Lạng Sơn offers an unusual blend of cultural heritage and landscape: Tam Thanh Pagoda is located inside a cave, and its layout differs from that of ordinary pagodas.
Limestone, Caves and Water
The Nhị–Tam Thanh Landscape and Monument Complex lies in the limestone mountain range northwest of Lạng Sơn city, in the Tam Thanh urban ward. Tam Thanh Cave and Tam Thanh Pagoda are historical and cultural monuments, as well as well-known scenic attractions in Lạng Sơn.
In Văn Quan District, you can explore the Na La cave system, passing glittering stalactites, underground streams and narrow passageways. The Na Dương Basin offers a different geological discovery: hike there to find tropical fossils from 40 to 20 million years ago. Na La offers a glimpse of cave formations and water, while Na Dương reveals fossils from the distant geological past.
The Nà Lùng Valley in Văn Quan offers an open landscape. It covers more than 10 hectares, with year-round green meadows and a stream running along the limestone mountains. Underground waters are also among the area’s notable landscape features: the Ngọc Tuyền Stream, over 600 meters long, flows through Nhi Thanh Cave and forms a small waterfall in the Nhất Bích Trì pond.
Pagodas, Citadel and City History
From the citadel of the Mạc Dynasty, you can look eastward across the entire city of Lạng Sơn. The citadel is considered a rare and significant relic of feudal-era defenses. It has been restored and opened for tourist visits; check current access information before visiting.
Tien Pagoda is located on Đại Tượng Mountain, also known as Elephant Mountain, which is shaped like a crouching elephant. Thanh Pagoda offers another historical point of reference: local people founded it around the 15th century, during the Lê Dynasty. The different structures and their histories offer distinct ways to explore the region’s cultural heritage.
Festivals on the Lunar Calendar
The Tam Thanh and Tam Giao Pagoda Festival takes place on the 15th day of the first lunar month. It includes a special procession with a palanquin, and visitors from outside the area also attend. The exact festival program may vary each year. The Tien Pagoda Festival is held annually on the 18th day of the first lunar month and features several distinctive traditional rituals of Lạng Sơn Province. If you want to plan your trip around one of the festivals, take the corresponding lunar-calendar date into account and check the event details for your chosen year.
Communities, Singing and Handicrafts
Kinh, Nùng, Tay and Dao communities live in the Lạng Sơn UNESCO Global Geopark, each with their own languages, crafts and traditions. Then singing is part of Lạng Sơn’s intangible cultural heritage; the Dan Tinh, a traditional gourd lute, is also part of it.
At the Quynh Son community tourism village, visitors can gain insights into local culture, including cuisine, singing, and playing Then and Tinh instruments. The Quynh Son arts group performs Then singing, folk dances and Chau dances for tourists. The village’s architectural heritage includes numerous Tay wooden stilt houses built in the traditional stilt-house style.
In Văn Quan, you can also learn about and try traditional activities: frying rice cakes, making Cao Khô and Khẩu Sli, splitting bamboo strips and weaving simple household items. Alongside sightseeing, these activities offer hands-on insights into crafts and daily life.
Regional Cuisine and Specialties
Visitors to Văn Quan can try sticky rice dishes, local cakes, fish from cage and river aquaculture, roast pork and Khau Nhục. Roast pork with Mắc-Mật leaves is considered a traditional and distinctive dish of Lạng Sơn. Khau Nhục, also called Nằm khâu, originated in China and came to Vietnam through the Tày and Nùng communities. Over time, it became a well-known specialty of Lạng Sơn and is served at family celebrations such as Tết and weddings.
Star anise products are also among the local specialties; star anise is cultivated on more than 34,000 hectares in Lạng Sơn. In the tourism-oriented commune of Bắc Quỳnh, black Chung cake is a signature local dish. Regional dishes can therefore be enjoyed alongside the traditions and local ingredients that shape Lạng Sơn.
Discover more destinations: Lang Son, Binh Dinh, Tây Ninh, tt. Giồng Trôm, Quảng Ninh, Thua Thien-Hue, Bến Tre, Dak Lak.
For the main travel overview: Vietnam.
