SaPa Retreat

06h30 - 07h00: Pick up at hotel or meeting point and depart to Sapa, following NoiBai - Lao Cai high-way. Along the way, you will have chance to contemplate the beauty of northwest mountains that terraced fields are sparkling in sunlight or dim in thick fog. Have a short break for 30 minutes then continue the trip to Sapa.

13h00: Arrive in Sapa, check in hotel and have lunch. Afternoon: Start trekking to Cat Cat Village, about 45 minutes walk from Sapa, this is the village of Black H’Mong hill tribe. The village is on the slope of the hill and easy walking, rice and corn are grown here.Visiting Cat Cat village, you will have a chance to visit a big waterfall on the stream and the old Hydro Electric Power Station built by French people. That is the image of young women sitting by looms with colorful pieces of brocade decorated with designs of flowers and birds. When these pieces of brocade are finished, they are dyed and embroidered with beautiful designs. A note worthy is that H’Mong women use indigo plants and leaves to dye these brocade fabrics. And then they roll around and smooth section of wood covered with wax on fabrics to polish them, making their colors durable.

Evening: you are free to explore the charm of Sapa by night, enjoy roasted corn, baked eggs beside charcoal fire or go shopping. Especially on Saturday night, we highly recommend a stop at the Love Market which is one of unique cultures of ethnic minorities HMong, Dzao in Lao Cai in particular and North West of Vietnam in general.

Drive 9 km southwest of SaPa town in the Hoang Lien Son range of mountains, then take a cable car to highest mountain in Vietnam as well as in the Indochina Peninsula - Fansipan. Hence, it is branded as "the Roof of Indochina" with 3143m summit. Its name which is pronounced roughly by local people as "Hua Xi Pan" means "the tottery giant rock". You have free time to take photograph and relax before going down for lunch. 

In the afternoon, we start trekking down to Lao Chai village of Black H’mong ethnic people. Here we will discover their daily life and how they make traditional clothes, handicraft, indigo... We will visit the biggest valley which provides the best view for golden rice terrace fields in Vietnam. After Lao Chai we walk to Ta Van village of Giay people. It is a small group of ethnic people in Vietnam with a rich culture and beautiful houses located on rice paddy fields.

Lao Chai & Ta Van Villages, about 8 km from Sapa town, where black H’mong and Giay people are living, it is also the beginning of the valley which is called Muong Hoa. From a high point of the main road, great view of the whole villages open wide to offer the marvelous panorama views, backed by high mountains and facing the river. Here you will enjoy the fresh air, see terrace fields, stream, discover and visit some Black H’mong families. You will have a welcome feeling at any house of the hospitable people there. You can interact them, learn about their culture and customs… 

Today we walk to Ham Rong Mountain for a panoramic view of Sapa and its surrounds. Once we have come back down, we will then drive six kilometers out of town. From here we commence an hour-long walk to Ta Phin, situated in a wide valley and surrounded by rice paddies. Ta Phin is a Dao community. Dao women are particularly striking as they wear a large red turban often covered with old coins or jewelry. They also shave their hair and eyebrows. Here we have the opportunity to visit a Zao household and learn a little about their way of life. From here we will return to Sapa for lunch and have free time in the afternoon. 

You will leave Sapa for Bac Ha market - a colorful market of the local hill tribes.You will arrive in Bac Ha, independently attend the market that knows as the most colorful ethnic market of all North-west Vietnam. It is a fusion of many different hill tribes inhabiting around Bac Ha Mountains and here you can easily distinguish them by their different colorful costume dressing. 

After lunch, in the afternoon, we go for a light trek to visit Ban Pho, the village is home to flower H’mong minority. We are invited to enter several local houses to have some green tea, corn wine, listen to the host talking about their family. Then, we head back to Lao Cai for an overnight train back to Hanoi.

We arrive back to Hanoi station in the early morning. Our guide will arrange a transfer back to your hotel.