Located at the foot of the majestic Hoang Lien Son range and only 5-6 hours far from Hanoi, Sapa is an ideal destination all year-round. In addition to the terraced fields in the ripe rice season, Sapa also attracts tourists to the beauty of many other destinations.
Sapa has a cool climate, so it is suitable for year-round travel. You just need to avoid the stormy season from June to early August, because extreme weather can cause floods, flash floods, landslides…
From February to May, Sa Pa spring is brilliant with hundreds of blooming flowers such as cherry apricots, peaches, plums… Summer from June to August is the time when tourists come to Sapa to escape the heat and see the green terraced fields stretching.
Autumn lasts from September to November, Sapa is charming in the golden color of ripe rice and it gradually turns cold. Winter comes from December to February next year, if you’re lucky you can “hunt” snow and ice on the tops of the mountains.
You can book a Hanoi – Sa Pa limousine or a bus from My Dinh wharf for 230,000 – 350,000 VND per person, depending on the seat class. Travel time is about 5-6 hours.
If you go by train, you choose the Hanoi – Lao Cai route, after about 7-9 hours of travel, you have to take a bus or take a taxi to the center of Sa Pa. Train ticket price is from 160,000 to 800,000 VND depending on seat class and train type.
If you drive by yourself, you go to Noi Bai – Lao Cai highway, then turn to 4D road to go to Sa Pa. The road is easy to go, but you need to pay attention to the signs and run at the right speed. On occasions of cold rain, fog and slippery roads, you should carefully check your tires, brakes, lights… before departure. Driving time is about 5-6 hours. Please depart from Hanoi at the latest around 12:30, so that when you reach the pass to Sa Pa, it is not too dark.
Sapa has a variety of accommodation options for you to choose from, from motels, homestays in villages, hostels, cheap hotels, to 4-5 star hotels, isolated luxury resorts. The famous resorts in Sapa are Topas Ecolodge, Sapa Jade Hill, Hôtel de la Coupole – MGallery, Silk Path Grand…
If you choose a homestay or hostel, you can go to villages like Cat Cat, Lao Chai, and Ta Van to enjoy the peaceful space of the Northwest mountains. Dorm room price from 100,000 VND per person, bungalow double room price from 500,000 VND.
Some favorite homestays are Eco Palms House, Heaven Sapa, Viettrekking, Phori’s House, Sapa Heavenly, Rock Garden, Coong, Cloud Garden, Mong…
Coming to Sa Pa, you must eat grilled food that they are ubiquitous and has many varieties from skewers of pork, chicken, and vegetables to eggs, corn, potatoes, and Lam rice. The prices are only from 20,000 to 100,000 VND each. In addition, salmon, sturgeon hot pot or eaten raw are also very popular. A hot pot costs 300,000 – 600,000 VND, suitable for 3 – 6 people to eat.
The specialty restaurants that visitors can refer to are Thang Co A Quynh (Thach Son Street), fish hotpot dishes at Hotpot Center (Xuan Vien Street), Ong Ha’s effervescent noodle soup (468 Dien Bien Phu). For young tourists, who love food and a youthful atmosphere, they should come to My Grill (Dien Bien Phu Street) specializing in charcoal grilled dishes or Tuk Tuk Chicken Shop with grilled spicy ribs, cheese shake… and H’Mong Pizza at Pi’s Boutique.
There are also many cafes in the town center for visitors to choose from. However, if you want to find a quiet space with a view of the valley or mountains, you can go to Coong Cafe (with Coong homestay on the way to Cat Cat village), Vietrekking (Hoang Lien street), Gem Valley Cafe (Cat Cat village).
With a magical and blurred landscape, Ham Rong mountain is crowded with tourists. The lowest point of the mountain is 1,450m, and the highest point is more than 1,800m. From the top of the mountain, you can zoom in to see most of the famous tourist attractions of Sa Pa town such as Muong Hoa valley, Ta Van village, Cat Cat village…
Ham Rong Mountain is suitable for organizing a picnic, combining eating, shopping, and sightseeing because on the way up the mountain there are countless shops and beautiful flower gardens. The price to visit Ham Rong mountain tourist area is 70,000 VND for adults and 30,000 VND for children.
After going to Ham Rong mountain, you return to the town center not far away to visit Sapa Stone Church. This is a symboy of Sapa that was built in 1895. The church was built in the shape of a cross in Gothic style, shown in the roof, bell tower, arch, etc., all of which are pyramidal shapes creating a special feature for the project.
Cat Cat village is located 2 km from the center of Sapa, so you can choose trekking or motorbike. This is a peaceful Hmong village, still preserving many customs and traditional crafts such as weaving, silver carving, jewelry making…
The road to the village is quite beautiful, you will go through the winding roads, the two sides are terraced fields with ethnic roofs. Crossing Si bridge is to the center of Cat Cat village, where three streams converge: Tien Sa stream, Vang stream and Bac stream. Visiting the village, in addition to learning about the life of the Mong people, you also have the opportunity to buy handmade products and enjoy local food. Tickets to visit Cat Cat village are 50,000 VND per person.
From the town you go along the road about 10 km to Ta Van by motorbike, taxi or trekking. The road to Lao Chai – Ta Van is quite narrow and the two sides are covered with a cool green color of rice and corn terraces. Although it is no longer wild and remote, Lao Chai – Ta Van is still a peaceful village with many ethnic groups such as Mong, Dao, Giay…
The most impressive here are the local ethnic life and the terraced fields spread across the hillsides. The end of summer is the time when the rice is ripe so dyes the whole mountain area in yellow. So if you have a lot of time, spend a day here to experience the local life. Tickets to the village 70,000 VND per person.
To get to the top of Fansipan without losing too much energy, take the cable car and train. In the morning, you queue to buy tickets at the mountain railway station opposite the town square of Sa Pa. Cable car ticket price is 715,000 VND per adult, 525,000 VND per child, train ticket is 99,000 VND per person.
To reach the top of Fansipan, you go the route by train and cable car, then you can choose another train ride or walk up 600 steps. Each train takes about 6-7 minutes, each cable car takes about 30 minutes. Those who like to walk can leisurely climb the steps, and visit the spiritual complex on Fansipan with Kim Son Bao Thang Tu, 11-storey tower, bronze statue of Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, the largest bronze statue of Amitabha Buddha in Vietnam….
Note: Should wear low-heeled shoes, bring a jacket, raincoat, or umbrella in case it is cold and smoky on the top of the mountain.
From the center of Sa Pa, run along Highway 4D for about 15 km, to the highest part of O Quy Ho pass, you will reach Sky Gate. Standing from here, you can enjoy the panoramic view of the vast valley below, the terraced fields interspersed with winding roads. Currently, there are quite a few newly built buildings such as restaurants, cafes, hotels… Heaven Gate ticket price is 80,000 VND per person with a drink.
O Quy Ho Pass
O Quy Ho is known as the “King of the Passes” with one side is a deep valley, one side is cliffs. O Quy Ho stretches for about 50 km, connecting the two provinces of Lao Cai – Lai Chau. For those who want to take good photos on this pass is to come at sunset, around 17h00 – 17h30. When the sun gradually hides behind the mountains, the entire pass is covered with a golden color. However, Sapa’s weather changes very quickly, maybe only 10 minutes after the sunset, it turns to dark covered by dark clouds.
Silver Waterfall – Love Waterfall
Located on the road of O Quy Ho pass, 3 km from the top of the pass, Silver waterfall and Love waterfall are also destinations not to be missed by many young people. Silver Waterfall has steps to the top of the waterfall, but the higher you go, the colder it will be and the more strong water will flow, so pay attention to avoid slipping. The walking path to the love waterfall from the gate is about 1.5 km and you have to walk but the road is quite romantic. Tickets to Silver Waterfall are 20,000 VND per person, Love waterfall tickets are 75,000 VND per person.
Along the pass road to Silver waterfall, Love waterfall has many small stalls selling local specialties, food and drinks, you can take a break here to have food and rest. Going to O Quy Ho pass, you should bring a raincoat and warm coat, ride a strong motorbike, wear a helmet and pay attention to every corner.
