Hue or Phong Nha?

For those that have been to both, would you recommend Hue or Phong Nha if you had to choose?

We are traveling from Hanoi to HCMC via the train. It will be in March.

Perhaps not a fair question, as they are very different places, but our time is limited and we either stop off in Hue for a couple nights, or in Phong Nha (disembarking the train at Dong Hoi), and I'm trying to decide between the two.

Comparisons aside, if anyone has visited Phong Nha I'd love to hear your thoughts about it.

I loved Phong Nga for the spectacular caves, the scenery, the peaceful life ... having a bike and going around, getting away, walking in the bush. There are also adventure things to do. it is more of a nature place.

Hue on the other hand is a city - a nice enough city with an interesting old ruined fort / palace but a city. Thete is a very big difference.

Thanks Cdallinger - yeah it's clearly a very different destination than Hue.

I'm not particularly interested in caves, but am interested in cycling or hiking in beautiful countryside however.

Not sure if it's possible to easily cycle outside Hue, but if so perhaps there are villages and countryside that are just as accessible and nice as those around Phong Nha? That would probably be a deciding factor.

So I guess my next question would be - how easy is it to cycle around Hue? Any nice quiet country roads weaving through the rice fields? Or do you have to travel too far outside the city of Hue to find some pastoral countryside?

I don't know what the rest of your itinerary looks like, but I think a child would probably get more out of Phong na than Hue. Obviously depends on the child. If you are going through Hue from Dong hoi on the train, a four hour stop over would allow you to get a taxi to the citadel, and have a wander around, assuming there is a left luggage place at the station. Another option might be to stay in Dong hoi on the beach, and do a day trip out to Phong na. Beach side backpackers in Dong hoi were running motorbike (with driver) day tours last year, and the owner is an ex Phong na guide. He has an Irish wife and speaks good English, so could no doubt sort you out a car and guide instead, an overnight, or whatever you wanted. They have a family room, small dorm and a few doubles, and is more flashpacker than backpacker.

I do think you should try to see a bit of both places if at all possible, as you will be so close.

Thanks for the suggestion Mp63. We are traveling by train from Hanoi to HCMC. A natural stopping off place along that route is Hue, and given its popularity it's an obvious choice. But none of us are particularly interested in looking at historic buildings, which is what Hue is all about. Then again, Phong Nha is all about caves, and we aren't particularly into caves either...

Hue does have lots of restaurants to choose from, which is important to us. Phong Nha I'm assuming would have more limited food choices.

If time wasn't a factor we'd simply visit both, but the most we will have is two nights, spent either at Hue or Phong Nha. I had decided on Hue until I read another post that mentioned Phong Nha and started researching it as it sounded lovely.

I'll just have to keep researching both to see which will suit us better.

Thanks again for the feedback.

I found the countryside around Hue really interesting and saw hand winnowing, washing in the local stream and lots of ducks. I haven't been cycling, though I imagine that would be easy enough but went once on the local bus (from the bus station next to the market, and once on the back of a bike. There's a Japanese bridge in the countryside, near a little village, and there's the house where HO Chi Minh lived when his father was studying in Hue. Hue itself is not just another city but has beautiful areas to explore, especially around the citadel, which would be great to explore by bicycle.

I went to Phong Nga many years ago when the tourist facilities were poor. I assume they have improved. I found it difficult then to get information or get around. I wouldn't hesitate to choose Hue over Phong Nga, but it would depend a lot on what you find most enjoyable.

Thanks for the feedback violets. So many people have positive things to say about Hue so it's probably time we visited.

It has been 4 years since we went to Hue , but we found it fascinating to wander around after the frenetic pace of Hanoi and HCMC . Plenty of quirky sites if you wander the streets and taking the cruise up the river was a highlight. Food was great everywhere and we found the locals to be very willing to show us around as they were obviously proud of their city. We would go back tomorrow if we could .

Been to both and loved both. I stayed in Dong Hoi outside the National park. The town itself is interesting with a fishing harbour, great walks, ruins from the war and a great market.
You said you are not especially interested in caves but Paradise Cave is exceptional.

Hue is very memorable. not just the obvious sights of the Citadel (which I prefered to the Imperial City in Beijing) and the temples and tombs tour along the Perfume River. It also has a Cao Dai temple, two cathedrals, some minor but attractive temples, the Sculpture Park. All in all, a very likable city.
Gun to my head time? I would probably choose Hue. Which ever you choose, it is a win-win situation.

Vote for Phong Nha because it is worthier a visit than Hue.

The magnificent covered bridge of Hue is not Japanese, it is the one in Hoi An. This said, gastronomy in Phong Nga is limited when Hue is a great gastronomy city and it is easy to bicycle IN and around the city. My position is that there are grottoes everywhere in the world, but not the superb mausoleums of Hue (Maing Mang, Khai Dinh and Tu Duc in particular)

MING Mang, not Maing !

I have the same idea, you should spend time for exploring Phong Nha because you can explore amazing caves and enjoy beautiful nature as well

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