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Hoa Lu was the capital of Vietnam from 968 to 1010. Ly Cong Uan, founder of the Ly dynasty, then moved the capital to Thang Long, now Hanoi.
Hoa Lu was the economic, political and cultural centre of Dai Co Viet, an independent Vietnamese polity founded by the local warlord Dinh Bo Linh after years of civil war and a secessionist movement against China's Southern Han dynasty. After the Le dynasty fell, Ly Cong Uan moved the capital away, and Hoa Lu became known as the ancient capital.
Source: Wikipedia, Hoa Lu Ancient Capital. Checked October 2026.
Two imperial dynasties began at Hoa Lu: the Dinh dynasty, which ruled from 968 to 979, and the Early Le dynasty, which ruled from 980 to 1009.
The Dinh dynasty was founded by Dinh Tien Hoang and the Early Le by Le Dai Hanh. Local residents built the temple to Dinh Tien Hoang near the centre of the old capital. Dinh Bo Linh grew up here under Ngo Quyen, the warlord who evicted Chinese occupiers and declared himself king in 938, and his childhood exploits leading mock wars are legendary.
Source: Wikipedia, Hoa Lu Ancient Capital. Checked October 2026.
Building of the new Bai Dinh temple started in 2003 and finished in 2010. Its Tam The Hall rises 34 m (112 ft) at the roof ridge and is over 59 m (194 ft) long.
The architecture follows traditional lines, with curved finials and corner eaves that resemble a phoenix's tail. Materials include local stone and timber from Ninh Binh and tiles from Bat Trang, plus reinforced concrete because of the scale. The original pagoda is some 800 meters away, reached by over 300 stone steps.
Source: Wikipedia, Bai Dinh Temple. Checked October 2026.
The Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex covers 6,226 hectares, with a buffer zone of another 6,026 hectares.
UNESCO inscribed the complex on 23 June 2014, at the 38th session of the World Heritage Committee in Doha. The source describes it as three zones: the centre of the Hoa Lu ancient capital in the north, the Tam Coc and Bich Dong tourist area in the south, and the Trang An eco-tourism area in the middle.
Source: Wikipedia, Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex. Checked October 2026.
Trang An lies 7 km (4 miles) west of Ninh Binh city along Trang An boulevard, and 3 km (2 miles) south of the Hoa Lu ancient capital.
These distances are measured to the Trang An wharf. The same source puts the wharf 16 km from Tam Diep city to the north, by way of Tam Coc. The zone sits within the Hoa Lu special-use forest, so the old capital and the boat landscape belong to the same protected area.
Source: Wikipedia, Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex. Checked October 2026.
Bai Dinh pagoda has a 36-ton bronze bell in a 22 m (72 ft) bell tower, and a corridor lined with 500 arhat statues.
The photo captions in the source show the bell hanging in the bell tower. The temple covers 539 hectares by one count, and a large festival takes place on the sixth day of the lunar year, with Buddhist rites in the New Temple alongside traditional rituals from the Old Temple, drawing huge crowds.
Source: Wikipedia, Bai Dinh Temple. Checked October 2026.
Ninh Binh province was formed in 2025 by merging the old Ninh Binh, Nam Dinh and Ha Nam provinces.
The merged province keeps the Ninh Binh name. It lies in the Red River Delta region and is known for Cuc Phuong National Park, Van Long, the caves and rivers of Trang An, Tam Coc and Bich Dong, the monuments of Hoa Lu, Bai Dinh Pagoda and Phat Diem Cathedral, which the source says has an eclectic architectural style.
As of 2025. Source: Wikipedia, Ninh Binh Province. Checked October 2026.
More than 600 plant species and 200 animal species have been recorded at Trang An, including more than 310 types of rare plants.
The natural vegetation is limestone forest and evergreen forest in the valleys between limestone areas, and many of the species are on Vietnam's red list. Rare animals include the mainland serow, the leopard and the phoenix pheasant, and the rare plants include cycas, orchids and juniper. Striped neck turtles in the waterways need protection.
Source: Wikipedia, Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex. Checked October 2026.
Climate, airports and UNESCO status for Ninh Binh are on its destination page. More places are on the fun facts index.