VIETNAM CYCLING TOUR ITINERARY

Day-1: Hanoi

Arrival and transfer to your hotel.  If time permits, we will spend the afternoon at the Ethnology museum which will give you an overview of 54 ethnic minorities in Vietnam including the Thai people who you will meet along the way.

Overnight in Hanoi

Day 02: Hanoi to Hoa Binh

(B, L, D) Cycling Hanoi - Hoa Binh 56/72 km
We leave Hanoi by car and start cycling from Luong Son to Hoa Binh town. The town is famous for the biggest reservoir in Vietnam and also the culture diversity of many typical ethnic groups such as Muong, Thai.

Day-3: Ride Hoa Binh to Mai Chau

(B, L, D) Cycling Hoa Binh- Mai Chau 62 km: a beautiful landscape of mountains and red soil hills, is covered by green sugarcane, cassava, corn and rice fields. There are many shops on the way where you can find 'Ruou Can' - the unique rice wine of Hoa Binh province in brown jars, drunk with bamboo straws. You also pass by some factories where they make brooms from 'Dot'; a new wonderful golf is located behind mountains; a place where is famous for hot mineral stream- 'Kim Boi'; some small villages of Thai & Muong and many other interesting things you will see and learn on the way.

Overnight at home-stay of Thai ethnic in Mai Chau

Day-4: Ride Mai Chau to Moc Chau

(B, L, D) Cycling Mai Chau- Moc Chau 67 km: from low to higher area, from houses-on-stilts of White Thai located in a big valley of rice field to Moc Chau where wooden houses on ground of Blue & Flowered H'mong located in small valleys and hidden among corn fields, plum and peach gardens and surrounded by mountains. On the way to Moc Chau, you will also pass a forested area to enjoy the shade & cool air in the middle of a hot summer day. You should stop at a local restaurant to taste their famous fresh local yogurt.

Overnight in Moc Chau

Day-5: Ride Moc Chau to Yen Chau

(B, L, D) Cycling Moc Chau- Yen Chau 60 km: Moc Chau is a famous for its tea plantations. Tea plants cover the hills, some of which are 30- 40 years old. This area offers you a great chance to cycle around the tea plantation to enjoy the scenery, fresh air and get to know more about tea. We will end our day at Yen Chau, the area well known for its fruit trees such as mangoes, longans, bananas…

Overnight in Yen Chau.

Day-6: Ride Yen Chau to Son La

(B, L, D) Cycling Yen Chau- Son La 65 km: leaving this area after sampling some local fruit, visiting local markets along the way and meeting some ethnic groups, we will cycle to Son La and visit Son La prison built by French.

Overnight in Son La

Day-7: Son La, Rest Day

(B) Overnight in Son La

Day-8 Ride Son La to Tuan Giao

(B, L, D) Cycling Son La - Tuan Giao 90 km: we pass through a patchwork of rice fields and plum orchards. It is a hard cycling day with many hills.

Overnight in Tuan Giao

Day-9: Ride Tuan Giao to Dien Bien Phu

(B, L, D) Cycling Tuan Giao - Dien Bien Phu 80 km: There is less traffic on this tar road, which gives you more opportunities to enjoy the nice scenery of rice fields dotted with water wheels. The area is inhabited by White Thai and Kh'mu people in their charming clothes. We arrive in Dien Bien Phu quite late in the afternoon. Check in your cozy room, have a shower and dinner.

Overnight in Dien Bien Phu

Day-10: Dien Bien Phu- Muong Lay

(B, L, D) Leaving Dien Bien city and stepping back in time we enter the world of rural Vietnam. We assemble our bikes and after lunch we cycle on a thin tar road, seldom used by vehicles, through rolling countryside filled with tropical trees, plantations and dotted with small villages. After 60 km we board our back up vehicles and drive to our destination is the village of Lai Chau, on the fringes of the Hmong tribal region.

Overnight in Lai Chau.

Day-11- Muong Lay- Tam Duong

(B, L, D) This morning we cycle from the door of the hotel straight onto single track routes which wind along through the fields and hillsides. After the single trail ride we will drive by car for 40 km and then start cycling again along the the Nam Na River to Pan Tan where we have lunch in a restaurant with a great scenic views.

A gutsy climb of 17 km awaits us after lunch followed by an awesome downhill enjoying the views of mountain ranges, lakes, rivers, jungle, and tiered paddy fields rising and falling as far as the eye can see. We're also getting deeper into tribal lands and we'll see Tay, H'Mong and Dzao tribal people in their villages and tending their crops.

Day-12: Tam Duong - Sapa

(B, L, D) Once again the day kicks off with single track riding through the villages and we expect to see more tribal people in colorful dress, living their lives the way they have for generation after generation.

Day-13:Sapa- Rest day

(B) This is your time for discovering the beauty of Sapa town, market, orchid garden by your own or little trekking to a near by village- Cat Cat of Black H'Mong group.

Day-14: Sapa- Ban Khoang- Lao Cai. Night train

(B, L, D) Sapa - Ban Khoang (high country road) with just deep blue skies and fluffy white clouds, winding our way up higher and higher into the mountains. You will be cycling high for half day at 1400-1600m then comes the big descent down to Lao Cai.

We then have shower and dinner before getting on the night train back to Hanoi.

Day-15: Depart Hanoi

(B) Early morning arrive at the train station, transfer to Tamarind restaurant for breakfast before leaving Hanoi for your flight home.

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