Tu Lan Experience Tour

(0 review)

The highlights include:

Trek through legendary valleys: Embark on an unforgettable journey through two vast, stunning valleys—Tan Hoa and Hung Ton. Traverse sweeping emerald fields encircled by dramatic limestone karsts, crowned with untouched, primeval jungle. This is the authentic heart of Vietnam's wild nature.
Discover a hidden underground kingdom: Plunge into a subterranean world as you explore two magnificent caves, Rat Cave and Hung Ton Cave. Marvel at unique, millennia-old formations—towering columns, delicate stalactites, immense stalagmites, and shimmering cave pearls. These chambers feel less like caves and more like natural, magnificent cathedrals.
The ultimate cave challenge: Prepare for the most unique part of the adventure—cave swimming through the cool, pitch-black underground river. Fully equipped with headlamps, you'll immerse yourself in a world untouched by natural light, fueled only by a sense of mystery and pure exploration. It's an experience that will ignite your inner adventurer.
Refreshing finale: Emerge from the darkness to the glorious sunlight and celebrate your journey with a refreshing dip. Take a leisurely swim in the cool, crystal-blue lake formed right at the exit of Hung Ton Cave, letting the gentle current carry you as you soak up the breathtaking, unspoiled beauty of the valley.
A journey that transforms lives: Beyond the natural splendor, your presence contributes to a powerful story of community resilience and growth. Sustainable tourism has played a key role in transforming Tan Hoa, driving the poverty rate down from 85.7% in 2010 to just 2% in 2024. This expedition supports vital initiatives, including the construction of floating houses and septic toilets to improve local living standards. Furthermore, Omely is committed to future generations, sponsoring free open swimming and safety training to over 300 children in Tan Hoa and along the Rao Nan River every year.

Tour cost:

2,000,000 VND/ Person

Total tour duration

1 day

Level Adventure

Easy

Pick up point

At the hotel or pick-up point in Phong Nha

WHY SHOULD YOU CHOOSE TO ACCOMPANY OMELY TOUR?

Safety always comes first: Omely Tour designs itineraries that are suitable for many people, ensuring safety and health for each customer.
Transparent Costs - No Incurred: All costs are clearly announced from the beginning, committing not to incur additional costs during the trip.
Professional - Dedicated Guides: A team of experienced, friendly guides who always support and accompany you every step of the way.
Service quality as promised: Omely Tour always keeps what has been introduced and ensures that the actual experience is as expected.
Always Accompanying Before – During – After the Tour: Not only a tour organizer, Omely is also a companion, always ready to support you whenever you need it.
Omely partners with Oxalis: Vietnam's leading cave trekking company.

Weather and Climate in Tu Lan - Tan Hoa area

The Tu Lan - Tan Hoa area has 4 seasons in a year (spring, summer, autumn, and winter). Due to the weather and for conservation, Tu Lan Experience tours are only operated from November to mid September yearly. From December to March the weather will sometimes be cold interspersed with sunny days. April and May are spring months with cool air.

From June to August, are the warm months of summer. However, most of the time visitors trek under the forest canopy or inside the cave with a temperature of 22 to 25 degree Celsius. This is also a perfect time to enjoy swimming in the clear blue streams. The Tu Lan Experience is the ideal itinerary for your one day Quang Binh cave discovery tour.

Each season has its natural features to enjoy, and visitors can check the weather at Tan Hoa or Tu Lan via "Accuweather" before joining an Omely Adventures caving tour.

Adventure level on tour

After many years of operating trekking adventures, Omely has created an adventure scale to help tourists visualize and choose the right cave experience for their fitness and health. This scale is not to be applied to other companies with different conditions and terrains. The easiest level anyone can join and the most difficult level 6 requires regular exercise and some trekking experience. The Tu Lan Experience Tour is easy (level 2) and suitable for reasonably active people who enjoy the outdoors.

Adventure Level 2 · Easy
Number of guests per tour: Maximum 12 guests; Age 16-70 years old.
Expect: Easy trails, some rocky sections & optional swim

Easy to moderate trekking
9km trek through valleys forest and river crossing
800m cave exploration; elevation gain 120m
15m ladder climbing with a safety rope and harnesses, operated by the safety team.
150m swimming in underground river with a life vest provided by Omely
Swimming and wading at the waterfall

Terrains

The tour takes place in remote areas with complex terrains. Customers must be physically fit. Please carefully read the tour itinerary and honestly fill out the booking information yourself, especially your experience and health condition.

Physical fitness requirements for Tu Lan Experience Tour

The basic physical fitness requirements for participating in the Tu Lan Experience Tour include:

Trekking experience requirements: Having experience in trekking and camping in the forest is an advantage.
Fitness Preparation: Regularly participating in physical activities (such as yoga, swimming, hiking, running, stair climbing, gym, and some other sports to maintain physical fitness). This ensures that they are able to:
- Run continuously for 3 kilometres within 30 minutes.
- Climb 5 floors continuously without experiencing shortness of breath or dizziness.

Guests aged 16 to 70 are permitted to join the Tu Lan Experience Tour, which demands good physical fitness and prior trekking experience. Those with experience in mountain trekking and good physical health, as well as those who engage in regular sports training, could easily complete this tour.

Some guests on the Tu Lan Experience Tour may find it not particularly challenging, while others may encounter difficulties and require assistance from many safety assistants to complete the tour. The tour regulations allow safety experts and/or guides to temporarily suspend the journey, and escort guests out of the forest if significant difficulties are encountered on the itinerary. Refunds or rescheduling are not applicable in such cases.

Safety when joining the tour

This is always the top priority of Omely Adventure to ensure the safety of both visitors and Omely’ staff on any trip, including one day adventures. We only use high-quality equipment meeting international standards, mainly imported from France, the UK, and Switzerland. The tour guides must undergo professional training and be tested for skills regularly. Only qualified guides may lead an Omely tour. Visitors can learn about the "safety management" and " safety equipment" that Omely uses here.

Dangers, risks and how to avoid them on tour

Any adventure activities will always contain risks and these must be carefully managed. Omely tours take place in remote locations without easy access to medical care. Hence a lot of work goes into managing and reducing risks to the lowest level possible. Please always follow the instructions of the tour guide and safety assistants.

Communication on tour

The Tu Lan Experience one day tour is an adventure tour in Quang Binh with an easy level but is still located in a quite remote area with no nearby external support such as medical assistance, hospitals etc.

The Tu Lan Experience Tour follows jungle trails, over hills and through caves, and no paths are suitable for vehicles. There are very weak phone signals, no wifi, and no charging facilities. In case of emergency the guide will use a basic phone (smartphones do not work), to contact the office. Guests can only use the internet and phone at the village before and after the Omely tour. During the tour, Omely staff will keep in touch by radio if required.

Emergency Response Process

Omely Adventure has an established "Emergency Response Protocol" that includes on-site first aid and rescue if an accident occurs during trekking or cave exploration. We organize many training courses for first aid, rescue, and evacuation, and have rescue teams for each tour operation area. The specialized equipment is imported from abroad and complies with European standards. Due to the remote location, rescue teams and medical assistants will take from 30 minutes to 2 hours to reach the location. Therefore, the safety of visitors is the top priority of Omely in any activities related to caving in Vietnam. For Experts and Sales consultants to give suitable advice, guests are required to fill in their fitness and health information in the Booking form honestly. They are also required to update the information to the Omely consultant 45 days before the tour departure.

Items to bring on Tu Lan Experience tour

It is necessary to be well prepared for the trip because the Tu Lan Experience, although for one day, is still a hiking tour with a variety of terrain. Guests will be asked to wear appropriate clothing for safety reasons, good for moving in the jungle, river crossing, or exploring the cave as well as avoiding dangers and risks from sharp rocks, snakes, insects, or poison ivy. Long trousers and long sleeved shirts should be worn for trekking. Trekking shoes play a very important role in Omely Adventure tours in Vietnam, such as this. Visitors must choose a good and well fitting pair of shoes for rocky steep mountains and should NOT buy waterproof footwear for river crossings as they will retain water. Please test your shoes before the trek. Besides, guests also need to prepare personal items for one day’s trekking in the jungle and caves.

You need to prepare

Essential clothing

Trekking clothes:
- 1 quick-dry, bright, long-sleeved shirt
- 1 pairs of - long trekking pants (quick-dry)
- 1 waterproof jacket (winter months November to March)
1 pair of good gripping trekking shoes (drainable); *Waterproof/Gore Tex shoes are not recommended.
1 pair of calf-length, thick socks
Clothes to change after the trek
Footwear to change after the tour (If you use your own trekking shoes)

Personal items

Mosquito repellent
Sunglasses, sun hat, sunscreen
Hand fan for summer (April to August)
Personal medication
Passport

Optional items

Arm cover if wearing short-sleeved T-shirts
Camera & Tripod
Bandana or headband
Rehydration tablets
Blister prevention tape

Omely provides

Caving and safety gears: helmet, headlight, gloves, …
Basic jungle boots (EU size 36–44); if using Omely shoes, bring thick, long socks and 2 insoles to ensure comfort.
Water bottle (1L)
Water purifier
Compost toilet, toilet paper, hand cleaner
1 PVC backpack (25L) to carry helmet, dry box, water and things you need during the trek.
Shared dry box for electronic devices
First-aid kit and medical rescue equipment
Satellite phone

Toilet on the tour

The Tu Lan Experience tour occurs in a remote jungle with no power or infrastructure and for conservation and hygiene, Omely has created environmentally friendly toilets, called "Omely Composting Toilets".

The toilet is inside a tent, and consists of a normal toilet seat on top of a box. Inside the box, is a bucket and waste bag to collect all waste and toilet paper which is provided. Nearby is a container of rice husks. After finishing, cover the waste with a generous scoop of rice husks. This ensures a dry composting process, which does not smell, and covers the waste from insects.

When the buckets are full, the porters will change them and bury the waste in a designated location in the jungle. This will biodegrade and turn into fertilizer.

Visitors are required to use the composting toilets for both urination and defecation. Urination outside the toilet or inside the cave is not allowed because of the smell and impact on cave formations and the cave ecosystem.

Hand washing facilities are provided.

Directions to Phong Nha - Tu Lan

Phong Nha is located 45 km from Dong Hoi City, the capital of Quang Tri Province (About 40 minutes by car). You can book a private car service from Omely to pick you up at the airport or train station, or you can hire a taxi. There are many ways to get to Dong Hoi such as a plane, train or sleeper bus.

Domestic routes:

Flight: Daily flights from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are operated by Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet, to Dong Hoi.
Train: From Hanoi to and from Ho Chi Minh City, there are numerous SE trains that travel every day. Dong Hoi station is where Ho Chi Minh has a stop.
Bus: Buses from Hanoi to Phong Nha, Dong Hoi, or from Da Nang, Hue to Phong Nha run often during the day or at night.

All participants of Omely Adventure tours will be picked up at their designated hotel around Phong Nha town on the morning of the departure day.

Morning

Tan Hoa - Explore Rat Cave

You should be in Phong Nha before 07:00 AM on the tour day to ensure on-time departure. Omely provides dorm rooms with 6 comfortable beds available at Omely Home (Omely Office) for those who arrive in Phong Nha early in the morning of the tour and want to rest a bit before the tour (please inform us in advance if you want to use the free dorm room service).

Between 07:00 and 07:30 On the morning of departure, the guide and driver will pick you up at your hotel in Phong Nha town, and take the group to the Omely office in Tan Hoa Village, 70 km from Phong Nha. At the office, the guide will give you a short briefing about the trekking itinerary and safety regulations. You will sign the RELEASE FORM, and receive the necessary safety equipment. (The transportation cost to Tan Hoa is included in the price of the Tu Lan one day tour).

After the briefing, the group will start walking through the flat corn and peanut fields toward the Rao Nan River. You will cross the river and go up a small slope to get to the entrance of Rat Cave. Here, you will be provided with helmets, headlamps, and safety equipment to explore Rat Cave for about 300m long. This cave has many beautiful stalactites and a soaring dome with a unique heart-shaped structure. After the exploration, the group returns to Rao Nan river to climb up the 60m high Baby hill. Crossing the Hung Ton valley to reach the dry passage of Hung Ton Cave.

Afternoon

iver Passage of Hung Ton Cave - To Mo Valley - Tan Hoa

Guests will descend a 15-meter ladder with safety harnesses in Hung Ton cave to continue exploring the remaining dry passage of the cave. Here, visitors will have the opportunity to see a fossil of a million-year-old marine species. The group will then move to the water passage of the cave. Customers will be provided with life jackets and start swimming in the underground river of the cave, swimming across a small reef, and at the end of the cave the picturesque To Mo Valley, is awaiting. Here, you have time to enjoy lunch and swim on the emerald-green stream before climbing the mountain to return.

The 1-day Tu Lan experience tour by Omely ends with crossing the lush green valley and fields. You will return to the Rao Nan River and walk back through the farmland to the office. At the Omely Tan Hoa office, the group can relax and have some cool drinks.

The car will pick up the group and you will be back in Phong Nha at about 18:30 - 19:30, ending the trekking adventure to the Tu Lan caves - one of the most unique adventure tours in Quang Binh.