8 Day Northern Vietnam Off-Road Guided Motorcycle Tour For Experienced Riders
Motorcycle Tour in Vietnam
This 8 days Northern Vietnam off-road motorcycle tour to Ha Giang, Sapa, Yen Bai, Mu Cang Chai, Son La, and Lai Chau from Hanoi offers you the full chance to taste the most stunning landscapes of the north-east and the northwest of Vietnam with curvy steep passes, dirt tracks, muddy backroads, and single trails to get lost into unspoiled places to approach authentic local cultures.
Key information
- Bike: rental bike (Honda or Yamaha models)
- Riding gear: included: helmet
Highlights
- Starts and ends in Hanoi
- Visit Pac Ngoi – a beautiful village of Tay people at Ba Be lake’s side
- Motorbike across some streams
- Take a scenic route climbs over many passes
- Stop in Ha Giang, located at the highest latitude in Vietnam
- English-speaking guide
- 7 nights accommodation
- Meals as indicated in the itinerary
Skill level
- Intermediate
Accommodation
You will be accommodated in homestays and hotels.
Program
Brief itinerary
- Day 1: Hanoi - Ba Be Lake
- Day 2: Babe Lake - Dong Van via Meo Vac
- Day 3: Dong Van - Ha Giang
- Day 4: Ha Giang - Sa Pa
- Day 5: Sapa - Mu Cang Chai
- Day 6: Mu Cang Chai - Ta Xua Peak
- Day 7: Ta Xua Peak via Tram Tau - Nghia Lo
- Day 8: Nghia Lo - Hanoi
Detailed itinerary
Day 1: Hanoi to Ba Be Lake (230 km / 143 mi)
This great motorcycle tour to the north of Vietnam starts at around 8 a.m. You will try the best to avoid busy city road in the morning until Cho Chu town (in Thai Nguyen province) where you have lunch. After lunch, you will surely have enjoyable motorcycle ride to Ba Be because the roads have less traffic and give you a lot of grand mountain view. At about 4 p.m., you arrive in Pac Ngoi – a beautiful village of Tay people which is located peacefully at Ba Be's lakeside. Dinner and stay with the Tay’s family.
Ba Bể Lake (Vietnamese: Hồ Ba Bể – Ba means “Three”, Bể is from the Tay language word pé, meaning “lake”) is the largest natural lake in Vietnam. It is located in Nam Mẫu commune, Bắc Kạn district, Bắc Kạn Province in the northeastern region of the country. Having been formed approximately 200 million years ago, the lake is surrounded by limestone cliffs, which in turn are covered by primary forests.
The lake comprises three zones named Pé Lầm, Pé Lù, and Pé Lèng. Three rivers, named Năng, Tả Han, and Nam Cường, are the main inflows of the lake. The Năng river enters the lake through a large waterfall called Đầu Đẳng. In the lake there are also three islands, named Án Mã, Khẩu Cúm, and Po Gia Mải (literally “Widow’s Island”).
Ba Bể Lake is a featured geographical science and is a biodiversity reservoir. It is a part of the Ba Be National Park.
It is home of a range of animals and plants.
Summary:
- Distance: 230 km
- Meals: Lunch, dinner
- Accommodation: Home-stay
Day 2: Babe Lake to Dong Van via Meo Vac (210 km / 130 mi)
Saying good bye to the family, you’ll ride the motorbike on the back-roads through some rustic villages and the jungle. Then you motorbike across some streams. This promises to be a great day for off-road Vietnam motorbike touring. You will stop in Bao Lac town for lunch and then continue to Meo Vac by taking a scenic route climbs over many passes where you can enjoy beautiful mountain ranges and the Nho Que river. Arrive at Meo Vac by 5 p.m. Dinner in town and hotel stay.
Meo Vac Town is located in the heart of the Dong Van Rock Plateau, which was recognized as part of the Global Geo-Park Network in 2009. The Dong Van old quarter is home to age old and unique architecture near Ha Giang Province’s border with China. Therefore, the motorbike tour to Ha Giang, Dong Van is always the best choice of the motorcyclists.
Summary:
- Distance: 210 km
- Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Accommodation: Hotel
Day 3: Dong Van to Ha Giang (180 km / 112 mi)
Today’s ride promises to be the highlight of this motorcycle trip in north Vietnam as you will visit one of the most remote land in Vietnam where you can see many ethnic groups with their unique cultures and imposing mountains such as: Pi Leng Pass – one of the 4 longest and most beautiful passes in North Vietnam, the Rock Plateau, the Vuong palace in Dong Van, The “Heaven Gate” in Quan Ba.
This is for sure the best motorbike ride in Vietnam with many interesting and amazing things in every meter of the road. Arrive in Ha Giang in the late afternoon. Dinner and stay with the other Tay’s family or stay in a hotel in Ha Giang city.
Ha Giang, 300 km away from Hanoi, is located at the highest latitude in Vietnam. It is surrounded by Cao Bang, Tuyen Quang, Lao Cai, and Yen Bai. It shares a border with China in the north. Many ethnic minorities, including the Dao, H’mong, Tay, and Nung, live in Ha Giang province Vietnam.
Summary:
- Distance: 180 km
- Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Accommodation: Hotel
Day 4: Ha Giang to Sa Pa (220 km / 137 mi)
Today you head straight towards the North-western mountain where the main Fanxipan Mountain range dominates the road until Sa Pa. The road is very smooth with a good view of green mountain, rice fields between lovely villages of the hill tribes. After a short break in Lao Cai to see Chinese border, you will have a very beautiful motorbike ride up to Sa Pa. This motorbike ride goes up and up till 1,600 meters above sea level. It offers a great view of the mountain with terrace fields and it must be one of the best motorbike rides in North Vietnam.
Arrive in Sa Pa at around 5:30 p.m., overnight at a hotel in Sa Pa.
Summary:
- Distance: 220 km
- Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Accommodation: Hotel
Day 5: Sapa to Mu Cang Chai via Than Uyen (170 km / 106 mi)
You are free to explore Sapa until 1:30 p.m., check out of the hotel and you continue the route to Than Uyen. You will make a splendid climb up from Sa Pa to the top of the highest road pass in Vietnam (Tram Ton Pass), crossing into Lai Chau Province at over 2000 m above sea level. This is a short motorbike ride but could be the most enjoyable motorbike tour from Sa Pa. The ride offers you an amazing view of the Hoang Lien mountain ranges for miles and miles. You arrive in Than Uyen by 5 p.m. Dinner and overnight in hotel.
Summary:
- Distance: 170 km
- Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Accommodation: Home-stay
Day 6: Mu Cang Chai to Ta Xua Peak – Dinosaur Backbone (180 km / 112 mi)
You keep riding up and down into a forested and high mountain region populated by H’mong peoples. You will hike up a very high mountain pass before descending into a mountainous tea-growing region. Soon after you follow along the valley floor covered in a sea of rice surrounded by Hmong and Thai’s villages all the way to Ta Xua peak. At the highest point of 2865 meters, the Ta Xua peak is the tenth highest peak in Vietnam. The three most important peaks form a line that looks like the back of a dinosaur. It is a real off-the-beaten-track destination.
After having lunch at a local restaurant en route of the national road No. 32 where you view nice terrace fields and high mountains, you’ll keep riding to Ta Xua to have a special chance to see cloud flying over or beneath your feet.
Arrive in Ta Xua town at 5 p.m. Overnight at homestay.
Summary:
- Distance: 180 km
- Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Accommodation: Hotel
Day 7: Ta Xua to Nghia Lo via Tram Tau (120 km / 75 mi)
In this morning, you’ll keep exploring beauties of this amazing land with some dirt tracks to get deeper inside the villages before leaving to Tram Tau of Yen Bai province on a newly-opened short-cut by the iron horses. Tram Tau is home to 11 groups of peoples of which the Hmong accounts for 77%, the Thai 16% and the others are Kinh, Khmu, Tay, Muong…
The terrain of Tram Tau is dissected by high mountains and deep ravines becomes hot destination for adventure motorbike riders. The averaged altitude is 800m above sea level, the lowest altitude is 390 m above sea level. The temperatures in Tram Tau are below 30 degrees Celsius almost all year round and it may get below freezing point in the winter.
Upon reaching Tram Tau, you’ll challenge yourselves with some dirt tracks to explore some stunning nearby villages with great rice terraces otherwise you can relax yourself with a top-notch service of the hot-spring here (your own account) before riding to Nghia Lo for an overnight.
Arrive in Nghia Lo at 17:30 p.m. Overnight at hotel.
Summary:
- Distance: 120 km
- Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
- Accommodation: Hotel
Day 8: Nghia Lo to Hanoi (220 km / 137 mi)
Nghia Lo is located on Highway 32 and about 200 km away from Hanoi. Muong Lo is the second-largest rice terraces in the Northwest of Vietnam with the famous water rice and Muong Lo – Nghia Lo is the cradle of Thai people who is famous for unique culture and food.
In this morning, you’ll be at leisure a bit before riding back to Hanoi. En route, you’ll stop by some very nice places / great spots to defy yourself with some dirt tracks to discover the beauties of Muong Lo Valley with tea plantations / terraces, villages. Finally, you will be back to the hotel before rush hours in order to end the motorbike tour in north Vietnam safely.
Summary:
- Distance: 220 km
- Meals: Breakfast, lunch
- Accommodation: None
Skill level(s)
Intermediate:
- can ride for 3-4 hours
- average riding experience
- little assistance required
- comfortable with extreme curves and leans
- average experience with unsurfaced roads
- steep ascents and descents
Location
On this trip, you will begin in Hanoi then continue to Ba Be Lake, Meo Vac, Dong Van, Ha Giang, Sapa, Than Uyen, Mu Cang Chai, Phu Yen, Ta Xua, Tram Tau, Nghia Lo, and back to Hanoi.
Food
You will have delicious breakfasts, lunches, and dinners. Bottled water, coffee, and fruits are also provided while on tour.
The following meals are included:
- Breakfast
- Lunch
- Dinner
- Drinks
The following drinks are included:
- Water
- Coffee
- Tea
The following dietary requirement(s) are served and/or catered for:
- Regular (typically includes meat and fish)
What's included
- Motorbike(s) (Honda or Yamaha)
- Helmet(s)
- Driving gears
- Gasoline on tour
- English-speaking guide
- Mechanic (only for group from 6 passengers)
- 7 nights accommodation as indicated in the itinerary (based on twin or/and triple shared)
- Homestay permission
- Meals as indicated in the itinerary
- Entrance fees and sightseeing fees
- Fruits and coffee on tour
- Government's taxes
What's not included
- Travel insurance
- Visa
- Air-ticket
- Tips
- Personal expenses
- Bike's upgrades: Honda XR 150cc at 18 USD per bike per day, CRF 250cc at 35 USD per bike per day, and CRF 300cc at 45 USD per bike per day
How to get there
Recommended Airports
Noi Bai International Airport
131 km
Transfer not provided
Cancellation Policy
- A reservation requires a deposit of 30% of the total price.
- The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
- The rest of the payment should be paid 30 days before arrival.
For this organizer you can guarantee your booking through Tripaneer.com. All major credit cards supported.