Ben Thanh Tourist

Discovering national forests - Ben Thanh Tourist

HCMC-based tour operator Ben Thanh Tourist has introduced a 15-day, 14-night tour of Xuan Thuy, Cuc Phuong or Nam Cat Tien national forests to cater to the needs of nature enthusiasts.

Taking this tour, tourists will have the opportunity to get a close look at a variety of rare fauna and flora, and hear the sounds created by animals and plants in the forests.

Especially, there are some bird species on the verge of extinction and they are listed in the World Red Book, such as tringa orchropus, pelican, seagull, purple heron, and black-faced spoonbill.

The tour will take in Xuan Thuy National Forest covering a total of 7,100 hectares, with 3,100 hectares of floating land and 4,000 hectares of mangrove forest. This is the first mangrove forest in Vietnam and the 50th in the world. Xuan Thuy National Forest is internationally recognized under the Ramsar Convention, which is an international treaty on conservation and wise use of wetlands.

Xuan Thuy National Forest is home to about 100 species of bird, including the world population of white spoonbills. It is estimated that there are 215 water bird species and many species feared to become extinct, such as tringa orchropus, pelican, seagull, purple heron, and black-faced, spoonbill.

To continue the journey, tourists will visit Cuc Phuong National Forest, around 120 kilometers south of Hanoi This forest covers 22,000 hectares and is considered to be the first nature reserve in Vietnam.

Cuc Phuong is a botanical garden as well as a huge zoo. There are caves such as Vui Xuan, Trang Khuyet, Thanh Minh, Thuy Tien, Pagoda, and Prince Consort. Each cave is a splendid "palace" with fascinating stalactites.

In addition to bio-diversity, Cuc Phuong is a natural habitat of rare animals, including 450 species of vertebrate animal, 333 species of bird, 36 species of reptile, and 17 species of amphibian. Some of the animals there are in the Red Book, such as crucian carp and red-baked squirrel.

The next stop is Nam Cat Tien Forest, which are in Dong Nai, Binh Phuoc and Lam Dong provinces. The forest is divided into two sections - South Cat Tien and West Cat Tien.

Nam Cat Tien Forest has a species of Java rhinocero with a single horn. Another attraction of Nam Cat Tien is giant bulls weighing over hundreds of kilograms. There are 70-80 such beasts on the brink of extinction due to illegal hunting and deforestation.

After Nam Cat Tien Forest, tourists will be taken to Dalat known as the city of flowers, on the final days of the program. Dalat's flower garden, Mong Mo (dream) hill, and Palace of King Bao Dai are among the attractions in the central hilly resort town in Lam Dong Province.

For more details, contact Ben Thanh Tourist, 86 Ly Tu Trong Street, District 1, tel: (08) 520 2020, main office: 78 Nguyen Hue Blvd., tel: (08) 404 3133.

(Source: SGT)

Tag: Ao Dai , Cat Tien , Dalat , Hanoi , Hcm , Hue , International , Lam Dong , Pagoda , Resort , Tour , Tourist , Vietnam

Discovering national forests - Ben Thanh Tourist

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