NORTHERN VIETNAM TRIBES & LANDSCAPES

Upon arrival at Hanoi airport, you will be greeted at the airport and transferred by private car to your hotel in Hanoi. Early check-in is subject to the availability and at surcharge. Relax and rest after a long flight. Overnight at a hotel in Hanoi.

After breakfast, you will have a day of driving Hanoi to Hoang Su Phi. Lunch is on the way (pay at your own cost). Arrive in Pan Hou village in Hoang Su Phi in late afternoon. Overnight at the Pan Hou Village Ecolodge.

The bird songs who have found refuge in the gardens of Pan Hou Village adds to the calm of this place in the heart of the Song Chay mountains. After breakfast, you will depart by foot to the nearby mountain. The day walk begins his assension and the passage of a neck Promite. The landscape widened to more distant mountains which seem to be moving towards the undulations of feeders terraced slopes. You arrive in a village of Red Dao. The women wear a bright red dress and a shiny brocade and cultivate medicinal plants which are used to cure muscle pain, arthritis, flu, or just relax …After having lunch, your walk continue throught the rice terraces, the reliefs and the tea plantations, then towards a village of Yaos with long tunic and Pan Hou Village.

Dinner and overnight at the Pan Hou Village Ecolodge.

In the morning drive from Hoang Su Phi to Quan Ba. Continue from Quan Ba to Yen Minh with stops in several villages on the way such as Nam Dam (Dzao hill-tribe) and Lung Tam (H’mong hill-tribe) (55km). From Yen Minh, we get into the highest plateau with stunning view and roads. We stop in a little village of Pho Bang by the China/ Vietnam border. There are beautiful old houses here. We continue with a very short drive to Sung La valley, one of the most beautiful valleys in the regions and walk to a beautiful village. From Sung La, we drive to Sa Phin once the capital of Ha Giang and visit the King’s Palace. We continue to Dong Van for overnight.Overnight at a local Hoa Cuong hotel in Dong Van.

Today, we will drive from Dong Van to Meo Vac via the Happiness road over Ma Pi Leng mountain pass. This is one of the best photo stop to enjoy the wonderful sightseeing of this vast limestone mountain range and perpendicular walls of rock, which brings one a feeling of adventure whilst being lost in the rocky highlands. Check-in Meo Vac mountain lodge. In Meo Vac, we visit a few villages here time permitting.

We have a full day ahead to explore the region. Meo Van region is culturally rich with 16 ethnic groups, and blessed with gorgeous mountains and deep rocky valleys.

We pack our picnic lunch and depart from the lodge after breakfast for a day hiking exploration in this little paradise. Along the way you will have many encounters with local villagers on their way to work in corn fields, or collecting wood and plants from the forest. The program will follow your rhythm and the guide will be there to match it with your preferences. This evening we will enjoy second dinner and overnight stay at the lodge.

Bid farewells to Meo Vac after breakfast and get ready for a big driving day through stunning scenery. We journey through three different provinces, Ha Giang, Cao Bang and Bac Kan. Although it’s quite a long drive, the landscape is breathtaking with the Sino-Vietnamese mountain ranges all around. Weather and time permitting we may be able to visit some local villages en-route such as Nung people of Niem Son valley, San Chay people in Bao Lac or Dzao Tien people in Tinh Tuc.
We should enter Pac Ngoi village in Ba Be National in the mid-afternoon. We’ll have dinner and spend the night with a Tay family in their traditional house-on-silts. Overnight at the homestay in Ba Be.

After a sumptuous breakfast, we hop on simple bicycles and hit the road. It is going up on some parts but not for long and we have time, feel free to walk your bicycle up if the slope is too steep. We get the first glance at the lake, the biggest natural freshwater lake of Vietnam, a natural beauty surrounded by forested limestone mountains.

The bike ride takes us then down to one of the main wharfs of the lake. We have a drink there, take some time to breathe and observe the serenity of the lake while boat drivers are buzzing around. Board a small boat for a ride across the lake and enter Gam River to journey to secluded jungle village of Dau Dang. Arriving by lunchtime you will be warmly welcomed at the house of Mr Hien and Mrs Thom, owners of the regionally recognized “best restaurant” of the province.

After lunch and probably few shots of corn liquor, head back to the boat and slide down the river all the way to Puong cave. We pass across and follow gently the current to the point where we can meet a road again. There we get back on our bikes and go for a nice ride to end the day. We pass through the main gate of the national park and take on an easy road downhill with impressive views on the lake. We loop the loop in Pac Ngoi. Time for shower before another dinner and night at the homestay.

Easy morning, we will have time to stroll around a last time before lunch at the homestay. We exit the park in the afternoon on a nice little road, farewell to the lake and arrive in Hanoi in late afternoon. Rest of the day is yours to explore Hanoi.Overnight at a hotel in Hanoi

Free day at your own leisure in Hanoi.

Depending on your schedule, you will be picked up and transferred to the Hanoi airport for a departure flight out of Hanoi. Trip ends!!!