Cao Bang

When to go

Climate

Monthly climate averages for Cao Bang
Month	Avg temp (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Rainy days (≥1 mm)
January	13.8	29	8.5
February	15.5	25	8.5
March	18.9	48	9.8
April	23.1	84	11.3
May	25.9	195	14.8
June	27.2	247	17.0
July	27.2	258	18.3
August	26.8	257	18.0
September	25.5	138	12.2
October	22.7	76	9.4
November	18.7	45	7.3
December	15.1	25	6.3

Data: long-term station averages from the Vietnam Institute for Building Science and Technology (IBST). Rainy days as reported by the station.

Best Months to Visit

Best time: Sep-Nov golden rice season, best waterfall flow after rainy season, clear skies. Mar-May also good. Avoid Jun-Aug heavy rain.

Highlights

Dramatic karst peak with a natural hole through the middle, like an eye sculpted by water erosionAngel Eye Mountain (God Eye Mountain)
Seasonally transforms from a flooded karst lake into an open meadow, offering two completely different landscapes across the yearAngel Eye Mountain (God Eye Mountain)
Scenic motorbike ride from Cao Bằng; best visited at sunrise or sunset for magical light through the mountainAngel Eye Mountain (God Eye Mountain)
Largest waterfall on any national border in Southeast Asia, straddling the Vietnam-China lineBan Gioc Waterfall
Bamboo raft rides to the base of the falls and close to the border midpointBan Gioc Waterfall
Golden rice terraces on the Vietnamese bank in September and OctoberBan Gioc Waterfall
14 hairpin switchbacks stacked into roughly 15 tiers on a near-vertical mountainside, packed into just 2.5km of roadKhau Cóc Chà Pass
A roughly 30-40 minute hike up to Đỉnh Pác Thốc, the mountain facing the pass, leads to the best panoramic viewpoint over the full switchback sequenceKhau Cóc Chà Pass
Part of a scenic loop route through Cao Bằng's border districts near China, with dramatic mountain scenery throughout the driveKhau Cóc Chà Pass
One of northern Vietnam's richest displays of stalactites, stalagmites, flowstone curtains, and cave coral, spread across a system with three entrances and a full guided route of about 3.3kmNguom Ngao Cave

What To Do

Nature & Outdoors

Camping
Trekking
Hiking
Caving
Cycling

Culture & History

Photography
History
Museum Visit

Activities & Adventure

Motorcycling

Chill & Relax

Boat Tour

Suggested Itineraries

2D1N

Ban Gioc focus

Day 1Ban Gioc Waterfall + Nguom Ngao Cave

Ban Gioc WaterfallNguom Ngao Cave

Ban Gioc is 90km from Cao Bang city - be there when it opens at 7am, before the tour groups arrive. The falls straddle the Vietnam-China border, and the mist in the morning light is extraordinary. Nguom Ngao Cave is 3km away - about 3km of passages full of stalactites and stalagmites.

Day 2Pac Bo Historic Site + Thang Hen Lake

Pác Bó Historic SiteThang Hen Lake

Pac Bo is where Ho Chi Minh lived and worked in secret from 1941-1945. The cave, the stream, and the mountain he named after Lenin and Marx are all still here. Thang Hen Lake: a cluster of 36 interconnected lakes in the karst landscape - beautiful cycling country.

3D2N

Full province circuit

Day 1Arrive Cao Bang + Thang Hen Lake

Thang Hen Lake

Arrive Cao Bang. Afternoon motorbike to Thang Hen - 35km, beautiful karst plateau.

Day 2Ban Gioc Waterfall + Nguom Ngao Cave

Ban Gioc WaterfallNguom Ngao Cave

Full day at Ban Gioc. Stay overnight near the falls if you want to be there at opening (7am) without the long drive.

Day 3Pac Bo Historic Site + return

Pác Bó Historic Site

Pac Bo in the morning. Return to Cao Bang for bus back to Hanoi.

Places to Visit · 7 spots

Mountain

Angel Eye Mountain (God Eye Mountain)

Angel Eye Mountain - also known as God Eye Mountain or Núi Thủng - is a limestone karst peak in Cao Bằng with a perfectly circular 50m hole piercing through its summit, set in the Thang Hen valley where the surrounding flatland floods into a 15-hectare lake each rainy season.

Year-round

Waterfall

Ban Gioc Waterfall

Bản Giốc is the largest waterfall on any national border in Southeast Asia - a 300-metre-wide curtain of water crashing across three tiers on the Vietnam-China border in Cao Bằng, surrounded by karst mountains and emerald pools.

Sep - Oct

Mountain Pass

Khau Cóc Chà Pass

Khau Cóc Chà Pass, sometimes called the '15-tier pass,' is one of Cao Bằng's most dramatic mountain roads - just 2.5km long but packed with 14 hairpin switchbacks connecting Xuân Trường commune to Bảo Lạc town near the Chinese border, with a short hike leading to the best panoramic viewpoint over the whole switchback sequence.

Nov - Apr

Cave

Nguom Ngao Cave

Nguom Ngao Cave - 'Tiger Cave' in the Tày language - is one of northern Vietnam's finest cave experiences: a system with three entrances, surveyed at over 2km and explorable in full along a roughly 3.3km guided route, with dense stalactite and stalagmite formations and near-total silence, just 3km from Bản Giốc Waterfall.

Year-round

Photo coming soon

Historic Site

Pác Bó Historic Site

Pác Bó is where Hồ Chí Minh secretly returned to Vietnam on January 28, 1941, after 30 years in exile - establishing his jungle base in a limestone cave beside the Lenin Stream, roughly 50-55km north of Cao Bằng city near the Chinese border.

Oct - Apr

Valley

Phong Nặm Valley

Phong Nậm Valley is one of Cao Bằng's most beautiful hidden gems - a wide agricultural valley where the Quây Sơn River winds between limestone peaks and golden rice fields, 15km from Trùng Khánh and 25km upstream from Bản Giốc Waterfall. September to October is peak season when the harvest turns the valley floor gold.

Mar - May, Sep - Oct

Photo coming soon

Lake

Thang Hen Lake

Thang Hen is a cluster of 36 interconnected karst lakes on a plateau 30km from Cao Bằng city, famous for their intense turquoise-blue water surrounded by limestone mountains and green grasslands. Visit June to September - outside the rainy season the lake drops to an unimpressive pond and the grass turns brown.

Jun - Sep

Getting There

Hanoibus

6-7 hours200,000-300,000 VND

Limousine vans more comfortable than regular buses. Ban Gioc is about 90km from Cao Bang city and Pac Bo about 50km - motorbike essential.

Ha Giangmotorbike

5-6 hoursPetrol only

Classic circuit: Ha Giang Loop → Cao Bang → back to Hanoi. Spectacular mountain road connecting the two provinces.

Emergency & help

112Emergency (all services)
113Police
114Fire and rescue
115Ambulance

Free from any phone. National emergency line since 2025, routes to police, fire or ambulance.