5-day Uncover the Little Sapa

Pick up at your hotel in the old quarter of Hanoi for a joint transfer for Mai Chau (150 km) through picturesque scenery with stunning views of the mountain ranges along the way. Upon arrival, have a refreshment at Mai Chau Valley View Hotel and then take the public bus for Mai Hich, a beautiful valley about 14 km from Mai Chau.
Check in Minh Tho Homestay, a member of CBT Mai Hich, a community-based tourism project to help raise income for local people while promoting sustainable tourism. The host family will serve lunch.
In the afternoon, have a relaxing 2-hour biking tour. You will meet the local hill tribe people pursuing their daily routines such as rice planting, herding buffalos, or building houses.

Have dinner and then it’s your time to relax and treat yourself with cold beer or local wine

Accommodation at Minh Tho Stilt House, dorm-style with your own mattress, mosquito net and electric fan. Western-style toilets are located separately from the main house.

Meals included:
Lunch
Dinner

Enjoy breakfast at leisure, then say good-bye to your host family and transfer to Pa Co village (30 km north of Mai Chau).
Visit Pa Co village and call on the home of Mrs Mua Y Dai, one of the few H’mong artisans, who are still keeping and preserving ancestors’ batik and indigo dyeing techniques. See how meticulous she is in painting beeswax patterns on the fabrics and learn how it’s made with indigo dyeing.
Option for Sunday:
Have early breakfast, then check out and transfer to visit Pa Co Market. Like all other markets in the mountainous area, this is the weekly meeting place for the local people, where they come to meet friends and exchange home produces for, often, a week’s consumption. You will see H’mong women coming from surrounding communes to sell colourful brocades and admire their weaving skills and meticulous thread works.
Afterwards you will start to hike to Hang Kia, a beautiful H’mong village. Nestled in a deep valley at an altitude of prox. 1,300 m above sea level, this place is often dubbed by local people as a “Little Sapa” thanks to its mild weather. Check in Y Mua’s homestay, another member of the community-based tourism project and have a village walk to observe the local life.

Accommodation at Y Mua Stilt House, dorm-style with your own mattress, mosquito net and electric fan. Western-style toilets are located separately from the main house.

Meals included:
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner

Today you will drive further north from Hang Kia to visit a less travelled area, where you can still see authentic Muong and Thai ethnic villages. After an impressive descend from Na Bai Village, you will arrive at Phu Mau, a Thai ethnic village, to visit the beautiful Tat Nang waterfall. Afterwards, return to Na Bai village for lunch at a homestay.
After lunch, you can take a walk around the village before leaving for Hua Tat, an H’mong ethnic village. Upon arrival, check in A Chu Homestay, another member of the CTB network. Late afternoon, you may want to watch or join the local youth in their social activities at the commune’s playground nearby.

Accommodation at A Chu Stilt House, dorm-style with your own mattress, mosquito net and electric fan. Western-style toilets are located separately from the main house.

Meals included:
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner

This morning, you will hike the routes through the villages and pine hills around Hua Tat with picnic lunch in a pine forest. Afterward, return to A Chu’s to freshen up before driving back Mai Chau.
Tonight you will stay at Hoa Ban Stilt House in Lac 2 village, another CBT member. Hoa Ban Homestay together with the brocade weaving co-operative was established to support the underprivileged and disabled women from the surrounding communities. The products, including brocades, accessories and toys are distributed nationwide and the proceeds come to support the workers’ life and the communities

Accommodation at Hoa Ban Stilt House, dorm style with your own mattress, mosquito net and electric fan. Western style toilets are located separate from the main house

Meals included: Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner

Enjoy your morning at a leisurely pace, then check out and take the joint transfer to Hanoi. Upon arrival, make your way to your hotel.
Accommodation in Hanoi is not included

Meals included:
Breakfast