Ngoc Anh Hotel Ninh Binh — Hotel in Ninh Bình

I thought we were booked into Ngoc Anh 2 because I expected a balcony, but perhaps because business was slow, we were in Ngoc Anh 1 with no balcony. No matter -- the weather was chilly and damp and we had a vast room plus big bathroom. A large window extended across the front of the room and we could open the window at will. We were on the 4th floor (I wish we had immediately asked for a higher floor to get farther from the road noises, but I did not want to move once we had put our stuff down). Mr. Pham Minh Tam took care of us for our 3-night stay, smiling, providing, planning, helping, picking us up at the train station, and always smiling. He had gotten train tickets for us and had them delivered to our hotel in Hanoi before we headed to Ninh Binh. He arranged for a driver to pick us up on our first morning and take us to Trang An where we were rowed on a voyage across a lake and through caves, stopping at temples. The next destination was Bai Dinh Temple where an electric car drove us to the entrance to a temple complex going up a mountainside -- long stepped corridor flanked by statues and interrupted by grander and grander temples. Along the road on the way home we saw sheep, goats with horns, cows, buffalo, horses, chickens, rice paddies. That night we ate at Pho Bo 24 a couple of blocks away. Very good and very cheap noodle soup and beer. ||||The next day Mr. Pham had the same driver pick us up and take us to a beautiful small lake with a temple up the mountainside (and goats) and then Bich Dong Pagoda with temples in caves, then Thung Nham Bird Sanctuary with long nature walks, featuring nesting egrets. ||||There is a town near Ninh Binh, Tom Coc, that we drove through. If we had stayed in this town we could have rented bikes and ridden around the rural area. This was not possible (for us) in the city of Ninh Binh. ||||We asked Mr. Pham if we could have pho for breakfast and he had the cook make it for us. With the breakfast we ordered we also got very thin banana pancakes and pineapple jam his...

We booked this place based on good reviews on TripAdvisor and we are very Glad we did. From beginning they responded really fast when we asked about getting a transfer from Halong Bay to NinhBinh. They arranged a private car at a very good rate. |Mr Phuong was at the entrance when we arrived and our room was ready. It was huge! Exactly like in picture. Everything was clean. They had all the amenities: large clean towels, fridge, kettle, aircon/heater, hair dryer, slippers, free water, coffee,tea etc. |Mr Phuong arranged a private car with driver for a day tour to bring us to trang anh, bai dinh and mua dragon cave plus provided a good hand drawn map to show us the route. Car Rate was again very good rate. The driver brought us to a good clean restaurant for lunch. |When we left NinhBinh, Mr Phuong had his own driver send us to the train station. So nice of him. I read that he does all complimentary pickup and send off for train station. |Breakfast was included and it was great. Choice of western or Vietnamese. We tried the beef pho, pork porridge, two egg omelet with everything in it. All were good plus there was always a fresh fruit platter plus free orange juice. Mr Phuong personally serves everything. |If you’re a single traveller, you could also book a personal motorcycle driver. We saw Mr Phuong arrange a female motorcycle driver for a lone lady guest to do the same tour we did. That’s considerate. |I would definitely return to NgocAnh if we go ninhbinh again. It is highly recommended. |Thank you Mr Phuong for your...

Overall, a comfortable room for the price. I spent only one night and had one day to see Ninh Binh before taking the night train, so the owner was kind enough to allow me to shower after my day out exploring before my night train. ||||I recommend staying here in the town rather than Tam Coc or Trang An if you only have limited time and are traveling by bus or train, as this hotel is only VD 20,000 grab ride to the train and bus stations and the sights are easily reached by bicycle from the city itself, at least in the cool weather of winter.||||One reason I didn't give full 5 stars is because the price of bicycle is quite expensive (VD 100,000) considering the quality of the bike. In other cities I've rented bicycle for only 20,000 VD per day. I think guests should get bike for at least have the price (maybe 50,000).||||Overall, good clean hotel with a nice breakfast, home made pineapple jam and nice bread, omelette, and fresh fruit. Very quiet when I visited, and room has both AC and fan, so you can use fan to create white noise if you are a light...