Vietnam
Ha Giang Loop
Spectacular scenery even in the fog. Highly recommend doing a 3-day easy rider motorcycle loop. Tour was through Authentic Ha Giang Easy Riders. Felt safe the entire time. Great, friendly guides. Small group. Lots of breaks for views, coffee or sights to see. Didn't like the hotels we stayed in found out later we requested homestays (which ended up being 1-star accommodations) should have requested ecolodges. Our guide said best time to do the loop is end of October/ November. Very glad we had purchased our $15 “North Face” down jackets in Hanoi as it was cold in Janaury.
4 days (2.5 days on motorcyle was perfect any longer would have been to long for us)
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Day 1: Transfer from Sapa
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Day 2: Ha Giang - Dong Van
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Day 3: Dong Van - Du Gia Village
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Day 4: Du Gia Village - Ha Giang (late afternoon transfer by bus to Hanoi)
Hotel: Four Points Sheraton- Brand new modern hotel. Big comfortable rooms
Favorite restaurant or bar: N/A
Day 1: Transfer
We magically had a taxi appear to pick us up at 10:20am, and then someone at the “bus station” office (a tiny hole in the wall across the street from a huge dirt lot with several buses) knew who we were and where we were going. Unbeknownst to us our 5 hour journey at 11am to Ha Giang was on a sleeper bus for 20 with double deck sleeper seats that only laid flat.
The ride was not for the weak stomach -very windy, up and down, and a driver trying to make up time for avoiding toll roads, which we would have happily paid for a smoother ride. If you get motion sickness, definitely take something before getting on these long bus rides. We had 2 bathroom stops for 10 minutes each (bring money for pay toilets). Passed through lots of villages.
Some towns seemed to focus on drying thin plies of wood to later be used to produce plywood.
Others areas were farming.
When we finally arrived in Ha Giang around 4:15pm. We were very happy to get off the bus. On to another bus that dropped everyone off prior to us so got a tour of the city. Bigger than we thought, but no area seemed especially inviting to go back and walk around.
Hotel: Four Points Sheraton. Given our lower budget rate this hotel was a wow! New hotel. Rooms are big. Modern and super comfortable. Floor to ceiling windows with gorgeous views. Nice that our status got us upgraded, but with an 8am departure, we didn’t really get to appreciate it much. Decent buffet breakfast the next morning, although everything looked better than it was. Had better at our smaller hotels. Note: Our daughter got food poisoning, and we’re thinking it may have been bad water from the gym water dispenser, but not sure.
Day 2: Ha Giang - Dong Van
Picked up at 8am by our tour leader Frank and our other “Easy Rider” drivers. Took a short ride to the office - Authentic Ha Giang Easy Riders. Met Leslie, the 4th in our group. Got a short debrief of the route for the tour and what to expect, and then we were off, making good use of our $10 Hanoi purchased "The North Face" jackets.
We rode through dramatic mountain terrain with lots of breathtaking view stops.
First monk sighting of our trip.
Ate at a pretty restaurant. Way too much food, especially with Haley and Larry both feeling bad at this point. Larry had hit the gym early, before knowing of Haley’s experience from drinking the gym water the night before. At one of the stops the locals have learned to get you to take your picture with them for $. Which we aren’t a fan of, but loved seeing them in their traditional tribal outfits. The road goes up and down through different valleys with lots of tight curves. Great road for motorcycles, and we had plenty of company with many other groups on similar tours.
We learned about the extensive process to make hemp fabric. Our guide Frank demonstrating one phase to smooth the fabric, which was surely the birth of a toy Larry had as a child called a Bongo Board.
Interesting tour of a historic tribal king’s multi room mansion. Guess all those wives and children needed their space. Story of gold bars buried in the walls being accidentally found just 50 years ago.
Lady out shopping on her scooter with two pet monkeys. That little guy on the back really needed to hang on.
More striking views
Wandered through the locals’ market in our town for the night. Very tight and sprawling. Selling essentials. No focus on tourists.
Old town area looked much more interesting than where we were staying on our tour.
Hot pot for dinner. Overwhelming amount of food. The team made a dent, but much left from our table went to feed the pigs.
Walked more in the old town after dinner. Nice area. Lots of restaurants and small hotels.
Hotel: White House. Very disappointing as we thought we were going to stay in an authentic homestay - offering character and ambience. Instead we stayed at a one star hotel with absolutely no charm. Just a bed, small table and 2 chairs in room. No nightstands, closet or chest. Bathroom didn’t have a shower curtain. Entire bathroom was the shower-stall.
Day 3: Dong Van - Du Gia Village
Started today a little after 9am. Definitely needed our long johns as it was cold.
Motorcycles everywhere. We are in a group of 4 but some organizations travel in packs of 15-20. Most make the same stops, so this scene was typical. Can’t imagine how crowded it must get in the high season.
They built the road we’re using primarily by hand and volunteer labor starting in 1959 - 1965. This monument was a tribute to the people who built the road.
First glimpse of river. Unfortunately very foggy day, so many views muted, but very mystical.
Got a fuzzy view of the deepest canyon in southeast Asia off in the distance.
Goodbye lunch to our other travel partner, Leslie, who was a great addition to our group. We knew we would miss her, but did exchange contact info.
First stop after lunch - bit of a bumpy ride to get to it - gorgeous overlook of the impressive road section we had just traveled.
Saw many ladies like this, some quite old, carrying large loads of vegetation on their backs.
More amazing, but shrouded, viewpoints to finish the day.
Got to tonight’s Du Gia Lo Lo Homestay about 4pm for a brief rest before a walk around the area and a similar family style dinner. Better than last night (still had the shower in the toilet area) but not great.
Day 4: Day 22: Du Gia Village - Ha Giang
Another 9am departure. Pancakes or pho noodle soup for breakfast. Enjoyed watching the workers tend to the farm.
Daily morning gas stop
First coffee / viewpoint
Started to rain so we all geared up with the stuff they provided. Very helpful, although one size for all didn’t work too well for Larry at 6’1” and size 13 feet.
Drove through lots of villages on bumpy, muddy roads and fog
Stopped at a waterfall was a short hike from the road.
Vietnamese love their pool.
Whoops major road block. Detour added 18 miles to our ride. Larry and his easy rider almost went down on the muddy road when we turned around.
Took a limousine bus back to Hanoi. Much more comfortable ride. Road was relatively straight. Quick stop at the gas station for food.and his easy rider almost went down on the muddy road when we turned around.
