5-days Hiking Mai Chau and Pu Luong Nature Reserve in Style

Pick up at your hotel in Hanoi and depart for Mai Chau via Hoa Binh town (150 km) through picturesque scenery with stunning views of the mountain ranges along the way. Upon arrival, check in and have lunch at hotel restaurant.
In the afternoon, have a relaxing 2-hour biking tour through the beautiful valley of Mai Chau. You will meet the local hill tribe people pursuing their daily routines such as rice planting, herding buffalos, or building houses.
Have dinner at the hotel restaurant. Traditional dance performance by the local Thai from the village.

Accommodation at Mai Chau Ecolodge, Deluxe room

Meals included:
Lunch
Dinner

Enjoy breakfast and the morning at a leisure pace, then check out and transfer to Pu Luong Nature Reserve via a breath-taking mountain pass connecting Mai Chau with the Pu Luong Nature Reserve in the western district of Thanh Hoa Province. Upon arrival, enjoy lunch with fresh local food followed by free time to explore the facilities and tranquil setting of the Pu Luong Retreat.
In the afternoon, you will start to venture out into nature with a walk along the Cham River in search of the stunning water wheels. Get up close to each wheel and discover how water is moved from river to the handmade bamboo aqueducts via simple constructions of all sizes.
Continue walking to a local fisherman’s house, have a short rest to gear up for a rafting adventure. Float along the calm river and enjoy the views, in between learning how to paddle and steer the bamboo raft.
Arriving at the scenic Tan Lap bridge, you will disembark for transfer back to Pu Luong Retreat.

Accommodation at Pu Luong Retreat, Valley View Bungalow



Meals included:
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner

Today you will have an enthralling trek to the valley at the mountain base. Photo opportunity abounds, so do not forget to bring along our camera. Start early by descending into the beautiful valley facing the Retreat where you will walk around the tumbling rice terraces. Trek through small paths shrouded in vegetation to slowly reveal a picturesque village sitting at the base of a towering mountain.
Continue trekking to the base of the valley, you will weave between the changing and contrasting sceneries with farmland, villages, wild fields, ponds, rivers, mountains and open land. Picnic lunch will be served at a beautiful spot on the route.
After lunch, you will have free time to explore the refreshing water of the nearby river before moving on to the pick-up point for a transfer back by tuk tuk.

Accommodation at Pu Luong Retreat, Valley View Bungalow

Meals included:
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner

Today you will journey further south toward Ninh Binh Province which is a famous tourist destination. The limestone karsts formations jutting out from the flooded rice fields have earned the area the nickname "Dry Halong Bay" Many of the limestone mountains contain water grottoes that provide access to hidden valleys by paddled sampans. Arrive at Van Long, you will check in a charming resort built in Vietnamese traditional architectural style.
In the afternoon, have a 2-hour leisurely sampan ride and enjoy the spectacular landscape of the Van Long Wetland Biological Reserve with a chance to spot the white trunk Delacour's langurs which are endemic to Vietnam and can only be found in this area of Ninh Binh Province.
Back to the resort, have time to enjoy the resort’s facilities.

Accommodation at Emeralda Ninh Binh, Superior room

Meals included:
Breakfast
Lunch

Enjoy your morning at a leisurely pace, then check out and drive to visit King Dinh and King Le temples in Hoa Lu which was the capital of Vietnam, then called Dai Co Viet, in the 10th and 11th centuries. The limestone mountains surrounded Hoa Lu was used as a natural fortress to defend the capital. In 1010 King Ly Cong Uan, the founder of Ly Dynasty, transferred the capital to Thang Long (today's Hanoi) and since then Hoa Lu has been known as the "ancient capital". The temples dedicated to Kinh Dinh and Kinh Le were erected on the grounds of the former main palaces of the royal citadel.
Have lunch at a local restaurant and then transfer to Hanoi. Upon arrival, drop off at your hotel

Accommodation in Hanoi is not included

Meals included:
Breakfast
Lunch