Phong Nha is the BEST Kept Secret in Vietnam! | On The Road with Niall and Adrie #1

"Here in Phong Nha, tourism isn’t just an industry—it’s a lifeline for local communities." – Ben

Spending time with Ben Mitchell, someone who has dedicated 18 years to nurturing and showcasing Phong Nha—Vietnam’s most stunning and underrated regions—was an absolute privilege. His stories about the region’s transformation, from remote villages to a budding hub of sustainable tourism, were nothing short of inspiring. 

It’s incredible to see how tourism here is not only preserving the natural beauty of the National Park but also empowering local communities to thrive.

What struck me the most was the balance Phong Nha has achieved—it remains raw and untamed while offering unforgettable experiences, from exploring massive caves like Son Doong to riding through misty mountain roads on a motorbike. This episode reminded me why I fell in love with Vietnam’s landscapes, its rich history, and the resilience of its people.

Phong Nha is not just a destination; it’s a journey into the heart of Vietnam’s culture, nature, and soul. I left with a sense of awe and a promise to return—and I hope this episode inspires others to do the same.

• Niall Mackay

Key Takeaways:

The Magic of Phong Nha’s Caves - From Paradise Cave to Son Doong, these caves are among the most spectacular in the world.

Sustainable Tourism Success - How tourism has transformed Phong Nha while preserving its natural beauty.

Biodiversity and Six Seasons - Phong Nha boasts incredible biodiversity and a unique climate with six seasons.

The Ho Chi Minh Trail and History - Phong Nha’s critical role during the Vietnam War and its historical significance.

Experiencing Phong Nha on a Motorbike - Why exploring this region on two wheels is the ultimate adventure.

Chapters:

03:00 – M

7 Bridges Brewing Co. - An award winning Vietnamese craft brewery from Da Nang, with breweries across Vietnam!

Rabbit Hole Irish Sports Bar - Check out their new location on Tran Nao with the best views in the city over Landmark 81!

Transcript

Niall: 2:28

Hey, we're at, Phong Nha Farmstay. We've just had an amazing breakfast. Ben has taken us out for a village walk.

Ben: 2:35

Happened until about two years ago, there was a huge bomb crater right here.

Niall: 2:39

So at the homestay you have like the unexploded bombs, the ordinances, and is that a problem out here? Yeah, it's a huge problem.

Ben: 2:55

We do this morning walk each morning with the guests. We ask them to book it the night before to make sure either myself. or one of the, uh, capable local staff can do it. Make sure they're available. And we, uh, we go around the village and tell people about the village. The, uh, the land out here on my right is all the rice paddy land for the village. They, uh, each family gets its own square of rice paddy land. They sow it at the end of December, beginning of January. and they harvest it in April. Then they harvest, they sow a second crop. The second crop is prone to failure though because of the possible lack of water during summer. And the, uh, floods can come and take it just before it's harvested. So, uh, the people in this hamlet in particular have opted now not to grow the second crop. They're a lot more economically They're not as economically challenged as they used to be. So to put all that work into a crop that they could very well lose, or get a very poor yield on anyway, it's become not worth it in recent years. Rice.

Niall: 4:18

But just a different variety or? Well, it's because

Ben: 4:21

of the water and the, and the flooding and that issue. So some villages in the area still do grow the second crop. That village down there does. But this village doesn't. What they do with that land now is leave it all fallow and they turn it over to common grazing land. Now while you, as we go through the village you'll see that there's uh, These dilapidated old cow houses everywhere. While people don't keep a cow anymore for working, they do, a lot of families do run both cattle and buffalo for the meat industry to sell for, um, for their meat. They, With the economic growth that's happened here, now people can afford to eat beef and can afford to eat buffalo. So people do grow them for that. There is the occasional family left around. who have a working cow. They're traditionalists. They're, they're, they're keeping the, uh, the old culture alive of, of using working cows and buffaloes. But most people now, well, everyone has a motorbike. Yep. So if you need to get something from A to B, you put it on the back of a motorbike and take it. Whereas they used to put it in a bullet wagon and drag it with the, with the cow. The other thing is, is that a lot of people around the village have got machines now to do the ploughing and things. So they pay someone a bit of rice. at harvest time in order to, to pay for the, uh, the plowing of the land or the harvesting of the machine. This little house here has been built to keep cows in. They'll keep them in here now that they're starting to plow and sow right through to the harvest. They have to feed them here. So you can see all this long grass out the back here has all been grown to feed the cows, but the staple of what they feed the cows along with the haystacks that they build when they harvest. is these banana tree trunks. They chop them up like coleslaw and feed it to the cow. That's why every afternoon around Vietnam, central Vietnam, you'll see people riding along with a banana tree across the back of the motorbike. Causing carnage on the road. They're taking that home to feed to the cow. So you can see this bunch of bananas up here. When they harvest that bunch of bananas, then that big stem there will be ready to harvest. But it can sit there alive and wait. until they're ready for it. So all these banana trees around here are not all being grown because we like bananas. They're being grown because they're a stock food. The bananas can be eaten or sold as a by product of growing this stock food. And then it's constantly renew rejuvenating because the tree grows from the bottom and it keeps putting more up. So it's a sort of renewable.

Niall: 7:04

Yeah. So we were talking last night, would there be a point where worldwide, not just in Vietnam, but I guess in Vietnam as well, as it's modernizing, like the seeing people having more money. Well, they get to a point where people just don't want to work the land, and there's nobody left to work the land, because But I think you mentioned it's getting mechanized.

Ben: 7:25

Well, I've seen, I've seen, I've been really lucky to witness here, them going from subsistence farming to go through all different stages of development, up to the point now where they're all starting to buy cars. And they're living in brick houses and buying cars. You know, my staff used to walk to work or ride a bicycle. Then they got motorbikes, then, then they got really nice motorbikes. And now a lot of them are starting, the families are starting to buy cars. So it's been big changes, you know. This is a pepper crop here, black pepper. So they go to the jungle and they dig out the tree with the roots and they bring it back and put it in the ground. And then they plant the pepper vine against it. And then the pepper vine will be, say, 12 years cycle. But the tree will stay there alive and hold the pepper vine up. You know, so it's like a living tomato stake, if you like, holding up the pepper. Yeah, and they'll harvest the pepper in April and then they'll sell that as a cash crop But they sell it at a very low wholesale price, you know So I think it's a good idea in the future that You know We look at things like this that we can sell for tourism and we can Mark it as a more boutique sort of product. Over here on the right, we've got sugar cane. That's, uh, when they harvest this crop, people come every morning on motorbikes, and they'll just harvest half a row at a time, and they load the motorbikes, and then it goes back to the cafes, where they juice it and make the new meal. So it might take, you know, once they start harvesting, it could take a month or so, two months to harvest the whole crop. And then it grows back again. Yeah, uh, oh, not that quick. No, really? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Niall: 9:26

Yeah. Yeah.

Ben: 9:29

So with the development, I mean, they, they, a lot of people from this village here have gone overseas to work and they send back a stipend each month to the family back here. Um, the families back here, uh, You know, if they do the farming, well, then what else is there to do, really? There's not the opportunity here for the extra work and things often. So, yeah, it's a, it's a difficult one. And as mechanization comes in, well, it makes it easier for them to do the farming too. But then they say, well, you know what? It's not even worth putting the second crop in anymore. You know, because we've got money coming, coming in from overseas and we've, why go out and do all that work when one in three years the crop fails anyway? for that third crop, uh, second crop.

Niall: 10:22

What we were thinking was as they're like children become more educated go overseas or back to Saigon to study and then they're gonna want to come back. What we're starting to see

Ben: 10:31

now is is that a lot of people go away to work and maybe they leave the grandparents here with the kids and uh the uh grandparents with the kids they can't do the farm work. You know, so they'll hand over their rice growing land. She owns the local bakery and she goes to the market early in the morning and sells all the bread. The uh, the local people are, uh, handing their rice crop over to a neighbor or the man down the street or a cousin and saying you grow the rice, but then he pays rent in rice. So then he gets bigger and bigger, one guy will get bigger and bigger, and he'll buy more machines and do things so he's more effective. And he'll end up doing like a lot of different families rice, and then paying them in a bit of ricer's rent. You know, that seems to be a bit of a trend. Just have a look in here, we'll go and meet my mate if he's home. Most families, no he's not here, bugger. He was here yesterday. No, he's gone. I don't know about that, but he's a working bull. And he's kept here well groomed and educated and everything.

Niall: 11:52

The bull is?

Ben: 11:52

Yeah, the bull. He's obviously, when people need to plough a small area to put a veggie patch or something in, they come over and see Ben, the owner, and they ask him to come and do it because, you know, that no one has a cow anymore to do that work. Yeah. And maybe it's only a small patch that they need to do, but it's going to take all day with a mattock. So they're like, I'll go over and get Ben to come over with his cow and do it. Happened until about two years ago, there was a huge bomb crater right here. They filled it all in. Built this wall and that, built the road. They, uh, when I first came to this village, it was all little wooden huts like this one, and there was no laneways. If you wanted to go from here to the other side of the village, you just walked in the direction you wanted to go. No fences, you know. Um, it's really Civilized now with fences and laneways and roads and things, you know.

Niall: 12:55

So at the homestay you have like the unexploded bombs, the ordinances. Is that a problem out here?

Ben: 13:01

Yeah, it's a huge problem. Oh,

Niall: 13:02

really?

Ben: 13:03

Yeah. Yeah, the whole area is littered with UXOs. It's funny, we're going around the camera today and no one's home. My old mate there's not home. The old fella that lives in this house here behind me, this, this old place here, he, all these people all around here on top of the hill all descended from him. Because he moved here to escape the French. And he moved back from the, the house over on the river and he moved back to the jungle and hid here. and then settled here and then all these people around here were descended from. See this, uh, this crop here is a ginger crop. They've planted that in timing to, uh, harvest for the Tet, for the Chinese New Year. So they'll harvest it just before Tet and turn it into candy, and then they'll sell that at the market. So that's why that's just about, it's grown that high. It's just about ready to harvest. Lady in this place here, she's the head of cleaning up at the Victory Road Villas in town. She's, uh, the old man on the hill here, he's Cousin was my wife's grandfather. So you can sort of see this, this loose connection throughout the village where you could very easily be related to someone. The dogs live in this strange area between barking aggressively but not biting. If they venture outside that, they're gone. Dogs that don't bark, they don't keep. Dogs that bite people, they don't keep. They keep the dogs in the middle ground. So as we come down through here, you've got avocado trees here, pineapples, you've got green tea here on the right, people's, uh, they've got out of season corn growing here, that broadleaf there's turmeric growing amongst the pepper. Be very careful here, if you walk where the motorbike rides, it's not slippery. If you walk out here, it's as slippery as ice.