Vietnamese cooking classes in Ninh Binh

You can take a cooking class right across the Ninh Binh area, including Tam Coc, Trang An, near Mua Cave and in Ninh Binh city. On Ninh Binh Cooking Class you see every class on a map, so you can pick the one closest to where you are staying.

Most cooking classes in the Ninh Binh area cost between about 350,000 and 550,000 VND per person, roughly 13 to 21 US dollars. That includes the class, all ingredients and the full meal you cook and eat together. Drinks are not included. The exact price per menu is shown on each class page.

Just you. You cook with the people you booked with, not in a class with strangers. Most hosts take one group at a time, so a couple gets a private class and a family or group of friends has the kitchen to themselves. Where a host can take more than one group, each group cooks at its own table.

If you can pick a date and time on the class page, it is available and you can book it straight away. Times that are full are greyed out and cannot be selected. There is no need to email us to ask; the calendar is always up to date.

No. You can book up to 4 hours before the class starts, also on the day itself, as long as the host still has a sitting free. Booking earlier gives you more choice of dates and start times, and it is wise in the high season and at weekends. You pay when you book and your place is confirmed straight away.

It depends on the host, but classes typically cover Vietnamese favourites such as fresh spring rolls, banh xeo pancakes, pho, clay-pot dishes and local Ninh Binh specialities like com chay (crispy rice) and goat dishes. Each class page lists the dishes per menu as a guide: they can differ a little with the season and with what is fresh at the market that day.

Yes. In the booking form, tap "Mixed group? Choose a menu per person" and set how many people take each menu, for example 6 meat and 2 vegetarian. You cook together in one class, each with your own dishes, and pay in one go: every menu at its own price.

Yes. Every class has a fully vegetarian menu, and hosts adapt for allergies and other dietary needs. Just mention it when you book and we pass it on.

Yes. Pick the menu you like and write in the note when you book that you do not eat pork, seafood or both. Your host makes the same dishes with chicken or beef instead of pork and leaves out seafood, for the same price. Most Vietnamese dishes and the dipping sauce use fish sauce, which is made from anchovies: if you do not eat that either, say so and your host cooks with soy sauce. The kitchens are ordinary family and restaurant kitchens where pork and seafood are also cooked, not certified halal or kosher kitchens.

Yes, children are welcome at both of our classes. The classes are hands-on, so kids get their own spring rolls to roll and their own bowl to eat from, and hosts are used to families. Children aged 6 and under come along for free: they can watch, roll a spring roll and taste, but they hardly eat a full portion. Do not count them in the number of people, just mention them in the booking note so the host knows. From 7 up, children count as a person.

Yes. You can move your booking to another date, or change the number of people, free of charge up to 48 hours before the class starts. If you cancel more than 48 hours before, you get a full refund to the card you paid with. Less than 48 hours before, or if you do not turn up, there is no refund, because your host has already bought the ingredients. If the host has to cancel, you always get everything back. Use the link in your confirmation email, or just reply to it.

A cooking class is the easiest wet weather plan: you cook under cover, and you get lunch or dinner out of it as well. The Trang An boat trip also still works, since much of the route is inside caves, but skip the Mua Cave steps because they get slippery and the view sits in cloud. We wrote a full rainy day guide for Ninh Binh and Tam Coc.

Because every class is shown on the map with its exact location, you can see how far it is from your hotel or homestay and get directions. Many classes are within cycling or short taxi distance of Tam Coc and Ninh Binh city.