Vietnam trekking & homestay tour
| country: | Vietnam |
| location: | North Vietnam, Vietnamese Hill Tribes |
| trip type: | Introductory / moderate trekking holidays |
| departures: | This trip can be arranged at a time to suit you, and adapted to your requirements as necessary. |
| price: | From £298 (5 days) excluding flights |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
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| Holiday Details |  4 reviews |
Vietnam trekking & homestay tour
Trek in Sapa to discover breath-taking landscapes of valleys and terraced paddies with 3 nights in ethnic minority villages.
Sapa is a must-see on any northern Vietnam itinerary. Nestled high in the Tonkinese Alps near the Chinese border, Sapa was built as a hill station during French colonial days, to serve as a respite from stifling Hanoi summers. These days, weekends are still the biggest draw in this crumbling hill-tribe centre. Visitors from the capital flock to Sapa for a glimpse of the famed "Love Market," a trek to local hill tribe villages, or an ascent of Vietnam's highest peak, Fan Si Pan.
On a clear day you will be treated to views of steeply terraced rice fields, towering verdant ridgelines, primitive mud-thatched villages, raging rivers and astounding waterfalls. This is great opportunity for travellers who want explore the customs, traditions and way of life of the Vietnamese hill tribes.
Sapa is a must-see on any northern Vietnam itinerary. Nestled high in the Tonkinese Alps near the Chinese border, Sapa was built as a hill station during French colonial days, to serve as a respite from stifling Hanoi summers. These days, weekends are still the biggest draw in this crumbling hill-tribe centre. Visitors from the capital flock to Sapa for a glimpse of the famed "Love Market," a trek to local hill tribe villages, or an ascent of Vietnam's highest peak, Fan Si Pan.
On a clear day you will be treated to views of steeply terraced rice fields, towering verdant ridgelines, primitive mud-thatched villages, raging rivers and astounding waterfalls. This is great opportunity for travellers who want explore the customs, traditions and way of life of the Vietnamese hill tribes.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Hanoi - Sapa. Upon arriving at Noi Bai airport in Hanoi, you’ll be met and driven to your hotel. You’ll have time to relax after your journey before a welcome dinner at a good restaurant in a colonial building. In the evening we take you to the station for your overnight sleeper train to Sapa. (D) |
| Day 2: | Sapa - Ylinh Ho - Lao Chai - Ta Van. In the morning we leave and trek 15 km with our local guide, first on the road and then on a small path down the valley to the Muong Hoa River. From here we trek to the Black H’mong villages of Lao Chai San and Lao Chai. Black H’mong is one of the biggest minority groups in the Sapa area. They are proud of their culture and keep their traditions and way of living. They have their own language and wear traditional indigo blue clothing. You will have lunch with a H'mong family and continue to the Zay village of Ta Van (1,200 m). Zay is a fairly small minority group of about 38,000 people who live mainly in the mountains in Northwest Vietnam. Some of their traditional customs have been lost but many women still wear traditional shirts with a purple, blue or green colour. The Zay houses are built in wood and bamboo with clay floor. We stay overnight with a local family in Ta Van and have dinner here. (B, L, D, G) |
| Day 3: | Ta Van - Giang Ta Chai - Ban Ho. After the breakfast we continue to Giang Ta Chai where we also see a waterfall. The Red Dao women have colourful red embroideries and coins on their clothing and wear a red scarf. Some of the women have shaved eyebrows because of a Red Zao legend. After lunch in a local house we continue along small paths in the rice fields, cross the Muong Hoa River and arrive to the Tay village of Ban Ho (900 m). Tay is the most populous of the hill tribes and some have started wearing modern clothing though most women still wear the traditional chequered headscarf. If we reach Ban Ho in the early afternoon you will have time to swim in a nearby river. In the evening we have dinner and overnight with the Tay family. (B, L, D, G) |
| Day 4: | Ban Ho - Nam Toong - Nam Ken - Muong Bo. After breakfast you trek approxmately 20km to the Red Dzao village at Nam Ken and a Xa Pho village, the smallest group in Sapa who have very little contact with modern Vietnam. You'll have lunch and dinner in a local restaurant and overnight in Muong Bo village of Tay people. (B, L, D, G) |
| Day 5: | Muong Bo - Ban Den - Sapa. After breakfast you trek up to Ban Den (10 km) where you will be picked up and transferred back to Sapa. Lunch in Sapa and time to experience the colourful Sapa market where women from different ethnic minority groups come into town to sell their products. You can buy homemade handicrafts and clothes before you transfer back to Lao Cai for the night train to Hanoi. (B, L,G) |
traveller reviews for Vietnam trekking & homestay tour
Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
The best we have had. Made all the more stress free by the personal attention of Ninh, our tour organiser (more)
how this holiday makes a difference
 We always work for the good of the community and ethnic minority people in Sapa. All people in Sapa are trained by the Government and tourism companies to welcome tourists, maintain their traditional habits and customs, promote public order and protect the environment and tourist resources. We also offer good conditions to the Sapa people so they can profit from tourism, for example local family homestays, carrying their luggage etc.In this trip we take you to visit the poor but pretty area in Northern Vietnam. We ensure that we reduce our own impact to an absolute minimum. We stay in local stilt houses and use all local guides. We eat in local restaurants and buy locally owned products.We have an optional trek to one of the local hill tribe villages to spend an unforgettable night as guests of the villagers. Many fascinating tribes live in the area - each with their own language, clothing and belief system. Our local guides are trained by us to give direction to visitors on how the trip minimizes the negative impacts and increases the positive ones on the local people and the environment. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |
 Reviewed 12 Sep 2007 by Stuart Mcneil |  |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
There isn`t just one - scuba diving off Cham Island at Hoian, lounging on pardise beaches, eating fantastic seafood, drinking fresh beer in a beer hoi in Hanoi, treking with the local minority people in Sapa, - the list goes on!
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Don`t take too many clothes. It is so cheap especially having clothes/shoes made in Hoian. Leave room for local crafts from Sapa. Make sure you book a soft sleeper if going by overnight train, otherwise you share a cabin for 6 on hard beds.
Also if you want to vary the itinerary/ accomodation, don`t be afraid to ask Ninh, she will change things until you are absolutely satisfied.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes by buying local products/eating in local restraunts, staying in "homestays" in Sapa and paying a fair price for goods even when you know you could keep trying to get a lower price - a $ is nothing to us but a lot to some locals.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
The best we have had. Made all the more stress free by the personal attention of Ninh, our tour organiser,and her English husband Steve- how often do you get met at the airport and taken out for a welcome meal by the MD of the company? We even got a cake, flowers and a present on our wedding anniversary! A truly personal service if ever there was one.
| Reviewed 18 Nov 2009 by Dinah Reed | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The whole experience was memorable. Our guide was very good, the landscape was beautiful, the trekking was good and the homestays were and food were excellent. Ninh had organised the whole trip very well. We were met at the airport by Ninh and taken to a hotel to relax. She then collected us and gave us a lovely meal before taking us to the station and making sure we found our carriage. The return journey was just as well organised. Ninh stored our luggage for us while we were trekking and delivered it to our hotel on our return to Hanoi. She could not have done more for us.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
The itinerary of the holiday really explains what you should expect.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
The trekking and homestay in Vietnam was one of the highlights of a multi country 10 week trip. It was excellent just being the two of us with our guide, this gave us a bit of flexibility. Our guide was able to give us a lot of information about the local ethnic tribes and their way of life. The only criticism is that on the second day of the trekking a lot of the walking was around a construction site for a new power station. The guide had to follow the itinerary of the tour company, perhaps they should review the itinerary for future treks. (I did mention this on the feedback form I filled in for Ninh).
| Reviewed 22 Dec 2007 by Juli Grot | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The guides were excellent. Our guide in Sapa knew the area really well and changed the walk to suit our experience level, always making the trek challenging and fun. And our guide in Hanoi was amazing - so knowledgeable and she worked for the government, too, and gave us a lot of insight about Vietnam. Our tour operator even invited us to her house for dinner which as delightful.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Research the hotels before committing to the booking.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes, especially the guides used and hotels chosen.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
It was excellent - it definitely makes me want to go back to Vietnam for a longer holiday and to see more of the country.
| Reviewed 22 Oct 2007 by Kevin Stoda | |
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
There were three: hiking in highlands around Saban & kayaking and sailing around Holang Bay.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Ask to have a free day between all excursions and book longer stay on the bay - 3 or 4 days.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes, but I would have loved to have gained much more info on each part of the trip on how this trip helped local people. This was definitely not always clear. Guides must be notified that this is of specific interest to those on tour with you.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
I was disappointed with the guide on first tour day in Hanoi - not a leader. He needs to be trained in these skills, carry a flag, speak up, follow schedule, etc. The trip to the ancient capital north of Hanoi could have been done the day after Halong bay better by staying at a hotel up north near the ancient temples and caves/river. However, it was a memorable and delightful experience. (8/10) I will try to do a tour again.
Read the operator's response here:
The trip helps local people because we use local guides and eat in the local restaurants thus putting much needed money into the local economy. Also we encourage people to buy the handmade local handicrafts not the mass produced usual tourist rubbish, and of course not to be forgotten is the over night in local houses where real ethnic people get benefit from cash spent directly with them. However we take on board the comments and will instruct our guides to explain more clearly how each part of the tour is helping the local people and environment.
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