Itinerary
Day 1: Day 1: Hanoi - Pu Luong
Stop At: Pu Luong Nature Reserve, Pho Doan, Thanh Hoa 448100 Vietnam
165km
homestay
Pu Luong Nature Reserve; the Pu Luong Pass
You'll travel southwest from Hanoi, passing acres of rice fields overshadowed by the great limestone cliffs that jut out of them. By afternoon, you'll be riding the Pu Luong Pass and taking in the panoramic view it offers of the surrounding countryside. In previous years, we used to spend the first night of this tour in Mai Chau but nowadays we spend it in Pu Luong Nature Reserve: it's seen very little development, is even quieter and has plenty of dirt roads and traditional homestays.
Duration: 3 hours
Meals included:
Lunch
Dinner
Accommodation included: homestay
Day 2: Day 2: Pu Luong - Ta Xua
Stop At: Ta Xua Peak, Bac Yen town, Son La Vietnam
200km
homestay
the rural district of Mai Chau; the Moc Chau Plateau; the Hua Tat Pass; crossing the Da River by ferry
You'll continue your adventure north into the rural district of Mai Chau. Set in a valley filled with the rice fields and the stilt houses of Vietnam's Thai minorities, it has a number offroading opportunities and plenty of places to pause for refreshments. After leaving the valley you'll head up into the mountains over the Hua Tat Pass and the Moc Chau Plateau, an area famed for its plums, flowers and green tea (there's even a mountain you'll see there covered in nothing but tea trees!) Then it's down towards the Da River, which you'll cross on a little ferry before beginning a second, steeper climb, passing through the mountain town of Bac Yen and arriving in Ta Xua before dark.
Duration: 5 hours
Meals included:
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Accommodation included: homestay
Day 3: Day 3: Ta Xua - Hanoi
Stop At: Ta Xua Peak, Bac Yen town, Son La Vietnam
225km
Ta Xua Nature Reserve; the Dinosaur's Backbone; the Lung Po Pass
You'll ride the narrow dirt roads through Ta Xua Nature Reserve to the even narrower Dinosaur's Backbone, a little path set atop a mountain that leads to one of the highest peaks in the area where, on a good day, you can watch the clouds pass by from above. (In wet conditions, though, you'll likely walk the Backbone: it's short enough, but it's definitely not for the faint of heart!) This is the culmination of the motorbike tour: the view from up there is a great example of the type of massive vista for which North Vietnam is known. Then it's northeast over the Lung Lo Pass, skirting Xuan Son National Park on the way back to Hanoi. This area is known for its green tea, and the ride back to Hanoi from this direction is characterised by miles of rolling tea plantations and the villages of the minority folks who cultivate them.
Duration: 7 minutes
Meals included:
Breakfast
Lunch
No accommodation included on this day.