What to Pack for Your Trek Through Son Doong Cave
What you pack for your trek through Son Doong will make a huge difference in your experience. You’ll be crossing rivers, scaling walls, and scrambling through rocks and mud, all with wet shoes and socks. Expect everything to become damp or soaked through by the end of your trip – nothing will dry well in the caves. Although this sounds like it could be miserable, it’s not if you come prepared!
You’ll want to prioritize buying great shoes, wool socks, and quick-dry clothing. Here’s everything we packed with tips on what to look for when buying so you can avoid getting blisters and getting bitten by leeches.
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What gear does Oxalis Adventure provide?
Hiking gear you can borrow from Oxalis Adventure
The Oxalis Adventure Gear Shop
What to pack for Son Doong:
What gear does Oxalis Adventure provide?
Camping equipment
The following gear is labelled so you have the same camping gear each night:
Tent
They’ll ask about preferable tent sizes at the safety briefing. Whether you’re hiking with a group or not, you’ll have the option to choose a single tent or to double up with a partner
Sleeping pad
Pillow
Sleeping bag
Other gear
15 L dry bag (provided prior to departure)
Bag for wet clothing (provided after the first day of hiking)
Helmet
Caving headlamp
Gloves
Climbing equipment
First aid kit
Satellite phone
Toilets and hand-washing stations at each campsite
Hiking gear you may borrow from Oxalis Adventure
Jungle boots
The guides highly recommend wearing your own shoes if possible. They’ll be more comfortable, fit better, and you’ll get fewer blisters. Regardless, if your safety guide deems your boots unfit for the trek, you’ll have to borrow the jungle boots. They have them in sizes 36-46 EU.
Jungle boots
Day hiking backpacks
Your day hiking backpack needs to be large enough to fit a helmet, personal layers, and a water bottle. To help with preservation of the cave, nothing can hang on the outside of your backpack.
1L water bottle
This water bottle is the perfect size for this trek. You’ll have the opportunity to refill it every morning, during your lunch break, and every evening.
Gloves
Oxalis Adventure will provide a pair of rubber gloves to everyone on the trek. Aside from the hike into the cave, you'll wear these every day of the trek. They only had one large size available. If you have small hands, like Meghann, bring a pair of smaller gloves, like these, that fit well. You’ll want some dexterity when using the climbing clips.
Oxalis Adventure’s Gear Shop
If you forget to bring something, Oxalis Adventure has a gear shop. You can purchase items online, or on the night of your safety briefing. You can see all the gear they offer here, but the most popular item was the long sleeve neon shirts to help you stand out in the cave.
What to pack for Son Doong
Footwear
Boots
Prioritize buying a great, extremely grippy pair of hiking boots or trail runners because the jungle and caves are very muddy and slippery.
You’ll be going through many river crossings with the boots on, so they’ll need to be able to drain water. Do NOT buy shoes that are waterproof or have Gore-Tex.
You’ll want boots that have a quarter inch (6.35 mm) grip over the entire shoe, like Meghann’s Salomon Speedcross pair shown here.
Salomon Speedcross
Zach’s pair of boots had similar grip on the heel and toe of the shoe, with less grip in the middle. Our safety guides at Oxalis Adventure accepted them at the safety briefing, but they filled with mud and became slippery – more so than the Solomons.
Good shoes shouldn’t need to be broken in; however, you will want to try them out for a hike or two to get familiar with them and ensure they’re right for you. Don't overdo this and wear them down though – we saw boots get turned down by safety guides for being too worn in and not having enough grip left.
Footwear recommendations
Both La Sportiva and Salomon shoes run narrow. Order a half size up if you have wide feet.
Salomon Speedcross in black, on the right
Post-trek
These boots will be wet after your trek, too. The Chày Lâp Farmstay has a hose and scrub brushes to clean them off after your trek, but they will take a few days to dry out. Bring another set of shoes to wear on the days following your trek to Son Doong.
Wool socks
You’ll want four pairs of calf-length wool socks. Bring one pair for each day of trekking because they won’t dry between days of hiking. Wool is the best material to help regulate temperature, prevent odors, prevent blisters, and wick away moisture on the off chance you’ll have a day of trekking with somewhat dry conditions.
You’ll be tucking your pants into your socks to prevent leeches from going up your legs. Although this sounds like it would be uncomfortable, neither of us had a problem with it, and it worked very well to keep the leeches away from our skin.
Beware of socks that stretch out enough to see your skin through the weaving. There are baby leeches that can bite through the tiny holes in the weaving. We were thankful our Darn Tough socks kept us bite-free!
Sock recommendations:
We tried a variety of Darn Tough’s socks and found that their “micro crew, lightweight with cushion, hike/trek socks” were our favorites for this trek. Plus, Darn Tough guarantee their socks for life, and they have a ton of fun designs.
Darn Tough sock recommendations for men:
Darn Tough sock recommendations for women:
Trekking clothing
Long sleeves
You’ll want three to four long-sleeve, quick-dry shirts. Bright clothing helps you show up in the photos throughout the cave and jungle. Purchase the brightest shirts you can find!
Oxalis Adventure will have neon shirts available for purchase at your safety briefing as well, but it’s best to come prepared.
There will be three days (the first, second, and last day) of the trek where you’ll have to hike in the jungle and have some sun exposure. You can wear any shirt and a sunhat or wear a baseball hat and sun shirt with a hood on each of these days.
Long sleeve shirt recommendations:
Long sleeve sun shirts with hoods (men’s/women’s)
This is the best hooded sun shirt we’ve found
The hoods stay on
There is material that provides cover for your neck and chest
They have holes for ponytails in the hood
Short-sleeved shirt recommendations:
Arm sleeves like these are required to be worn with short sleeves
Hiking pants
Bring two to four pairs of quick-dry hiking pants. You’ll want pants that you can comfortably bend and move in. If you can’t do a squat comfortably in them, they aren’t the pants for this trip. We also prefer hiking pants with stretchy bands over belts, which tend to come loose while hiking.
Hiking pant recommendations for men:
Hiking pant recommendations for women:
Deep pockets
Zippered pockets
Sunglasses
Sunglasses are recommended as well – it’s bright in the jungle! This brand is the perfect pair for this trek. They won't slip off.
Bandanna
Oxalis Adventure recommends bringing a headband or bandanna to wear under your helmet. This helps add a bit of cushion, keeps your hair from getting caught in the helmet, and keeps sweat off your face. Meghann brought a headband, but it was loose and wouldn’t stay in place with the helmet on. A bandanna, like this one, would be the more foolproof option.
Campsite essentials
Change of clothes
Since our trek was in mid-March, we were comfortable changing into the next day's trekking outfit each night at camp (using them as pajamas as well). Our rain jackets were enough to keep us warm on the chilliest night, but if it had been any earlier in the year (between January and early March), a beanie and mid-layer (men’s/women’s) would have been necessary.
If you’re visiting between April and August, Oxalis Adventure recommends bringing a pair of shorts and t-shirts to wear at camp.
Swimsuits
You’ll have one opportunity to swim in a bathing suit and it’s the best way to bathe (without soap). Respect the Vietnamese culture and bring a more modest bathing suit.
Quick-dry towel
Our quick-dry towel was the only fabric that dried while on this trek! One large towel is enough to dry both of us off.
Headlamp
Oxalis Adventure provides a caving headlamp attached to your helmet, but you’ll still want to bring a headlamp to use around camp. Even though we never had to change our headlamp batteries, bring an extra set of AAA batteries just in case.
Sleeping bag liner
This one is optional, but you can pack a sleeping bag liner if you’re worried about being too cold (it adds an extra layer) or too hot in your sleeping bag (sleep in the liner on top of the bag).
Outerwear
Rain jacket
If you're trekking between January and March, you’ll want to bring a rain jacket with you. It may rain while you’re in the jungle, and you can use it as a windbreaker in the caves. These ones (men’s/women’s) are our favorites because they have zippers in the armpit which are very helpful to prevent overheating while hiking in them.
The third, and coldest campsite
Hiking gear
Hiking daypack
You’ll want a medium-sized hiking backpack for this trip. We love our Deuter bags (men’s/women’s) and this 24 L is the perfect size to stash your helmet, water bottle, and personal items. We’ve had our bags for nearly a decade, and they still look like new!
Gloves
Although Oxalis Adventure provides a one-size-fits-all glove for everyone, if you have smaller hands, bring your own pair. Wearing an oversize glove will make using the climbing clips difficult. Any pair of rubber gardening gloves, like these, will work.
Personal supplies
Electrolytes
You’ll need to be replacing salt and electrolytes that you’ll be sweating out. It’s easiest to do this by putting electrolyte tablets, like Nuun, in your water bottle. They come in caffeinated and uncaffeinated tablets, and we prefer these over the pour-in powders since there is less garbage to manage on the trail with the tablets.
Boltz Energy Chews are another crowd favorite to help energize on the trail. We like sharing a pack between the two of us as a treat, but we think that the Nuun replaces electrolytes more efficiently.
If you’d rather not add an electrolyte mix and flavor to your water, you can take these electrolyte pills (caffeinated/uncaffeinated) hourly instead.
Zach dipped his hat in the river to cool off
Sunscreen
You’ll be trekking in the jungle for three of the days of the trek. Bring sunscreen with you. We like this sunscreen by Neutrogena because it has the safest product rating for sunscreen on the EWG’s Skin Deep guide.
Mosquito repellent
This is our favorite insect repellent. It’s made with essential oils and has worked just as well as DEET has for us in the past, but without all the chemicals. Even though mosquitoes LOVE Zach, we never applied the insect repellent, and he only got a few bites while hiking in the jungle and near rice fields in other parts of Vietnam during mid-March.
Body Glide
If you are prone to chafing, you’ve got to get Body Glide. Put it on at the beginning of the day wherever your problem areas are, and you won’t have to reapply all day.
Hand fan
If you’ll be trekking between April and August, you’ll want to bring a hand fan. We love that this one rests on your shoulders, keeping your hands free, but we also love this handheld fan that can double as a nightstand fan for the rest of your trip.
Wet wipes
Grab a travel-size pack of biodegradable wet wipes, like these. You’ll have the option to swim on the first and second day of your trip, but not on the third and final night in the cave. You’ll be using these wipes to clean off instead.
Swimming, fully clothed, on day two
Biodegradable soap
You’ll have the ability to wash your hair on the first night of the trip at the campsite in Hang En because water is abundant. Wash your hair at the handwashing station, not in the lake, and only use biodegradable soap, like this. Every other campsite has water trekked in by the porters, so use the water sparingly elsewhere.
Hang En
Blister dressings
We were thankful not to get blisters – wearing shoes that fit well with the wool socks we recommend is key! However, if you do get blisters, your guides will have a blister kit in their first aid kit, or you could take care of them yourself. We recommend using a bandaid on the blister, or sore spot, with Leukotape over it to prevent them from getting worse.
Anti-fungal food powder
After wearing wet shoes and socks all day, it felt so good to put Gold Bond powder on our feet and immediately feel dry. Plus, it helps control odor and skin irritation. Buy this tiny travel-size bottle.
Earplugs
You never know who you’ll be camping near – bring earplugs just in case your neighbor snores!
Chapstick
It can be hard to stay hydrated while backpacking, and chapped lips are one of the consequences. This lip balm is the best extreme weather lip balm – one application will stay on all day, and it's made with all-natural ingredients.
Toiletries
Don’t forget to pack the usual travel-size toiletries – toothbrush, toothpaste, and compact brush.
Ziploc bags
We used gallon sized Ziploc bags to keep our personal items and toiletries organized and dry. They make for great garbage bags as well.
Personal medication
Including inhalers, EpiPens, and personal prescriptions or preferred medication. You will carry these on you at all times in your daypack.
Electronics
Power battery bank
There is no electricity or power in the caves. If you’d like to recharge phone or camera batteries, bringing a power bank is a must. Since we exclusively shot content from our phones, we charged them each night at camp to have a full battery the following day. This battery bank was the perfect size for topping off two smartphones throughout the journey. This slim power bank is affordable, lightweight, and can provide roughly 1.5 full smartphone charges.
Cameras
Even though we’re professional photographers, we opted not to bring DSLR cameras with us on this trip. We wanted to focus on experiencing the tour, not necessarily photographing it. Your smartphone will likely do just fine taking videos and photos throughout the caves. All our photographs were taken on an iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro.
Of course, if you have experience shooting in low light and you’d rather capture higher-quality images, bring a DSLR or mirrorless camera. However, know that you’ll be spending most of your scenic breaks setting up and taking down your tripod to capture photos in low-light conditions. Those who had cameras in our group rarely used them.
Here’s what we'd recommend bringing with a camera:
A camera equivalent to or better than the Canon 5D Mark IV
You’ll want a camera with a good range of ISO for low-light conditions
A wide, zoom lens, like the Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L III USM
Long exposures burn through batteries quickly
Never buy off brand batteries – they can damage your camera
Only buy memory cards from reliable brands
We suggest using a new memory card for each day of the trek in Son Doong
This will help keep your photos organized, but it will also ensure that you’ll still have a good number of photos even if one memory card goes corrupt
We keep our cards organized by putting formatted, ready to use cards face up, and used cards face down
Do not use the card holders with a slide-in style – they can damage the cards
This must fit inside your hiking backpack with the helmet
Make sure any tripod you buy will hold the weight of your camera and lens
A smaller 3 L dry bag for batteries, memory cards, and cables
A larger 5 L dry bag for storing your camera
This clip allows you to keep your camera clipped onto your backpack’s shoulder strap to be easily accessed while hiking
Entertainment
You will have a few free hours to spend at camp each night. We opted not to bring any entertainment with us and enjoyed spending our time around the campfire each night, but others brought books, journals, or portable games. We’d recommend bringing a deck of playing cards like these Basecamp Cards, which double as playing cards and conversation starters and can be paired with games like cribbage.
One of the safety guides was kind enough to share candy with everyone on the trail one day too. We regretted not bringing American candy to share with the whole group. Some of our safety assistants were shy at the start of our trip, and this would have been such a fun way to get to know them.
Sweet potatoes over the fire
What to pack in your dry bag
Oxalis Adventure will give you a dry bag to borrow on the trip. Since the porters will be carrying it, they ask you to keep its packed weight below 7 kg (15 lbs.). Only put items in it that you will not need throughout the day. You’ll drop this bag off at the front desk of the Commander Lodge the morning you start your trek, and you won’t see it again until you reach camp that evening.
If you pack separate outfits for each day of the trek, you could hit the weight limit with clothing alone. If you pack less clothing, you could also pack your toiletries, entertainment, or power bank in the dry bag as well. Please respect the porters and keep the weight under 7 kg.
What to pack in your day hiking backpack
You’ll be carrying everything that doesn’t fit into your dry bag in your hiking bag. Since we have experience backpacking carrying 14 to 20 kg (36 to 45 lbs.), this didn’t bother us. If you have less experience, emphasize packing light.
Regardless of what you can manage to fit in your dry bag, keep these items with you in your daypack:
Water bottle
Helmet
Gloves
Sun hat
Sunscreen
Mosquito repellent
Electrolytes
Blister dressings
Headlamp
Phone
Camera
Camera accessories
Personal medications
What not to pack
Trekking poles
As much as we love to use our trekking poles hiking at home (they prevent knee injuries!), don’t bother bringing them for your trek to Son Doong. The trails inside the cave have too much scrambling to make use of trekking poles and they would get in the way.
Water bladders
Again, we love using water bladders when we’re hiking at home. However, the mouthpiece would likely get contaminated during river crossings. Instead, use the water bottle Oxalis Adventure provides. You’ll have the chance to refill it every morning, at lunch, and in the evenings which will help keep your pack light.
Drones
Drones are not allowed in the Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park, including inside Son Doong.
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