Bac Ha
This Sunday market is Bac Ha’s big draw. There's an increasing range of handicrafts for sale, but it’s still pretty much a local affair. Bac Ha Market is…
Must-see attractions in Northwest Vietnam
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Ha Giang Province
This grandiose two-storey mansion was built for a local Hmong king by the French in the 1920s in Chinese-Hmong style. Set in a hidden valley in the tiny…
Bac Ha
This small market, 20km north of Bac Ha, attracts a growing number of visitors. Some tours from Sapa now visit Can Cau on Saturday before moving on to Bac…
Bac Ha
The outlandish Vua Meo, built in 1921 by the French to keep the Tay chief Hoang A Tuong happily ensconced in style, is a bizarre palace constructed in a…
Bac Ha
The Coc Ly Market attracts Dzao, Flower Hmong, Tay and Nung people from the surrounding hills. It’s about 35km southwest of Bac Ha. Operators in Bac Ha…
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Sapa
Towering above Sapa are the Hoang Lien Mountains, once known to the French as the Tonkinese Alps and now a national park. These mountains include the…
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Northwest Vietnam
One potential stopover between Hanoi and Mai Chau is this centre founded by Hanoi artist Vu Duc Hieu to showcase the culture of the local Muong ethnic…
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Mai Chau
This interesting weekly market, 30km northwest of Mai Chau, makes for a fine excursion. The back section has a small but high-quality section of batiks…
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Sapa
An excellent showcase of the history and ethnology of the Sapa area, including the French colonial era. Dusty exhibitions overview the various ethnic…
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Northwest Vietnam
Located 9km east of Muong Te is this traditional-feeling White Thai village. Nearly all of its residents live in elevated wooden houses in a bucolic…
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Ha Giang Province
Leaving Ha Giang, the road climbs over the Quan Ba Pass (Heaven’s Gate) around 40km from the city. The saddle has an information centre and an awesome…
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Bac Ha
Lung Phin market is between Can Cau market and Bac Ha, about 12km from town. It’s less busy than other markets, with a really local feel, and is a good…
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Northwest Vietnam
Sin Ho has markets on Saturday and Sunday; the wildly colourful Sunday market is the more impressive of the two. It's a better place to buy livestock than…
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Bac Ha
This market, in the remote border area of Si Ma Cai, 40km from Bac Ha, is a vibrant and chaotic weekly hub for the local Nung and Thulao ethnic minorities…
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Northwest Vietnam
Take a local bus or xe om to Thuan Chau, about 35km northwest of Son La, early in the morning, when its daily market swells with colourfully dressed hill…
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Bac Ha
There’s a waterfall near Huang Thu Pho village, about 12km west of Bac Ha, which has a pool big enough for swimming.
Sapa
Turfed out of central Sapa and now in a purpose-built modern building near the bus station, Sapa Market is still interesting, and hill-tribe people from…
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Sapa
The road between Sapa and Lai Chau crosses the Tram Ton Pass on the northern side of Mt Fansipan, 15km from Sapa. At 1900m it's Vietnam’s highest mountain…
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Northwest Vietnam
Son La’s old prison was a French penal colony where anti-colonial revolutionaries were incarcerated from 1908. It was destroyed by the ‘off-loading’ of…
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Northwest Vietnam
For an overview of Son La, follow the stone steps to the left of the Trade Union (Cong Doan) Hotel in the north of town. It's a 20-minute uphill walk to…
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Sapa
Sapa's small stone church was built by the French and is still a central landmark. It opens for Mass on Sunday and on certain evenings for prayers.
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Northwest Vietnam
You’ll find woven shoulder bags, scarves, silver buttons and necklaces and other hill-tribe crafts at this market in the north of town.
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Mai Chau
Mai Chau's main central market spills out onto the surrounding streets every Sunday morning.
