Pù Luông Nature Reserve is a nature reserve in northern Vietnam. This nature reserve is situated in Quan Hóa and Bá Thước districts of Thanh Hóa Province, North Central Coast region of Vietnam.
Pu Luong Nature Reserve is bordered by Mai Châu, Tân Lạc and Lạc Sơn districts of Hòa Bình Province. The reserve is located along two parallel mountain ridges, that run from north-west to south-east, and are divided by a central valley, which contains several human settlements and a large agricultural land area, therefore, is not included within the nature reserve. Pù Luông is endowed with great biodiversity, its flora and fauna is closely associated with the Cúc Phương National Park 25 km south-east.
Terraced Field in Phu Luong
When to go to Pu Luong?
Pu Luong is always worth your visit, but May-June and September-October is the best season to go.
May-June: this is summer time but the weather in Pu Luong is extremely cool, the temperature is about 20oC. This is rice transplanting season in Pu Luong. You will indulge the green color and the smell of fresh planted rice.
September-October: after 4 months, the rice is ready to be collected. You can see the giant golden ladder field everywhere on the mountains.
How to get to Pu Luong?
If you depart from Hanoi or from the north of Vietnam in general, you should go to Xuan Mai, Luong Son – Hoa Binh province. Continue to Co Luong, Dong Dieng, after that, turn to 15C route and proceed to Pu Luong Nature Reserve.
If you depart from Thanh Hoa or from the middle, the south of Vietnam: go through Ho Chi Minh route to Cam Thuy, turn right to Canh Nang, then turn to 15C route, continue 10km to Pu Luong.
Where to stay in Pu Luong?
Cozy homestay bedroom in Pu Luong
Pu Luong is a great destination for ecological tourism, tourist who loves the nature, who wants to enjoy the local culture. So if you go to Pu Luong, you can stay in guest houses or local homestay in Kho Muong, Kit, Bang village, etc. to experience more. The price is very reasonable.
Cozy homestay bedroom in Pu Luong
What to see in Pu Luong?
Besides the cool weather all year round, the ladder fields, enormous mountains and local ethnic of minority. Pu Luong offers many things for you to explore.
Top of Pu Luong:
Pu Luong in Thai ethnic language is the tallest mountain in the hood. Top of Pu Luong with the height of 1.700 meters above the sea level, challenges all the tourist who loves trekking and adventures. The French army used to build airfield to retreat and hide lots of historical stories that no one knows. Standing on the top of Pu Luong feels good. You can enjoy the view of the entire majestic jungle, the enormous rice field and the valley, etc. everything within your eyesight.
At the top of Pu Luong
Son Ba Muoi:
Located at the height of 1.180 meters above the sea, it is extremely hard to get through the craggy mountain and forest. The unexplored beauty makes Son Ba Muoi become separated to the outside world but very hard to resist. The journey to Son Ba Muoi is really dangerous and challenging, but the higher you reach, the more peaceful you will see.
Kho Muong Village:
Kho Muong Village is an undiscovered valley of Pu Luong Nature Reserve, this is where Thai ethnic live a long time ago. In Kho Muong, you can enjoy the beauty of nature, cool in the summer and warm in the winter. You can also see and joy with the local people and try their traditional dishes and customs.
Thai ethnic people making clothes
Pho Don market:
When visiting Pu Luong, you should never miss the Pho Don market on Thursday and Sunday every week. People not only trade here, this is the place to exchange culture of many ethnics like Kinh, Thai, Muong…The goods here is mostly house made, people can also use their items to trade for other items.
What to eat in Pu Luong?
Visiting Pu Luong, you will have chance to taste the local food and drink that you can order from where you live, the price is about $4 for a person.
Bitter soup: This dish is made from bitter leaves in the jungle, usually cooked with chicken liver and chicken blood. The bitter taste could be uncomfortable for who just try for the first time, but after that, you will feel the sweetness at the tip of your tongue.
Organic chicken & duck: Very simple, the chicken and duck is breed in the mountains and rivers, they have space to live and eat natural food, so their meat is better than things you buy in the supermarket.
Homemade stem wine
Stem Wine (Ruou Can): This is a special wine of Pu Luong people. The wine is made from cassava and stream water. If the house owner invites you to try this wine, that mean he really likes you.
Ruou Can (Stem Wine)