Sapa: 3-Day Medium Trek and Bus Trip from Hanoi Solo Traveler

Breathtaking mountain scenery and tribal villages amongst perfect natural settings are the highlights of Sapa. Trek off the beaten track and walk through villages where ethnic people live. Visit their homes and witness their daily activities.
Day 1: Hanoi – Sapa by bus, free and easy

After 6:30 AM pick-up, depart to Sapa town. Following the highway to Lao Cai city, see the rice fields on both sides of the road and enjoy the peaceful scenery. Take a short comfort break at Lao Cai city before approaching Sapa.

At 1:00 PM, arrive in Sapa, take a quick break to freshen up then walk around this charming town, paying visit to Sapa market and the old cathedral. Meet local ethnic minority people such as Black H’mong and Red Zao wearing their traditional colorful dresses, selling farming products and handicrafts as souvenirs. A meal with local Vietnamese dishes will be served in a local restaurant.

After lunch, spend some free time this afternoon discovering Sapa town by yourself.
Around 5:45 PM,  enjoy dinner at the restaurant in the hotel. Overnight at hotel.

Day 2: Sapa - Y Linh Ho – Lao Chai – Ta Van village (breakfast, lunch, dinner)

Wake up in the morning and enjoy the fresh air. Have a local breakfast in the restaurant, then, get ready for trekking. Check out the room and begin your exploration trip to Muong Hoa valley. Follow the main road heading south for about an hour before turning right to a foot path down hill to Muong Hoa Valley. This part offers spectacular scenery of the highest part of Hoang Lien Son mountain range and on a nice day, Fansipan Peak can be seen. Crossing the river by a suspension bridge you will challenge your feet uphill to Y Linh Ho village. Here, pay a visit to some H’mong families, and watch them doing their daily work. After a picnic lunch, the trail continues up and down hill for about 2 hours as you reach Lao Chai, a large village of the H’mong and then follow the river bank to Ta Van of the Zay people. Visiting local homes, and village schools, enjoy your cultural discovery of local ethnic people as well as breathtaking scenery of the Muong Hoa Valley. Settle down in Ta Van village for an overnight home stay.

Accommodation: Homestay in Ta Van Village

Day 3: Ta Van - Giang Ta Chai - Sapa – Hanoi (breakfast, lunch)

Leaving Ta Van village after Breakfast, take the trail uphill, passing fascinating terraced rice fields and some small hamlets of the H’mong before getting through a bamboo forest to a waterfall. Enjoy a break for some magnificent scenery and then continue walking for half an hour to Giang Ta Chai village of the Red Zao people, which sits on the top of a hill and looks down Muong Hoa river. After spending time visiting the village, making friends with the Zao and experiencing the hospitality, cross the river by another suspension bridge and then go uphill again to Hau Thao village. Visit a local handicraft center where H’mong and Zao women gather to exchange experience and skills of making handicrafts. A late Lunch will be prepared nearby this center and then you have time to relax and prepare before heading back to Hanoi. The tour guide will take you to the bus station. Tour ends.

The bus journey back to Hanoi takes five or six hours (depending on traffic). Arrive in Hanoi around 9:30 PM to 10:00 PM.
Please notice the drop off location:
- During weekdays (Monday to Thursday): your hotel/apartment in the Old Quarter
- During Weekends (Friday to Sunday): the bus office or street corner that is close to your hotel/apartment in the Old Quarter. (There is a walking street area on some streets in the Old Quarter during the weekend and the transfers are not allowed inside these walking streets).

To guarantee availability book as soon as possible. Early booking is worth consideration especially if you planning the trip during high season like public holidays or weekends.

This excursion you can cancel with no cost up to 48 hours before the start of the trip. If you cancel it after 48 hours or not show up on the excursion you will still be charged the full price of the activity. Being late on pick-up or departure will be considered as not showing up.