Looking to offer its members a different kind of experience, VIB’s Corporate Credit Reassessment Department chose Cat Tien National Park – a green destination in Dong Nai, approximately three hours from Ho Chi Minh City. With its rich ecosystems and distinctive local culture, Cat Tien offers an immersive setting where nature and meaningful experiences come together.
Over three days and two nights, Phong Nha Holiday accompanied the group on a thoughtfully designed journey, with each day offering a different experience: beginning with cultural stories in Ta Lai, continuing with a cycling and jungle trekking adventure to Bau Sau, and ending with moments of relaxation before the group’s return to the city.
Phong Nha Holiday’s Recommendation for VIB
For a corporate trip, choosing a beautiful destination is only part of the equation. The experience also needs to be engaging enough to inspire curiosity, challenging enough to keep everyone involved, and balanced with enough downtime to truly relax and enjoy the surroundings.
Cat Tien is well suited to this kind of experience. Rather than simply visiting the usual tourist attractions, Phong Nha Holiday designed the programme to take the group through several distinct sides of the region, each offering a different way to experience Cat Tien.
The journey begins with local culture. The group visits Ta Lai to learn about traditional brocade weaving among the Ma and S’Tieng communities, strolls through the surrounding fields, and enjoys dinner at a local Ma family’s home. These experiences offer a gentle introduction to the region, allowing the group to discover Cat Tien through the stories and traditions of the people who call it home.
Then comes nature and adventure. On the second day, the group leaves the familiar roads behind to cycle through the forest before embarking on an approximately 10-kilometre trek to Bau Sau. This part of the journey demands greater physical effort, but it also brings a different rhythm to the trip, with the group moving together through the forest and taking on the trail at their own pace.
Between the activities, there is time to slow down and recharge. Alagon Ecolodge provides a comfortable setting for the group to restore their energy, unwind and enjoy the surrounding nature at a more leisurely pace.
With this approach, the programme balances exploration, physical activity and downtime without trying to pack too much into the itinerary. Each part of the journey offers a different way to experience Cat Tien – from meeting local communities and exploring the forest to simply slowing down and enjoying the surroundings.
3-Day, 2-Night Cat Tien Exploration Itinerary
Day 1: From Ho Chi Minh City to Ta Lai – an introduction to local culture
The journey begins in Ho Chi Minh City as the group heads towards Cat Tien. Upon arriving at Alagon Ecolodge, the group enjoys lunch, checks in and takes some time to relax in the peaceful green surroundings before setting out for the first experiences of the trip.
In the afternoon, the group visits the cocoa farm before heading to Ta Lai Village, where the Ma and S’Tieng communities have lived and maintained their connection to the land for generations. At a traditional brocade weaving house, the group learns about the craft, from the techniques used to create the textiles to the distinctive patterns that reflect the communities’ cultural heritage.
The group learns about traditional weaving and the culture of the Châu Mạ people.
Leaving the weaving house behind, the group takes a walk through the Ta Lai fields as the afternoon draws to a close. The last rays of sunlight cast a soft golden glow over the fields, while the group enjoys drinks and fresh fruit and takes in the open countryside at a leisurely pace.
The group poses for a photo at Ta Lai Field.
As night falls, the group returns to the village for dinner at a local Ma family’s home. Over the meal, members have the opportunity to meet local residents and hear stories about their daily lives, customs and community traditions.
The first day comes to an end with a different side of Cat Tien – peaceful, unhurried and shaped by the people who call the region home.
Day 2: Through the forests of Cat Tien – Trekking to Bau Sau
Leaving Ta Lai behind, the second day takes the group from the region’s local culture into the lush forests of Cat Tien.
After breakfast, the group sets off by bicycle, following shaded trails beneath the tropical forest canopy. Along the way, members stop at notable trees including the ancient Tung tree, the five-trunk Lagerstroemia and the Bac Dong ironwood tree, offering glimpses into some of the distinctive features of Cat Tien’s forest ecosystem.
The group cycles together along tree-shaded trails through Cat Tien National Park.
From E7, the journey takes on a different pace as the group begins an approximately 5-kilometre trek through the forest to Bau Sau.
The group captures a moment beside a tung tree, a distinctive tree species in Cat Tien National Park.
As the trail leads deeper into the forest, the familiar sounds of the city gradually fade away. In their place come birdsong, rustling leaves and the quiet rhythms of the forest. The trail also becomes a chance for the group to move together, support one another and experience the feeling of being fully immersed in nature.
After the trek, Bau Sau opens up amid a vast expanse of green. Recognized as a Ramsar Site and one of the most ecologically significant areas within Cat Tien National Park, the wetland makes a rewarding destination after the long journey.
The group has lunch, takes some time to rest and enjoys the tranquillity of the area before beginning the return journey to E7.
With approximately 10 kilometres of trekking in total, the second day is the most physically demanding part of the trip. Yet what stands out is not simply the distance covered, but the experience of making the journey together.
Back at Alagon Ecolodge, the group has time to relax and enjoy dinner. After a long day in the forest, Cat Tien feels quieter than ever – a fitting end to a day spent exploring it on foot.
Day 3: Farewell to Cat Tien – a few final experiences
After two days of exploration, the final day takes a slower and more relaxed pace.
The morning begins with breakfast at Alagon Ecolodge, followed by time to unwind amid the greenery. The group can stroll around the property, relax by the pool or simply enjoy a few final moments in Cat Tien.
Before leaving, the group visits Ta Lai Cacao Garden to learn more about cacao cultivation and local farming – another perspective on the land and the communities that depend on it.
After lunch, the group boards the bus for the journey back to Ho Chi Minh City.
Three days pass with a succession of experiences: discovering local culture, spending quiet afternoons in the fields, sharing a meal at a Ma family’s home, and venturing into the forest on the trails leading to Bau Sau. Each experience offers a different way to see and appreciate Cat Tien.
What Remains After the Journey
Perhaps the most valuable part of a corporate trip is not how many places the group visits, but what everyone experiences along the way.
For VIB, it was three days away from the familiar rhythm of daily life and into a different setting – one shaped by the cultural stories of Ta Lai, forest trails that called for everyone to move together, and the open landscapes of Bau Sau.
Some of the most memorable moments were also the simplest ones: walking a long stretch of trail together, waiting for someone a little further behind, sitting down over a local meal, or simply having a conversation in a place free from the noise of the city.
This is also what Phong Nha Holiday aims to create when designing programmes for corporate groups: journeys that offer more than a destination, with stories to discover, challenges to take on and time to slow down and connect.
For VIB, Cat Tien became the setting for exactly that – a chance to step further away from the office, closer to nature, and return with more than what a conventional trip might offer.
