This is a good day's trip from Hanoi - we left at 8.30 and got back at 6.30. The bus trip there is OK - the roads are fine, if slow, and there's plenty of city and country life to see from the windows. The last hour to the base of the mountain is via a leisurely row-boat trip up the river through jutting mountains. It's a peaceful and attractive journey - although you might want to bring something to cushion your backside - the seating on the boats is very basic.

The walk up the mountain to the pagoda grotto is no stroll - it's about 2 km up and 2 km down some steep and often slippery steps. But there are plenty of places to rest and have a cold drink along the way. The pagoda itself is more interesting for its importance to Vietnamese Buddhists than any intrinsic architectural merit. But it's a good hike, and you work up an appetite for the lunch that should be included in your tour.

After a late lunch, there's time for a quick tour of a nearby temple, then it's back on the boats and to the minibus for the return to Hanoi.

One-day tours from Hanoi should cost about US$10-11. Don't use Compass Tours in Hanoi! They tried to charge us well over the odds.