16 Days Northwest to Northeast Vietnam Cycling Tour from Hanoi
Tour Overview
Loop cycling through the Vietnam mountain area is the most spectacular mountain range is for cyclists seeking a biking challenge, enjoying climbing, and mixing it up with some off-road...
Code of Tour: TAD0000028042
Length of Travel: 16 Day
Destinations of Tour:
Departure City: Hanoi
Price of Tour: Request
Type of Tour: Private
Features of Tour: Cycling
Loop cycling through the Vietnam mountain area is the most spectacular mountain range is for cyclists seeking a biking challenge, enjoying climbing, and mixing it up with some off-road trails. Starting in Hanoi, We cycle to the scenic hill station of Sapa and ride the amazing mountain trails around Fansipan mountain, Indochina’s highest peak, before riding over a 2 km high mountain pass, the first of many. This tour goes to a part of Vietnam where few foreigners ever venture and you’ll be amazed at the colorful clothing of the many ethnic tribes as you ride through valleys and river gorges from Dien Bien Phu and to the flower Hmong market in Sapa and cycle to beautiful of the bay in Halong ….
TOUR ITINERARY
Day 1: Hanoi – Mai Chau. ~160 km ( L, D )
7:30 pick up at your hotel in Hanoi. Once out of the Red River Delta, which brims with traditional farming activity, we pass through limestone monoliths and into foothills populated by Muong people. We head straight at the main range before breaching a high and beautiful forested pass, which descends into the hidden valley of Mai Chau where we spend the night with friends in a traditional Thai stilt house in a Thai village.
Summary
Accommodation: Homestay
Meals: Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 70 km
Day 2: Mai Chau – Son La. ~185 km ( B, L, D )
On a good road looking high over distant mountains, we head up into a forested region populated by Hmong people before descending into a mountainous tea-growing region. Soon after we follow a long valley floor covered in a sea of rice surrounded by Black Thai villages to Son La with its bargain-filled market. Sleep in Cong Doan Hotel.
Summary
Accommodation: Hanoi Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 80 km
Day 3: Son La – Dien Bien Phu . ~200 km ( B, L, D )
Dien Bien Phu was the scene of the historic French defeat in 1954 ). Today we will pass Pha Din passes. Very nice road and a stunning landscape. Probably the most beautiful journey of the whole trip even though the road is in poor condition, Cycle along with the mountain and river range culminating with the ascent of the spectacular, we will cycle up to the hill and long day for cycle Sleep in Him Lam Resort and Hotel.
Summary
Accommodation: Him Lam Resort and Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 80 km
Day 4 : Dien Bien Phu – Muong Lay ~120 km ( B , L , D )
The most demanding and remote section of the drive takes us upstream along the left side of a Black River tributary through the forest on a bumpy dirt road past isolated pockets of Tay, Thai, Hmong, and Man peoples before breaching a pass to enter the Muong Lay plain, which is covered in shark’s teeth-like limestone karst. The guide will buy some food to give to the head of the village and he later distributes our donations to the villagers. We stay O/N at Hoang Long Hotel.
Summary
Accommodation: Hoa Binh Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 80 km
Day 5 : Muong Lay – Lai Chau ( Tam Duong ) ~120 km ( B , L , D )
Breakfast and cycling to Lai Chau are where the Da river and Nam Na river meet. The occasion to go downstream to meet local people. We propose a picnic to have one complete day of relaxation and to discover this wild area.
Summary
Accommodation : Muong Thanh Hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 80 km
Day 6 : Lai Chau ( Tam Duong )- Sapa ~110 km ( B , L )
Tam Duong market in the morning. There are colorful Montagnard groups living in Tam Duong: Black Hmong and Dzao. ~10 am beautiful ride at a slow pace on the bumpy road to Sapa. We will have a big breakfast because there is nothing to eat on the way, just us with the wildness. Explore dinner on your own. We stay O/N in Sunny Mountain 4* Hotel.
Summary
Accommodation: Sunny Mountain Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Cycling distance: 80 km
Day 7: Sapa Cycling to Village ( B )
Cycling to Lao Chai villages to explore Sa Pa an old French hill station, in a spectacular location close to the Chinese border. This morning we will downhill to Village, Lao Chai, and Ta Van village ( Gay and H’mong people ). Cycle uphill back to Sapa for a challenge of 12 km. Afternoon free to explore Sapa market and Ham Rong Mountain.
Summary
Accommodation: Sunny Mountain Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast
Cycling distance: 22 km
Day 8: Sapa – Bac Ha. ~110 km ( B, L, D )
Breakfast at the hotel and transfer from Sapa to Lao Cai city to visit the border and transfer to Coc Ly to cycle up to Bac Ha (65 km) with its stunning landscape. We check in Ngan Nga Hotel and have lunch. In the afternoon, we trek to Ban Pho village. Stay overnight in Bac Ha.
Summary
Accommodation : Ngan Nga Hotel .
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 65 km
Day 9: Bac Ha – Luc Yen – Vu Linh. ~150 km ( B , L , D )
( If Sunday we will visit Bac ha Market Nestled in the northern hills of Vietnam exists one of the best ethnic markets in all of Southeast Asia! On Sundays, the ethnic minorities from the surrounding villages and hills come by foot, by motorscooter, by horse, and by water buffalo for their chance to socialize, eat, drink, smoke, get a haircut, and buy produce and meat for the next week. It is a blur of colorful plaids and stripes ). We start the day by strolling around Bac Ha market to meet with many ethnic villages in this area.
We then move towards lake Thac Ba. From Bac Ha to Luc Yen, the road is easy and sealed all the way. After Luc Yen, we take a small dirt track bordered by palm trees, in the middle of the karsts. A boat is waiting to take us across the lake of Thac Ba while skirting the northern bank (3 hours). We arrive at Vu Linh, a traditional village of Dao where we sleep with the family of our friends. The welcome is exceptional.
Summary
Accommodation: Homestay
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 65 km
Day 10: Vu Linh – Ba Be. ~250 km. ( B, L, D )
Quite a long drive but easy (early departure is better) from Vu Linh to Ba Be (~250 km). Ba Be is a nice stop and it is good to arrive on the first day to have a full day (of the second) day there. However, if you feel like resting before, it is all the time possible to stop 50 km before Ba Be. The place before Ba Be is Na Khan, a village of Tay people lost in the forest.
Summary
Accommodation: Homestay
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 60 km
Day 11: Ba Be Lake ( B, L, D )
Breakfast and take a full-day boat tour through Ba Be national park to visit a waterfall on the lake and river. Stop at the waterfall, beautiful swim Ong pirate, the chief of Dau Dang waterfall where we enjoy lunch. Down the waterfall, we could visit the village and a small school (only a few pupils during the summer). Swimming on the lake before back to the villages for dinner. We propose to stay in the stilt house of forest guards.
Summary
Accommodation: Homestay
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance : 0 km
Day 12: Ba Be – Cao Bang – Quang Hoa. ~170 km ( B , L , D )
Cross Ba Be park to come back to our captain’s house. Beautiful ride up to Cao Bang province. Few passes from where you can dominate the area. The road is easy but has many curves. We can stop a lot. All together, stop for drinks and food it should be an 8-hour journey. Then ride 1 more hour to reach the beautiful village of Quang Hoa, in the middle of a mountain cirque. This is the territory of the Nung An people. Spend the night at our friend’s house.
Summary
Accommodation: Homestay
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 65 km
Day 13: Quang Hoa – Ban Gioc Waterfall ~70 km ( B, L, D )
Breakfast with Nung An family and cycling to Ban Gioc waterfalls. Ban Gioc Waterfall on the Quy Xuan River is located in Cao Bang Province, near the Sino-Vietnamese border. The waterfall falls thirty meters. It is separated into three falls by rocks and trees, and the thundering effect of the water hitting the cliffs can be heard kilometers away from Trung Khanh. Having obtained permission from the border police, we make our way through spectacular scenery to Vietnam’s most impressive waterfalls. Weather permitting we can swim right up to where the 50 m high falls hit the river. We will visit Nguom Ngao’s beautiful cave and then transfer back to Quang Hoa town.
Summary
Accommodation: Homestay
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 70 km
Day 14: Quang Hoa – Mau Son. ~180 km ( B, L, D )
Ride from Quang Hoa to That Ke Continue driving toward the border from Lang Son to Mau Son. Mau Son is 30 km away from Lang Son, 1.541m above sea level. Quite cool in the evening! Night in the guesthouse of Mau Son hotel.
Summary
Accommodation: Mau Son guest house
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 80 km
Day 15: Mau Son – Tien Yen – Bai Chay. ~180 km ( B, L, D )
Today is the last day of cycling we will have a long ride mainly on a secondary road, passing many coal mines along the road. We hope you are not covered in coal dust when we arrive in Halong City for dinner at the hotel, Free explore Bai Chay beach or swim on the beach. Local seafood dinner .O/N in Ha Long city.
Summary
Accommodation: Ha Long White hotel
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Cycling distance: 80 km
Day 16: Bai Chay – Halong Cruising – Hanoi. ~180 km ( B, L )
Breakfast and A boat are waiting to take us to discover Halong Bay. We first visit Then Cung cave, then a fishing village through myriads of limestone. We have a seafood lunch on the boat before coming back to Bai Chay and taking the bus to Hanoi. We arrive in Hanoi around 4 pm.
Summary
Accommodation: Your account
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Cycling distance: none
Boat in Halong bay: 3,5 hours
