Situated on the banks of the Ninh River, about 100km from Hanoi, the village of Co Chat in Truc Ninh district, Nam Dinh province is very well-known for silk spinning for centuries. Many generations were born and growing up in the village and spinning the silk just gradually and natural turned to be their instinct.
According to the village elders, the business of raising silkworms and weaving silk thread in Co Chat has existed for a long time. During the French domination, Co Chat silk thread was so well known that in the early 20th century the French built a factory to unravel silkworm cocoons right in the village to take advantage of a large mulberry growing and silkworm raising area along the Ninh River and exploit the villagers’ professional skills. Before 1954, merchants from other regions in the country came to the village to buy silk thread then sell at Do Che Wharf - a bustling port in Nam Dinh.
In 1942, Pham Ruan, a weaver from Co Chat, brought his silk thread to participate in a fair. It was held in the imperial city of Thang Long (present-day Hanoi) by the Southern government to display famous products from traditional craft villages nationwide, and he won the grand prize of the Governor’s Palace of North Vietnam.
Co Chat silk thread is very famous thanks to its delicacy, softness and natural bright color. Nowadays, the elders in the village still keep their habit of making silk thread using the traditional method to preserve their ancestors’ craft while the younger generation use modern machines and invest in workshops to increase the productivity of silk thread. The process of making silk thread lasts about 30 days, from silkworms eating mulberries and creating cocoons to reeling silk. The silk thread is then rolled around a tube and dried. The development of the craft of making silk thread in Co Chat provides jobs for a large number of workers in the region with an average income of about 2-3million VND/month. The product of village is mainly exported to Laos, Thailand and Cambodia.
How to get to Co Chat Village?
It is easy to get to Co Chat Village from Hanoi by car. It is totally possible to connect tour with Ninh Binh, Halong or Mai Chau by car. In practice, tour operators don’t design separate program to Co Chat Village, but combine with other destination to save budget.
- Co Chat Village – Hanoi: 110km
- Co Chat Village – Mai Chau: 240km
- Co Chat Village – Tam Coc: 80km
- Co Chat Village – Halong: 220km
Tour Program:
Day 1 : Ha Noi - Tam Coc (B, L)
Approx: transfer 2h, boating 2h, biking 1hr
Day 2 : Tam Coc – Co Chat – Hai Hau (B, L, D) Visit Co Chat village
2h transfer / 1-2h biking
Day 3 : Nam Dinh - Ha Long (B, L, D)
4h transfer
Day 4 : Ha Long – Ha Noi (B, L)
4h transfer
Activities offered
- See women boiling cocoons and reeling silk in family-sized workshops
- Enjoy peaceful moments in countryside of the Red River Delta
- Discover the history and culture of Co Chat Village by visiting the old complex of temple and pagoda of the village
- Learning about steps to spin and weave silk from cocoons to have final product
