Xom Mung, a remote village, no one “remembers the face, knows the name” but owns a space filled with the yellow color of butterfly flowers. Beautiful and poetic like in cartoon movies.

Mung hamlet is located at the highest position of Hop Phong commune, Cao Phong district, Hoa Binh province, the climate is especially cool in the summer. This is a locality that is considered as the green lung of the province with 520 hectares of natural forest being zoned and protected by local people.

Previously, the road to Mung was far away with high zigzag slopes, the road surface was jagged with gravel and stones. Since 2011, this road has been concreted 4.5/7km, convenient for vehicles in and out.

From the connecting concrete road to the Mung hamlet is 2.5km long. In addition to the cool climate, visitors are impressed with the terraced fields and flower fields of more than 4 hectares. The winding fields, above the stilt roof, create the scenery of an enchanting mountainous region.

At the foot of the field is an ancient banyan tree with a canopy of several tens of meters wide, which is considered a symbol in the spiritual life of the people of this Muong village.

From 2021, some investors come to Mung hamlet to develop tourism. Ms. Pham Thuy, the owner of homestay and glamping (a type of luxury camping), has been planting flower hills on people’s terraced fields since February this year, along with the bamboo forest.

Flower Hill started welcoming guests on May 22 and attracted an unprecedented number of visitors to this locality, reaching more than 4,000 people up to now.

From a remote village, Mung hamlet has gradually transformed into a romantic and poetic destination, but has not lost the inherent simple beauty of a countryside.

“The whole space is filled with the yellow color of butterfly flowers, as beautiful and poetic as in cartoons,” shared Pham Thi Trang (24 years old, Hanoi). A female tourist visited the flower hill on May 31.

Since 6 am, many tourists have come here, Trang advises everyone to go early in the morning to avoid the hot sun and crowds.

In addition to the yellow butterfly flower hill at an altitude of 200m, on the top of the mountain 900m high, there are pink butterfly flowers and cherry apricot flowers. From the top, visitors can enjoy a panoramic view of the area, ancient banyan trees and yellow butterfly flowers below. 

In addition, Mung hamlet also has a bamboo forest with a path through about 300m long for visitors to take pictures and relax. The road to the bamboo forest is quite difficult to go, nearly 3km from the flower hill, need a guide or local people to lead the way.

From here, visitors can enjoy the scenery of the ripe rice season on the terraced fields. Rice in Mung hamlet ripens late, about two weeks before people start reaping.

Coming to Mung hamlet, visitors can also go to homestay and glamping (comfortable camping) to stay overnight and hunt clouds on favorable weather days.

Glamping and cloud hunting area in Mung hamlet. 

Ticket price to visit the flower hill is 20,000 VND for guests in Hoa Binh, 30,000 VND ($1=24,000 VND)for visitors from outside the province. This revenue has helped to gradually improve the lives of local people. 

Hamlet is located about 12km from the road surface of National Highway 6 from Hanoi to Son La, so it is convenient for visitors to visit along the way. Local authorities have proposed to their superiors to develop plans and orientations to develop Mung hamlet into a community  tourist destination.

Next year, Mung will restore the old stilt houses on the terraced fields, build galleries, revive the traditional cultural features of the Muong ethnic group, and attract visitors to learn and experience.

Photo: Tran Thanh Tu, Lan Huong, Nha Tim Homestay