Impressive Vietnam Off-road Motorbike Tour to Ta Xua, Mu Cang Chai, Sapa, Luc Yen, Nghia Lo

Start our motorbike tour by leaving Hanoi on a weaving dyke-road running along the Red river to Trung Ha Bridge to avoid the heavy traffic on the main roads, then we’ll follow the National Highway 32 passing extensive farming lands comprising a sea of paddy fields split by tree-lined roads punctuated by limestone karst scenery till we reach Thanh Son for lunch.

After lunch at a local restaurant, we’ll head to Phu Yen town via nice dirt tracks through spectacular tea hills.

 When we get to Phu Yen, the true challenge begins. We’ll embark on a vertical mountain trek with our bikes, a tough feat even on dry and sunny days, the track can be from 8 to 18 kilometers long (depending on your demand) with chilling and breathtaking scenery pushing us forwards all the way. We’ll get to our destination at a clearing right beside the “dinosaur backbone”.

Ta Xua is a mountain range in the Bac Yen district in Son La province. At the highest point of 2865 meters, the Ta Xua peak is the tenth highest peak in Vietnam. The three most important peaks form a line that looks like the backbone of a dinosaur. It is a real off the beaten track destination for adventure travelers

If time permits, we also try some dirt-track experiences to get deeper into remote villages around to see how the locals live & work otherwise it’s our time for beer, and relaxation amid this remote and pristine nature’s playground amid the clouds.

We overnight in a house-on-stilts of the H’Mong people.(homestay in the village)

Summary:
Distance: 210 km
Meals: Lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Homestay

We begin riding today at 8 o’clock, first we take a ride back to Bac Yen town, from Bac Yen we follow National Road 37 along the mighty Da river via Muong Chum to It Ong. From here we roll on Road 109 to Mu Cang Chai, our destination today. The bike will take us through vibrant rice fields and lovely small villages of local Thai people.

There will be opportunities to stop and capture photographs of the breathtaking landscapes, traditional villages, and the local way of life. There are plenty of challenging offroads today, we can do some in the morning or afternoon or both depending on the real circumstances.

Mu Cang Chai is home to some of Asia’s most magnificent cultivated topography. Rice terraces coil in ribbons around the hills to spectacular effect, luring photographers, hikers, and avid motorbikers. Mu Cang Chai is not only beautiful because of majestic nature but also the the very unique features of local life here. This place is mainly populated by the Black Hmong, a subgroup of one of Vietnam’s largest ethnicities. Pretty Hmong villages are dotted around the district. Each one offers a glimpse into a rich culture Highland living in Mu Cang Chai is simple and peaceful, making people remember forever. Those are honest, honest, hard working people with the desire to be warm; innocent babies with clear smile and eyes.

Summary:
Distance: 190 km
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Hotel

Our adventure continues at 9 o’clock after breakfast, we have a morning warm-up by rolling on some backroads nearby and then get some real challenges with beautiful dirt tracks through mountains and H’mong local villages. We will have chance to see how local ethnic people live and work under very harsh conditions of terrain and climate.

After a lunch break in Than Uyen, on a road full of tea farms and rice fields we head to Sapa via the epic O Quy Ho pass. O Quy Ho Pass is one of the most impressive and challenging mountain passes in the northern region of Vietnam. It is approximately 10 kilometers away from the town of Sapa and 60 kilometers away from the city of Lai Chau. 

O Quy Ho Pass winds through Hoang Lien Son Mountain Range. Running alongside National Road 4D, the pass stretches for nearly 50 kilometers, with the peak of the pass marking the boundary between the two provinces of Lao Cai and Lai Chau. And when you feel the air getting cooler, see the mist coming from the mountain ranges, that’s when we arrive in Sapa, where we spend the night.

 Located at the altitude of 1600 meters above sea level, Sapa is famous for its cool weather, breathtaking scenery and culture diversity with 6 different tribes of people living together. This is also a big town comparing to other destinations on the tour so you can spend your time here for casual entertainment activities like bars, pubs… We stay in a hotel for this night.

Summary:
Distance: 140 km
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Hotel

There are lots of interesting things to see in the lovely town of Sapa and it’ll be great to spend another day here. you can spend the morning for a fancy cable car trip to the peak of Fansipan mountain – a.k.a “the rooftop of Indochina”, this would be an incredible experience on a nice bight day. In the afternoon, you can come to take a look at the “Love waterfall” through a short walk of 2 kilometers, or else take a short ride out of town center down to the villages of Lao Chai, Ta Van, pay a visit to a local brocade workshop and learn how people make the remarkable hemp products here.
Note: Dinner is not included today since there are many choices for suppers in Sapa, you can take a walk around and find a best restaurant for yourself, Asian or Western style.

Summary:
Meals: Breakfast, lunch
Accommodation: Hotel

After a relaxing night in the fancy town of Sapa, we get back on our bikes at 9 o’clock today. In the morning we will have a backroad ride down to local villages of Sapa such as Lao Chai, Ta Van where H’mong, Dao and Day people reside, if time permits we will stop at a local handicraft workshop to learn about hemp product of Hmong people. After leaving these peaceful pretty villages, we follow Road 152 then roll on a challenging offroad track through hilly rice fields. Finish the track then we follow National 70 to Pho Rang for a light lunch, in the afternoon we ride on Road 160 along a river to our homestay in Lam Thuong – Luc Yen.

Located 250 kilometers from Hanoi, Lam Thuong has a mixed terrain of mountains, forests and waterfalls. Formed by several villages of local Tay people, Lam Thuong is separated from other communes of Luc Yen district by high ranges of mountain, this gives the place a lovely peaceful vibe. After arriving here, we can get to a waterfall nearby for a nice relaxing swim after a tough riding day.

We spend the night with a local Tay family tonight. Tay people were present in Vietnam very early, from the end of the first millennium BC and were one of the first owners of ancient Vietnam.

The main area in which Tay people currently reside is in valleys of the Northeast provinces such as Quang Ninh, Bac Giang, Lang Son, Cao Bang, Bac Kan, Thai Nguyen, Ha Giang, Tuyen Quang to Lao Cai and Yen Bai. Tay is also the second largest ethnic group in Vietnam after the majority Viet ethnic group.

Summary:
Distance: 160 km
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Homestay

Saying goodbye to our homestay, we follow road 152 via vibrant limestone mountain and peaceful village to National Road 70, from here we take a backroad to Mau A town. After a light lunch, we take a light dirt trail along a river to Nghia Lo, this trail is not too tough but quite long and winding with beautiful landscape along the way. After arriving our hotel, we quickly get changed and take a short ride to a nice hot spring nearby for a great relaxing time after a long offroad journey.

Located around 80 km from Yen Bai city, Nghia Lo is a well-known destination that attracts an increasing number of tourists coming here to see the local daily life and unique culture of local people living in the spectacular mountainous area. Secluded in the flat valley called Muong Lo and surrounded by numerous stunning mountains, Nghia Lo is home to 17 ethnic minorities (around 30,000 people in total) and most of them are the Thai, Kinh, and Tay people. This land has been the biggest trading center of the northwestern mountain and nowadays, it becomes a crowded and active town like other regions in the Red River.

Summary:
Distance: 130 km
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Hotel

In this morning, we’ll be at leisure a bit before riding back Hanoi. En route, we’ll stop by some very nice places / great spots to defy yourself with some dirt tracks to discover the beauties of Muong Lo Valley with tea plantations, villages. Finally, We will be back to the hotel before rush hours in order to end the 8 Day motorbike tour in north Vietnam safely.

Summary:
Distance: 190 km
Meals: Lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Hotel