NINH BINH – SAPA – MU CANG CHAI – HANOI IN 10D9N

[10 days, 9 nights]

CODE: NBSMCCH10D9N

NINH BINH – SAPA – MU CANG CHAI – HANOI IN 10D9N

A perfect blend of culture, adventure, and nature awaits! This 10-day tour takes you through Ninh Binh’s scenic waterways, Sapa’s ethnic villages, and the spectacular rice terraces of Mu Cang Chai, offering an unforgettable journey through Vietnam’s most picturesque regions.

Untouched Beauty

Warm Hospitality

Heritage-rich

TRIP ITINERARY

Day 1: AIRPORT PICKUP AT HA NOI

Upon your arrival, your tour guide and driver will wait for you at Noi Bai airport to transfer you to Hanoi. Drive straight to your hotel from Noi Bai airport. It often takes about 45 minutes to travel.

DAY 2: HANOI – NINH BINH – 105km

Please be ready at 7:30 am. The guide and driver will pick you up at your hotel. You will go straight from Hanoi to Ninh Binh, which is about 100km, and start the journey to visit Ninh Binh for the full day.

Thung Nham Bird Garden is the largest nature reserve in the North, located in the Thung Nham ecotourism area, belonging to the famous Trang An landscape complex. Ninh Binh Bird Park is 12km from Ninh Binh city to the east–south. Like a miniature “oasis” full of clarity and dreams, the Thung Nham ecotourism area stands out with the fresh air of the mountains and forests.

Bich Dong Pagoda is a historical and cultural relic belonging to the Tam Coc scenic complex of Ninh Binh province. This is an attractive spiritual tourist destination, bringing visitors to the majestic place of the Buddha’s door, the peace of the mountainous region. Every spring, the temple attracts a large number of Buddhists and tourists from all over the world who come here to worship and enjoy the scenery.

In the afternoon, visit Tam Coc by sampan boat. Tam Coc River is considered the most attractive tourist destination in Ninh Binh, known for its famous name, “Halong bay on land”, and is a part of the Trang An scenic landscape complex, a World Heritage site (UNESCO).

Then, bike or travel by car to the Dancing Cave mountain, where visitors need to climb up more than 500 steps to reach the top with a panoramic view of Ninh Binh, Trang An, and the Tam Coc landscape.

Overnight at a bungalow in Tam Coc.

Day 3: FULL DAY VISIT NINH BINH

At 7:30 am, after breakfast, you will go to visit Trang An Unesco Site, an embodiment of a harmonious blend of nature and culture where picturesque and uninhabited nature coexists with local culture and civilization. In 2014, the Trang An area was designated as a dual UNESCO World Heritage site for its natural and cultural values.

Hoa Lu Ancient Capital was chosen to be the first capital of Dai Co Viet during the period of 3 dynasties of Kings Ding, Le, and Ly. Since King Ly Thai To moved it to Thang Long (Ha Noi today), Hoa Lu became an ancient capital that maintained many ancient temples and relic sites. You can visit King Dinh Temple, which is one of the unique architectures in Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, which worships King Dinh Tien Hoang (King of Dai Co Viet Dynasty).

Cuc Phuong National Park is situated in the foothills of the northern Annamite Range. The park consists of verdant karst mountains and lush valleys. Elevation varies from 150 meters (500 feet) to 656 m (2,152 feet) at the summit of May Bac Mountain or Silver Cloud Mountain.The limestone mountains house numerous caves, many of which are accessible for exploration. Inhabitants of the park include 97 species of mammals, most notably endangered langurs; 300 species of birds; 36 reptilian species; 17 species of amphibians; 11 species of fish; 2,000 species of vascular plants; and thousands of species of insects. A number of species in the park are listed in the Vietnam Red Book of endangered species.

And then, if you have enough time, you can visit the bear sanctuary. Overnight at the same bungalow in Tam Coc.

day 4: NINH BINH – LAO CAI - Y TÝ - A MÚ SUNG LANDMARK – 487km

After breakfast, you and your driver will go straight to Lao Cai on the highway. After arriving in Lao Cai, travel more than 30 km to Y Ty. Your guide will meet you in Lao Cai.

In Y Ty, there are nearly 1000 midwives living in 16 villages with 4 ethnic groups: H’Mong, Ha Nhi, Dao, and Kinh. Therefore, the cultural identity and the cuisine here are extremely diverse and unique. Coming to Y Ty, you will be immersed in the romantic scenery of the cloudy sky along with the endless terraced fields, and far away are majestic high mountains.

Then, you go to the Lung Po flagpole in A Mu Sung commune. Lung Po village of A Mu Sung commune is also the first place where the Red River flows into Vietnamese territory.

Homestay Y Ty Clouds is located on a small hill overlooking the valley. This place was built by the love of the homeland of the Ha Nhi people, with the desire to build and develop the Y Ty land, creating jobs for the Ha Nhi people.

At the same time, we will introduce the culture of our people to the lowland friends so that each person who comes to Y Ty is not only impressed with the stunning scenery but also their friendly people, rich in identity and very dear to their homeland.

day 5: HA NHI ETHNIC HAMLETS - A LU

At 8:30 AM, after having breakfast, continue your adventure to visit local ethnic hamlets here.

Visiting the village of Ha Nhi people, you will feel extremely excited with the unique “Trinh Tuong” house. Unlike the common stilt houses of the upland ethnic people, the typical Ha Nhi houses are located right on the ground, the walls are made of clay, 40 – 45 cm thick, 4 – 5m high with two outer and inner rings, the sloping short roof is covered with grass but it is very reliable. This house structure will help Ha Nhi people keep warm in winter but still cool in summer.

Looking down from above, these houses are like beautiful giant mushrooms on the side of the mountain, hidden in the mist. The Ha Nhi people live in small colonies in the mountainside or in the terraced fields. Since the bridge over the Muong Hum spillway was put into operation and the border patrol road along the Red River was completed, visitors have paid much attention to the Bat Xat District, with Y Ty, A Lu, and Ngai Thau Communes being as beautiful as Sapa. Coming to Y Ty, visitors can rest and enjoy pristine places that have not been urbanised like Sapa.

Overnight at a hotel in Bat Xat town.

day 6: KHOANG HAMLET HIKING TO TA GIANG PHINH - SAPA

Check out your hotel and be ready for your hiking from Khoang hamlet to Ta Giang Phinh village. Ta Giang Phinh is an ancient village located on the foot of the majestic Ngu Chi Son mountain, also known as Buddha’s fingers mountain, which belongs to the Hoang Lien Son range. The highlight of Ta Giang Phinh is the beauty of landscapes with the paddy terraces, stunning waterfalls, some magnificent old forests, and the winding road to the village.

If the weather is nice, this is a great spot for you to admire majestic Ngu Chi Son Mountain at 2850m, the second-highest one in the Sapa area (after Fansipan Mountain). Surrounded by breathtaking scenery, the attraction for tourists is the untouched local villages of local ethnicities with authentic cultures. Most people in Ta Giang Phinh village are Hmong, Red Dao, and Giay.

Coming here, you will learn about the differences of each ethnic group with their house styles, lifestyles, language and unique dresses. Here, you can observe some activities such as plowing, harrowing, harvesting, and doing housework or interact with the locals directly. The people are friendly, and everything is not yet influenced by tourism, so it still stays authentic.

Learn hemp weaving from Black Hmong women and their indigo dying technique en trekking route when stopping at Ta Giang Phinh village.

Overnight at Valley View Homestay in Sapa.

day 7: SAPA - YOUR FREE DAY

Overnight at the same homestay in Sapa.

day 8: SAPA - FANSIPAN PEAK - MU CANG CHAI

After breakfast and checking out of your homestay, let’s go to Fansipan Peak with your guide and driver. Fansipan (Vietnamese: Phan Xi Păng) is the highest mountain in the Indochina Peninsula (comprising Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia), hence its nickname “the Roof of Indochina”, with more than 3,147m (10,326 ft). Get to the peak by cable car and train through Muong Hoa rice valley, and visitors will be lured into its stunning, spectacular landscape running along the way like a green dragon lying under there.

In the afternoon, move to Mu Cang Chai. We’ll cross over O Quy Ho Pass, one of the four greatest passes in Vietnam, linking Sapa and Mu Cang Chai with gorgeous scenery. Cross Tan Uyen district, where you can see the majestic Green Tea Hills. Our guide will take you to visit the tea plantation, a demonstration of the tea-making process, and about a dozen cups of the local green tea! You will have an experience of how to tell when tea leaves and buds are ready to be picked and how to tell their quality grade.

Overnight at Mu Cang Chai.

day 9: MU CANG CHAI - NGHIA LO

After breakfast, we will leave for Nghia Lo. En route, drive over the Khau Pha pass (one of the four greatest passes in Northern Vietnam, connecting Tu Le and Mu Cang Chai. These scenic roads offer a lot of stops for picture-taking as it is the viewpoint to see the Lim Mong, Lim Thai village or paragliding-point on the top of this pass.

On the way, spend time visiting La Pan Tan village and Rasberry Hill – one of the most famous destinations in the country with round shapes following the mountain shape. La Pan Tan village is well-known for its large and high rice terraces in Mu Cang Chai. Everything was built by the human hand of the H’mong people over the past hundreds of years. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant.

Depending on your fitness and health, if you want to have more time to rest in the afternoon, we can choose the option of hiking to see the sunset in Sán Nhù village. If the weather is good, we will make a hiking trip to Sán Nhù village (in Mu Cang Chai), which has a beautiful rice terrace field with Horse feed shapes and amazing sunset. However, this hiking trip is quite steep.

If not, we will travel by car to those attractions. At some places, our car can not access, we must hike to get those points such as Pú Nhu waterfall and Mơ Waterfall. Overnight at a hotel in Nghia Lo.

NOTE:

We must walk to Mơ Waterfall in about 30 minutes from the national road with quite easy steep route. You will be lured into the dreamy waterfall landscape. The waterfall has 3 levels. not recommend you to climb to the 2^nd and the 3^rd level because it is quite slippery. Pú Nhu Waterfall is easy to reach, with a distance of 1,5km from the national road.
If the weather is rainy, we will check the road quality to get to those waterfalls. The rainy season makes water rise very high. Our guide will consider whether it is safe for you to get there.

day 10: NGHIA LO – HANOI – 272km

Check out after having breakfast at your hotel, then return to Hanoi today. On the road, let’s visit Suoi Giang Commune, Van Chan district, to admire the hundreds of years old ancient tea trees, which make up the specialty Tea Shan Tuyet. The wild tea trees growing in the high mountains, plus a cool climate all year round, create the haze tea flavor.

Then, you will head back to Hanoi.

The itinerary is subject to change or cancellation due to weather conditions.

Included: Ground transport, English-speaking guide, accommodation, activities & meals mentioned above.
Not included: Airfares, visa fees, travel insurance, gratuities, personal expenses & all other services not clearly mentioned above.

WHY TRAVEL WITH YESD?

Authentic

We give local people employment, income and learning opportunities so they are directly involved in your tourism experience. Our guides and hosts will give you a special insight into culture and life in Vietnam.

Responsible

We aim to minimise the negative impacts of tourism on the environment and the local community while contributing positively to local economies. We don’t just talk responsible tourism, we act!

Tours that translate

10% of all profits from our tours go towards a community fund. This money allows us to make infrastructure improvements and provide other important resources to those in need.

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“Incredible experience from beginning to end! It was well-organised, fun, and there was always clear communication. YESD went above and beyond to make us feel welcome, and it was clear that they really cared about empowering the local community and integrating us. Our experience felt truly personal and one of a kind. They showed us so much in a little time while still not feeling rushed. YESD is the best, highly highly recommend!” See more.

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NINH BINH – SAPA – MU CANG CHAI – HANOI IN 10D9N