Ha Giang Province is a mountainous region with unique and unmatched landscapes in the extreme north of Vietnam. The typical (and most exciting) way to discover this beautiful region is by doing a three or four days motorbike loop on the legendary roads of Ha Giang.
In this article I’ll detail how to plan your visit in Ha Giang Province, what to expect, some tips and mistakes to avoid.
Now first thing first : how to get there ?
As mentioned, Ha Giang Province is in the extreme north of Vietnam, so it can be a bit difficult to reach depending on where you are. The best way to get to Ha Giang, the provincial capital and starting point of the loop, would be to take a sleeping bus from Hanoi.
The bus drive is around 5-6 hours. For booking, the typical recommendation is to go on 12go.asia/en or Vexere.com however I personally wouldn’t recommend this as you will not always get the bus and service you paid for (i.e if you booked a bus with cabins but end up in a bus with basic seats).
I personally booked many bus trips with Viet Vibe and it has been a very easy and stress free process. You can either contact them via email at [email protected] or via WhatsApp :
Their services include booking sleeping bus or all kind of transportation for you, but also trekking adventures, private tours, group tours…
When booking with them you can discuss prior to booking what you are looking for (level of comfort, pick up and drop off..), and you will get that !
Thanks to this company we were able to book last minute and have very comfortable single cabins with a blanket, pillow, usb charging ports and a blind for the window.
Make sure to have cash to pay when you get on the bus and to be on time because buses will not wait for you !
Ok so you have the sleeping bus to go to Ha Giang, now what ? We booked a three days private motorbike tour via The Hum Discovery and it was the best thing we could do !
You can either contact them via email at [email protected] or via WhatsApp :
Here’s their flyer with all their details :
I strongly recommend booking with The Hum Discovery, here’s why :
- They booked us a nice hostel when we arrived in Ha Giang at 2am, with private room and bathroom (which is rare in Ha Giang !)
- We had great accommodations during the three days loop, with good breakfast, very kind hosts and amazing cooks !
- They met our requirements regarding budget, comfort, planning, everything really
- The private tour allowed us to visit at our rhythm, decide what we preferred to do and not depend on a group
- Last but not least, they got us an amazing tour guide and driver who spoke English and French in addition to Vietnamese and Chinese !
All those aspects made our experience magical and unforgettable so for that I cannot thank them enough.
If you wish to manage everything on your own, I can still recommend Jane, our tour guide and driver for the loop. She drives on the Ha Giang roads everyday, knows the region inside out and will make sure you have a great time. She does the drive either with a motorbike or Jeep, so that way you can be more comfortable and warm because it can get really cold in this region !
Here’s her contact information :
- If you prefer booking a group tour instead of a private tour, there are many companies organizing group tours. Although, make sure to research the company first because some are really unethical with their drivers : some don’t get paid when accident occurs or are paid a ridiculous wage compared to the risks of this job. It seems that booking with Buffalo Tours or Yolo Ha Giang is a preferable option than companies such as Mama Hostel and Jasmine Tour.
- Another important fact : Ha Giang is one of the poorest region of Vietnam, and you will see many children along the roads asking for money or candy. They are sent by their parents to collect money because people will more likely say yes to a child than an adult. But by giving them something it entertain this scheme and they will continue walking along those dangerous roads instead of going school (which is mandatory and free in Vietnam). So even though, your guide will say it to you, here it is : please do not give money or accept a service from little kids. There are many signs explaining that along the roads as well.
- When booking a private or group tour everything will be including in the price from the accommodations to the food and drinks, but bring cash for souvenirs and snacks.
- No matter the season you are going to Ha Giang, bring warm clothes because it can get quite cold on the motorbike on these mountains roads and in the evenings.
The drivers will pick you up at your hostel in the morning, strap your bag to the bike and get you ready for the drive.
Here’s approximately how the trip will break down :
- Day One : Ha Giang – Yen Minh – 100km
- Day Two : Yen Minh – Dong Van – 70km
- Day Three : Dong Van – Ha Giang 150km
The loop can be done both ways, we started towards Yen Minh but as many people did it the other way around.
Lunch and dinner will be taken care of every day, and you will definitely have a feast each time ! We got to try many specialties from Ha Giang Province and North Vietnam :
- Cassava pancake as seen on picture 2
- Hotpot : a boiling broth in which you dunk raw ingredients into it until cooked (see picture 3 below)
- Fried spring rolls of course !
- Payaya salad, fried tofu, pickled cucumbers, fried pork belly and much more that you can see on picture 1, 5 and 6
- If you are spending a day in Ha Giang city, try Bep Viet restaurant. We had some delicious dishes such as fried shimeji mushroom, crispy rice, spicy beef salad and breaded tofu (see picture 4). The flavours were truly unique, if you have the chance, definitely stop by this place !
Regarding the landscapes…well, pictures will speak for themselves, but it was absolutely breathtaking.
Day One : Ha Giang – Yen Minh – 100km
On the first day we saw countless terrace rice paddies on mountainsides, and interestingly enough, those fields are often used to grow corn as well.
We also visited a traditional weaving village, where all the different stages from hemp harvesting to the manufacture of clothes and bags were explained to us :
We stopped by a beautiful lake for a coffee break :
And ended the day with a delightful meal at the hostel and we were introduced to happy water, a strong rice or corn wine, very appreciated by the local drivers !
We stayed at Nho Homestay for our first night, and it met all our expectations and more. We had a private room, clean bathrooms, kind host and good food.
Day Two : Yen Minh – Dong Van – 70km
On the second day, we started from Yen Minh towards Dong Van. We drove on the famous Thẩm Mã pass :
We saw many other outstanding viewpoints, including the Chinese border, but words can’t do these places justice, so here are some photos of the best moments on the road to Dong Van :
We ended the day by a little hike in Dong Van to get the view from above :
After a well deserved rest, we went to a hotpot restaurant, had a karaoke and game night, and toasted to an awesome day with happy water.
Our second homestay was really nice as well, we had a big private room and the shower was right next to it.
Day Three : Dong Van – Ha Giang 150km
We started this last day at the famous Ma Pi Leng pass, considered among the most impressive mountain pass in Asia.
This road which you can see on the second picture below with the little girl, used to be the main road in this area, but because it was way too dangerous, even for the locals of the mountains, they built a newer, safer road, called Ma Pi Leng pass, meaning “happiness road”.
You can walk on this road if you want to see the view from the top (like we did), but no motorbikes or vehicles are officially allowed.
We then pursued our way to Nho Que River and the impressive Tu San Canyon :
And we finished off we some incredible viewpoints :
This day was punctuated by coffee breaks as the previous days, always with a view, because there’s just spectacular landscapes everywhere :
During this three days Ha Giang loop in North Vietnam, we visited as well a traditional village handcrafting silver jewellery, we stopped by a waterfall, a 400 years old tree, a pineapple farm and much more.
We were hesitant at first to do the famous motorbike loop because of the potential danger and the amount of people, but booking it anyway was our best decision ! We felt so safe during the entire trip with our drivers and they made sure we took less touristy roads to avoid the crowds.
In addition to spending three days marvelling at the incredible scenery, we learned a lot about Hmong culture and Vietnamese traditions, and tasted many specialities, all thanks to our guide.
I 100% recommend booking with The Hum Discovery for the organization of the tour, and with Jane as a guide, they made the entire experience unforgettable and really enjoyable. It was well organised, we loved the homestays, the itinerary, and everything was well thought of.
That’s it for the three days Ha Giang loop in North Vietnam !
If you want more tips and information about Vietnam destinations, you can check out my Two days cruise on Ha Long and Han La Bays or my day trip to Hue from Hoi An in motorbikes. I also made an article about everything to know before going to Vietnam and a Two weeks itinerary in Vietnam.
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