélo, découvrant pagode, temples, marché local, traditions, artisanat… Le tout dans la bonne humeur et l amabilité.
La maison était assez simple mais il faut s y attendre dans ce genre de séjour et nous avions tout de même tout le nécessaire (eau chaude électricité lit comfortable …). Les repas étaient plus divins les uns que les autres et partagés avec nos hôtes à meme le sol comme le veut la tradition.
Un pur havre de paix avant de retourner à la civilisation.

À recommander sans hésiter !!

Visited March 2016

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Beautiful Yen Duc – brings you back decades to show you what simple life is all about

We took the three days two nights your with Indochina Junk and chose the option for one night cruise and one night in Yen Duc village. I highly recommend this option because you get to enjoy both the beauty of Halong Bay and what it’s like living in a real traditional village. The village experience is most memorable because here you get to experience real hands on village living – market visit, history of the Vietnam war and impact on the people, farmers and how beans, broccoli, morning glory, rice, etc are planted and harvested. We also harvested our own vegetables for dinner. We visited homes and spoke to the locals. What I also learnt is how much we give back to this community. The whole tour in the village engages the whole village in a big way – the crafts that we do, the security around the village, the cleanliness (this is probably one of the cleanest village I’ve been through as we cycled freely across the whole place). The mist amazing experience here is the people. They are so down to earth and pure and sincere. It reminds me some 30 years ago when I was small kid and we lived in the small village. People live a simple life yet you can feel the happiness and sincerity. Everyone works hard for a good cause. Our guide “Cuc” speaks very good English and tells us and the kids of such interesting stories of the villagers and the war. Both our eight and ten year old daughters enjoyed the trip so much they said this is probably one of their most memorable experience amongst the many trips we do. This morning, we went to the market and we bought ourselves ingredients to make lunch. The girls can’t wait to get a hands on experience making Spring rolls – which we had for dinner and it was so delicious they asked for more. This morning we had congee made from rice that they milled to remove the husk – what an experience! I would highly recommend this tour with Indochina Junk – one night cruise and one night Yen Duc village. You will not be disappointed with the quality of stay, food and experience. It’s as raw yet “luxurious” one can get

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Visited March 2016

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g2146283-d2357482-r356915090-Yen_Duc_Village_Tour_Day_Tour-Quang_Ninh_Province.html#

Brilliant experience – Trent and Penny

A wonderful day in Yen Duc village led by our host Gi. We loved experiencing traditional Vietnamese culture such as fishing, growing and producing rice, the water puppet show as well as going to see peoples’ houses. Our five course dinner was beautiful. Everything is excellent and we were amazed at the friendliness and welcoming nature of everyone. Thank you so much Gi and Yen Duc village.

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Visited March 2016

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A Fabulous Way to Understand Life in a Traditional Vietnamese Village

We spent a night in Yen Duc Village as part of our three day-two night Dragon Legend tour with Indochina Junk. We arrived and our guide Cuc, who was a fluent English speaker, immediately took us into the village culture. We harvested morning glory with the villagers; we visited an elder in the community and learned about the importance of family in Vietnam; we separated rice from its husks; we even stomped in the mud to hand catch fish! I had a sprained ankle and only watched this activity but it was a hoot! We were treated to a multi-course Vietnamese dinner that was delicious in every menu item. After dinner we had a cooking class and learned to make the traditional floating cake (which we then ate!). Two lovely villagers in traditional costume arrived and gave the four of us who were there a private concert. The village is set up to host eight people. This night there were only four – my friend and I and two other Americans who had made the same choice in schedule. The rooms were comfortable and lovely and we slept well. The next morning we did exercises at the beginning of the day and then went to the village market (after a sumptuous breakfast, of course). We shopped at the market and visited with the merchants. We went to the village temple and at our request visited the cemetery and learned all about Vietnamese burial customs. We visited another villager who makes brooms in the traditional way and we made brooms with her. Then we were treated to another lovely lunch, followed by a water puppet show before leaving to return to Hanoi.

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Visited February 2016

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Amazing homestay in Yen Duc Village

We booked the homestay as part of a 3 day 2 night experience through Indochina Junk. The first night we spent on a boat in Bai Tu Long Bay. The second night we spent in Yen Duc Village at a local’s house. It was an amazing experience and one of the highlights of our trip. We were 2 of only 4 people staying in the village that night. We had a wonderful guide, Na, who showed us around the village and explained aspects of everyday life there. We biked around to see the local landmarks, traditional farming, the daily market and stopped to play badminton with the locals. We ate a traditional dinner, breakfast and lunch with our wonderful host.

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Visited November 2015

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Experience great first Vietnam countryside!

The fist thank so much Derick, my friend. He gave us the good recommend at quangninh vietnam. We could catch fish by fish tackle what our own making. We could understand vietnam culture, could understand how to make rice, how to make all of food we eat every day… Something we could see the common point, some thing very diferent our country. I and my girlfriend had a time really interesting in vietnam. Thank Thuy very much, our companion during the trip. An advice for all who love the different experiences.

Visited December 2015

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Honeymoon in Vietnam: Yen Duc Village

My husband and I traveled to Vietnam for 3 weeks for our honeymoon and booked a 3 day/2night tour with Indochina Junk with one night on the Dragon’s Pearl and the other 1.5 days and night in the Yen Duc Village. We will both attest that the Yen Duc Village stay was at the very top of our list of highlights and highly recommend it for others! We did not know much about our itinerary until we arrived and we were blown away by how nice all of the women in the village were, especially Na our tour guide. She was about our same age and had excellent English! She was so easy to talk to and was passionate about this village where she was raised. We were the only visitors in the village and felt like true honeymooners in our fancy homestay and home-cooked meals. For one of the meals, we caught the fish in the village with these cool wooden baskets and fishing suits. It was so much fun (be prepared to get a bit muddy and don’t wear your best clothes). Other activities included: biking through the village, visiting the oldest house in the village and speaking with the man who lived there, making brooms with a local elderly woman, visiting the markets, a water puppet show, relaxing, making traditional donuts, and being sung to by a woman from the village (who had a beautiful voice), and just socializing with Na. It was awesome and the food was amazing. We would both highly recommend this over two nights on the cruise ship if you are pressed for time. The food was amazing and we were definitely well-fed and well taken care of. Our only regret is that our stay in the village wasn’t longer!! Thank you to Na and the others at Yen Duc Village! You will have a bright future here and give a positive light to the Vietnamese culture! 🙂

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See all photos

Visited October 2015

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Enjoyed more than Halong Bay!

We chose to do the Yen Duc Village tour/stay as part of our package with the junk boat tour we did. Don’t get me wrong, the landscape in Halong Bay is beautiful, but in the Yen Duc Village, you get to understand and be a part of the northern Vietnamese culture.
I had been a little anxious about the accommodations, but it less of a homestay and more of a boutique hotel in the middle of a tiny little village. Our guide, Cuc, took us around on the bikes to see the local attractions, taught us the former way to husking the rice, we caught fish and then we got to cook dessert together (after a huge multiple course meal).
The next morning after a filling breakfast, we rode back into the village on bikes (all very very easy rides) and got to meet the local villagers at the market. They were all wonderfully warm and welcoming. We visited some more historical/culture attractions and had another delicious lunch. We caught the puppet show in the afternoon with the rest of the people returning from the Halong bay tour. Quite honestly, I found the water puppet show interesting only because it has been around since the 10th century or something like that.
I almost felt bad for the people who only came to the Yen Duc village to see the water puppet show.
I’d definitely visit again and for more than one night.
The only downfall I can think of was that the room where you stayed only had a curtain separating the toilet from the rest of the room.

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Visited October 2015

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g2146283-d2357482-r327218811-Yen_Duc_Village_Tour_Day_Tour-Quang_Ninh_Province.html#

Schöne Urlaubsetappe mit Fahrradtour und Fußmassage

Im Zuge unserer Rundreise sind wir einigen Stunden in Yen Duc gewesen. Die (neue) Anlage ist sehr schön und passt sich gut in die Dorfstruktur ein. Die Fahrräder die unsere Familie (5 Personen) hatte waäern in einem guten technischen Zustand und fast auf unsere Körpergröße angepasst werden.
Leider war die Küche noch nicht in den Neubau umgezogen, so das unserer vegetarischen Esser kaum eine Alternative hatten.

Ganz hervorragend hat uns die Fußmassage gefallen. Die sehbehinderten / blinden Masseure haben eine sehr wohltuhende Wirkung entfaltet und jeden individuell betreut.

Die Radtour durch den Ort war eine wilkommen Anwechslung zu den langen Autofahrten.

Visited October 2015

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g2146283-d2357482-r325907866-Yen_Duc_Village_Tour_Day_Tour-Quang_Ninh_Province.html#