Sapa Tour Expert

Sapa and Northeast of Vietnam Adventure Tour 15 Days/14 Nights

This is a combined trip, you will visit the most beautiful part of the North West of Vietnam - Sapa, join in the most interesting Hill Tribe Market, soft adventure to discover the scenic landscapes of the mountainous areas in North East, get understanding the culture of the different hill tribe Vietnamese groups and a really relaxing tour - the World of Wonder - Halong Bay.

Tour Itinerary:

Day 1: Hanoi arrival – Night Train to Sapa (/L/D)
Up on arrival in Noi Bai Airport, Our tour guide and driver will pick you up then transfer to the center for city tour. You will visit the most interesting sites in Hanoi including Ho Chi Minh complex: Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, Ho Chi Minh’s house, house on stilt, one pillar pagoda. Then visit Tran Quoc pagoda (the oldest pagoda in Hanoi), Temple of Literature – the first university of Vietnam date back to 11th century. Have lunch then visit Ngoc Son Temple and Hoan Kiem Lake – the most beautiful lake in the heart of Hanoi. Take 1 hour cyclo tour in the old quarter of Hanoi and enjoy Vietnamese Traditional Water Puppets show. Have diner before transfer to the train station for the night train to Lao Cai. Overnight on the train.
 

Day 2: Sapa Town – Hill Tribe Village (B/)
Arrive Lao Cai Railway Station, drive about one hour on the mountainous road to Sapa.  Have breakfast , visit Sapa market and free at leisure. Have lunch then drive to Lao Chai village to visit the Black H'mong. Keep trekking along the valley to get to Ta Van village to visit the Dzay people live, which supposed to be the friendliest one in mountainous area. The next is Giang Ta Chai village of Red Dzao tribe where you will see the amazing scenery and beautiful rice terraces. Our driver will pick you up then drive back to Sapa Town for overnight.

Day 3: Sapa – Bac Ha Sunday Market (B/L/)
Today we continue our trip to Bac Ha through Lao Cai border city, we drive through spectacular pass to BacHa. With a dozen of tribes living in the surroundings, including Flower HMong, Chinese, Nhang, Dzao, Nung, Phu la, Thai and King (or Viet), the Sunday market of Bac Ha is extremely exciting especially in the early morning. Not a unique in the Northern mountains of Vietnam but one of the very few places whose infrastructure allow the car to reach, Bac Ha soon became a captivating destination. Anyhow, the difficult road helps maintain the colours (literal and figurative sense) of the area. The Sunday market in Bac Ha is often held? well, on Sunday, and a lot of the market sellers are women from the tribe of Flower HMong, who are famous for their wonderful craft and hand-made flowering clothes and textile fabrics. The market is most exciting just for a half day. By 14.00, you may see people leaving (after eating) back to their villages, you can hike around to follow them to their villages too, or take your car heading to further hamlets in Ban Pho, Trieu Cai, or Na Hoi, or trek there and be picked-up to return to Bac Ha, all the villages are within 2- 4km from the marketplace. Overnight in Bac Ha Town.

Day 4: Bac Ha - Hoang Su Phi - Ha Giang (B/L/)
Leaving Bac Ha we set off on a full day journey through Sin Man and Hoang Su Phi to Ha Giang Town. Have your camera at the ready, because the road between Bac ha and Xin Man features a unique and beautiful landscape, plus a fantastic market in Can Cau located right in the heart of mountains. After Can Cau, we proceed along the Chinese border to the remote and seldom-visited province of Ha Giang The rough but scenic route traverse a dense jungle before crossing over a pass and dropping down to Sin Man. This day is a real challenge for our driver as we travel by winding roads with many uphill and downhill drives. Along the way we may encounter the Nung, Tay, Red Dzao, Dzao Ao Dzai, La Chi and Co Lao, just some of the many hill tribe groups who have settled there. We pass by Hoang Su Phi with many villages of Black Mong, Nung along the way and 100-km up and down mountain passes with amazing landscape of mountainous rice paddies. Then we continue along the Lo river to Ha Giang. Ha Giang is located at the highest latitude in Vietnam. It is surrounded by Cao Bang, Tuyen Quang, Lao Cai, and Yen Bai. This is a political sensitive area - Ha Giang shares its borders with Vietnam 's arch-enemy China - and your guide will apply for a "permit" for the days to come. Arrive in Ha Giang town is always a great moment - plus, the town has an excellent massage center. Overnight in Ha Giang.

Day 5: Ha Giang - Sa Phin - Dong Van (B/L/)
Rise and shine for a few hours drive over an endless winding road to the most northern town of Vietnam, Dong Van. You'll travel through many of the Heaven Gates such as Quan Ba, Yen Binh, and Dong Van. They are so called because one gets the feeling of touching the sky, the heaven gates. This is the best time and place to enjoy the wonderful sightseeing of the vast limestone mountain range and perpendicular rock walls which give a feeling of adventure while being lost in a magic land where we are surrounded by many rocks of all shapes and sizes. Then we continue our trip to visit the infamous Vuong Palace, a H'mong high-rank family during French colonial rule. This palace attracts keen interest from architecturally minded visitors due to its mixed style of European and Chinese architecture. The more you go north, the further "normal" Vietnam seems to vanish and most people you'll see wear their traditional, extremely colorful clothes. But you won't be the only one who is amazed, so are Ha Giang's inhabitants who seldom see a foreigner. In Dong Van you'll spend the night in a simple, government run "nha khach" (guesthouse).

Day 6: Dong Van - Meo Vac - Lung Phin - Bac Me (B/L/)
The trip from Dong Van to Meo Vac is one you'll never forget: along a steep, hundreds of meters deep abyss the road will take you through a spectacular mountain area with on your left side China. Meo Vac is conquered by the Lo Lo and Pu Peo ethnic minority people. They still retain their age old cultural traditions and are recognizably distinct from each other by their dress. The remoteness and the simple lifestyle of local people are a highlight of Meo Vac although conditions are very basic. Main goal of this day is a visit to the market of Lung Phin, a small village where time has stood still for ages. Miles and miles before you'll reach Lung Phin there's an endless stream of people accompanied by goats, cows and dogs - for human consumption - who are heading by foot to the market. After spending a few hours in the amazing village of Lung Phin, you'll keep going to Bac Me via Yen Minh, using a short cut way.

Day 7: Bac Me - Bao Lac - Nguyen Binh – Ba Be lakes (B/L/D)
An early morning start to drive through the rolling hills and the picturesque scenery to Ba Be National Park. The roads are very bumpy and zigzagging however we will have a chance to meet the Hmong, Dao, Tay and Nung ethnic minorities who make for the main population of this region. We are sure to attract their attention as this part of the country receive very few visitors. Depending on road and traffic conditions we arrive in Ba Be by late afternoon. Overnight in Ba Be guesthouse.
 

Day 8: Ba Be lakes (B/L/)
The legendary lake of Ba Be is just one continuous water body although the name means three lakes?. Today we embark on a boat cruising down the Nang River which is the main water source of the lake. This exciting river trip will give us a taste of the tranquil countryside and an enjoyable exploration of the Ba Be National Park. We traverse the Poong Grotto en route before stopping at some nearby hill tribe villages and getting off the beaten track to the scenic Dau Dang Waterfalls. In one of the desolated villages near the water you'll spend the night in a traditional Tay house. Home stay in a Tay family.

Day 9: Ba Be - Cao Bang (B/L/)
The following destination of our trip is Cao Bang Town. After breakfast we set off on our half day journey past the spectacular mountainous landscapes, with a mixture of steep terraced rice field and hill villages. Along the way, we can make stops at our pleasure, to stretch our legs and shoot some wonderful photographs. The remainder of the day will be free to explore the town or simply to relax. Overnight in Cao Bang city.

Day 10: Cao Bang- Ban Gioc Waterfalls (B/L/)
An eighty kilometers long road will take you to the Ban Gioc Waterfalls. Half way you'll visit a village of the Nung minority. Close to the Chinese border you'll make a short walk to the falls which are 300 meters wide and 50 meters high. In winter, the dry season, it's possible to take a boat to the falls. On a short distance from the falls are the Nguom Ngao caves. The local guides will take you for a trip to underground rivers and lakes and sinter caves. Late in the afternoon you'll return to Cao Bang. Overnight in Cao Bang city.

Day 11: Cao Bang - Lang Son (B/L/)
Heading out of town, The journey north continues along the National Highway 4 and follows the Ky Cung river which flows around the foot of Limestone Mountains to Lang Son. If time permits we will visit Mau Mount. It's about 30 kilometres from Lang Son city to Mau Mount on the winding narrow mountain path, like a snake, lies tucked between 2 steep mountains. Mau Mount is 1542 m above sea level. This area's picturesque scenery turns it a mini Sapa characterized with the beautiful steep mountains. In the late afternoon we arrive in Lang Son. Just don’t forget to visit Ky Lua busy night market. Overnight in Lang Son city.

Day 12: Lang son - Halong Bay (B/L/D)
Today, we drive early in the morning to Halong Bay through the Red River Delta.
12h30: Board Huong Hai Junk, check-in registration
13h00: Have lunch on board
13h30: A fantastic cruise in Ha Long bay, visit Dinh Huong island (Incense Burn Island), Ga Choi island (Fighting Cocks Island), Dog island, Sail island, visit Sung Sot cave (Surprise Cave). Climb up to Titop’s Peak to View Halong bay. Paddle from Titop beach to Luon Cave.
Enjoy dinner on board. Overnight on board.
 

Day 13: Halong Bay Cruise – Kayaking (B/L/D)
7h00: Have breakfast
7h30: Transfer to day boat and continue kayaking exploration.
Paddle from Luon Cave toward islets in shape of Man’s head island, Tortoise Island, Cua Van fishing village. Have lunch on board.
Paddle to Three Tunnels lake (selected depending on the ties).
Have dinner on board. Overnight on board.

Day 14: Halong – Hanoi (B/L/)
7h00: Have breakfast
7h30: Continue kayak exploration. Paddle to Con Vit islet, Ba Hang area.
10h00: Arrange luggage and check-out
10h30: Have lunch on board
11h45: Arrive Halong wharf. Drive back to Hanoi. Overnight in Hanoi.

Day 15: Hanoi Departure (B/)
Free at leisure until transfer to the airport for the departure flight.

Tour includes:

• English speaking tour guide, other languages are available on request.
• Vietnam visa arrangement (Vietnam visa must be applied in advance)
• Private transportation with A/C including airport pick up and transfer
• Hotel accommodation and home stay
• All entrance fee and permits
• Meals as mentioned in the tour program (B = breakfast, L = lunch, D = diner)
• Deluxe train tickets: Hanoi – Lao Cai
• Traditional junk boat in Halong Bay – joined boat
• Bottled drinking water during the tour

Tour excludes:

• International/domestic airfare with airport taxes
• Visa stamp fee at the airport (25 USD/person)
• Personal expenses such as telephone, laundry, drinks at restaurants,…tips
• Travel insurance
• Other not mentioned in the tour program