Hanoi, Sapa Valley Trek & Halong Bay

On arrival at Hanoi’s international airport, our representative will meet you and transfer to your hotel. After you have checked in the day is yours to relax and enjoy the sights, sounds and tastes of ancient and modern Asia, before meeting at the hotel lobby to go for a welcome dinner and your trip orientation.

Activity: Free time in Hanoi, welcome dinner

Meals: Dinner 

The capital city of Hanoi blends the old world charm of French colonialism with the trademark features of a bustling Asian city. Today your guide will take you on a full city tour, exploring the Temple of Literature, one of Vietnam's most iconic temples The One Pillar Pagoda, the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and the Ethnology Museum. Lunch is included at one of the city's finest restaurants.

In the evening you are transferred to the railway station for your overnight train to Sapa. Travel overnight on the Livitrans Express. Compartments offer soft berths, air-conditioning, reading lights, baggage storage and non-private bathroom facilities. Your guide will also travel on the train with you.

Activity: Full-Day sightseeing tour of Hanoi

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

You will arrive in Lao Cai, a border town to China, by early morning where you will have time to have breakfast and repack your bag for your 3-day trek into the Sapa valley. Porters will carry your luggage needed for the next 3 days and the rest will be transferred to Topas Ecolodge, where you will stay after the trek. A short drive takes you to Ta Thang, inhabited by the Tay minority, where your trek starts. Continue uphill with views over the green valley lying along the Red River and onwards towards the Red Dao village of Sin Chai. The trail leads you through small minority villages and bamboo forests in this fabulously mountainous area and most remote part of Sapa. Be prepared for curious wide-eyed children as this area is largely untouched by tourism. On arriving at Sin Chai village, you will have a short 1-hour transfer to Nam Cang village.

Activity: 4-4.5 hours walking/2 hours 20 min driving

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

An ascent of half an hour with amazing aerial views takes you to the cardamom fields on top of the nearby mountains this morning. The Red Dao earn their living growing cardamom, used for making Vietnamese and Chinese traditional medicine. Enjoy a picnic lunch by a picturesque waterfall before returning to the lodge. For the rest of the afternoon, you can enjoy relaxing by the river at the lodge or have a walk around Nam Cang village. During your walk you can learn how the local villagers make writing paper, jewellery and embroidery.

Activity: 4 hours of walking

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Crossing the river, you follow a steep trail up to the Red Dao village of Nam Ngan. Here you can explore the village whilst lunch is prepared, before enjoying an easy walk in the afternoon to My Son village, home to one of the smallest minorities in Vietnam, the Xa Pho, who still maintain a nomadic lifestyle.

Your final destination for this evening, reached by a car transfer to take you up to 1000m, is the Topas Ecolodge which sits in a wonderful location on a hilltop right in the middle of the valley.

Activity: 4-4.5 hours walking/1 hour driving

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Walk straight from the doorstep of the ecolodge today through lush valleys and rice paddy terraces to explore Lech village, inhabited by the Black h’mong. You will have another opportunity to visit a village school if it is a class day, before returning via the beautiful Muong Bo river to Topas Ecolodge in the afternoon where you can relax before dinner.

Activity: 5-6 hours walking

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Today can be as active or as easy-going as you wish. You can enjoy relaxing in your bungalow taking in the surrounding views of the Sapa valley.

If you prefer, take a trip to Sapa town to explore the busy market. Or there is also the option to do some more walking in the Muong Hoa Valley and through Cat Cat village at the foot of Fansipan Mountain. In the late afternoon leave Sapa on a comfortable shared shuttle transfer back to Hanoi (approx 5 hours).

Activity: Optional 4-5 hours of walking

Meals: Breakfast

Depart for Halong Bay first thing this morning. Check-in at Huong Hai Sealife Cruise ship around lunchtime  and enjoy a welcome drink as your Cruise Manager gives you a brief overview of the itinerary and important safety guidelines. Have lunch as you cruise among hundreds of islets to discover unspoilt pockets of Halong Bay, and visit the hidden Co Cave, where you can see sparking stalactites appear like lanterns.

As the boat cruises through the limestone karsts and clear waters in the afternoon, there are several options available including onboard kayaks, swimming off the boat’s platform, or even a Vietnamese spring roll cooking demonstration. After the sun sets, enjoy a delicious Vietnamese buffet dinner and a selection of evening activities including a movie or squid fishing. 

Activity: Optional kayaking, swimming or cooking demonstration

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

For early risers, complimentary tea and coffee are served on the sundeck followed by a Tai Chi class. As you return to Halong City, enjoy a wholesome brunch on deck before arriving back at the pier for disembarkation where your driver awaits you for your transfer back to Hanoi.

Enjoy a final night at leisure in Hanoi to finish off your wonderful Vietnamese adventure.

Meals: Breakfast

After breakfast, transfer to Hanoi airport for your onward flight.