Mai Chau journey for culture enthusiasts
Away from tourist crowds and popular paths, this trip which is designed for nature lovers will bring you closer to nature and the idyllic life of Mai Chau people with many experiences such as cycling through tiny village roads, visiting handicraft workshops, easy riding to hidden Tat Nang waterfall and Phu Mau wild hot spring on the edge of Hoa Binh and Son La provinces frontier, then ending up with a day at Hang Kia – Pa Co, the land of the Blue H’mong people, famous for its year-round cloud valley, unique H’mong culture, and colorful weekend markets.
Highlight
- Easy and fun cycling through the gorgeous valley
- Amazing motorbike trip to hidden Tat Nang waterfall
- Soaring in Phu Mau natural hot spring
- Staying in our exclusive homestay with a great view of Na Phon rice field
- Immersing in Blue H’mong ethnic culture at Hang Kia Pa Co
- Friendship, warmth, and hospitality of Thai and H’mong people
| Destination |
Mai Chau, Van Ho & Pa Co |
| Included |
- Meals as specified in the program (B-breakfast, L-lunch, D- dinner)
- Accommodation as mentioned in the program
- The service of English speaking local guide in Mai Chau
- Travel in an appropriate air-conditioned vehicle with an experienced driver
- Bicycle (simple ones, without gear shift and suspension)
- Dyeing workshop
- Motor-taxi with an experienced rider
- Activities as mentioned in the tour program
- Water, tea, and local fruits
- All entrance fees
|
| Excluded |
- Hotel in Hanoi
- Beverages, guide gratuities and personal expenses
- Camera fees (if any)
- Insurance
- VAT and other taxes
- Surcharge in peak season (Christmas & New Years)
|
 Travel With Car |
What to bring
- Sun & rain gear (including sun screen and brimmed hat)
- Warm clothes in winter (mid November to early March)
- Insect repellent
- Walking shoes/sandals
- Cycling shoes/sandals
- Swimsuits
- Toiletries, towel and flashlight
- Original passport
Discount for larger group is available; please contact our travel consultants at
lam@dcttravel.vn or send us inquiry through the contact form
Details
Meal: light breakfast, lunch, BBQ dinner | Accommodation: Village stay at our traditional house -on-stilts
Departing from the DCT Responsible Travel office (17 Cau Go), we'll leave the city behind and pass through a craggy, mountainous landscape to Mai Chau valley. We arrive at Mai Chau around 10:30, where we will be welcomed by our hosts and enter a world of new customs and traditions.
Welcome by White Thai women
Following a tour briefing we will cycle to Na Phon village through the rice fields, along narrow lanes until we reach a weaving workshop. We will learn the White Thai traditional weaving, dyeing, and embroidery techniques and experience a hands-on natural dyeing workshop hosted by a Thai lady. The products that you make are yours to take with you along with fond memories of time spent with beautiful people.
*
We support 2 local weaving workshops in Mai Chau, one is the workshop of Mrs. Xuyen, an artisan who until now been weaving ancient details of White Thai. The other is the Hoa Ban Social Protecting Center, created in 2008 to support disadvantaged and disabled women while maintaining the traditional handicraft customs of the White Thai ethnic group in Mai Chau, Vietnam. Both workshops are for promoting sustainable textile fabrics and products with high quality, environmental, and social values.
Returning to our homestay we will enjoy a lunch of Mai Chau specialties delicately prepared by your host family.
Enjoy meals of Mai Chau specialties delicately prepared by your host family
In the afternoon, we’ll hop on bicycles and start cycling. There are many beautiful cycling trails in Mai Chau valley which take you through quaint villages, rice and cropping fields. Along the way, you can stop at any time to catch beautiful moments of nature or talk to a friendly villager.
Back at our homestay, there is enough time for you to chill out in the reading corner or to walk around Na Phon village.
In the evening enjoy a BBQ dinner prepared by your hosts with their amazing cuisine skills before going to bed in the peaceful atmosphere of the village.
Meal: breakfast, lunch, dinner| Accommodation: Village stay at our traditional house-on-stilts
A full day to discover the untouched valley of Hang Kia and Pa Co by motorbike (on pillion). After an early breakfast at the homestay, the moto-rider will transfer you to Pa Co village. Be ready to immerse yourself in this unspoiled nature and the authentic Blue H’mong culture! We will start the trekking trail to Cang village. There is no concrete road but only a small path that leads through H’mong villages where you will admire the unspoiled landscape and genuine lifestyle of the Blue H’mong people.
Immerse in the colorful culture of the Blue H'mong people
If this day is a Sunday, you will stop at Pa Co weekly market and visit the Blue H’mong market which is still very authentic and colorful before trekking to Cang village.
Visit Pa Co weekly market
Picnic lunch at Cang village, a remote village which is located remotely between hills and a rocky plantation. After a short lunch break, we continued our journey by motorbike back to Mai Chau following Bao La direction. This is a new road that connects two remote communities of Mai Chau district. The journey takes around 2 hours but the scenery is worth it. We will go through H’mong, Muong, and Thai ethnic villages.
In case you are not a big fan of trekking, spending time moving from this village to the others, and admiring the daily lifestyle of Blue H’mong, you might see mothers and grandmothers sitting in front of the house making clothes by hand or stopping a family how to keep making paper by bamboo fiber and learn about the traditional simple process. Lunch at a local family.
Arrived in Mai Chau at the end of the afternoon. Dinner with the family. Overnight at homestay.
Immerse in the colorful culture of the Blue H'mong people
Meal: breakfast, lunch | Accommodation: Not included
Starting with an early breakfast, we then get on a motorbike behind our experienced riders to Tat Nang waterfall. Hidden behind the terraced paddy fields, Tạt Nàng Waterfall flows all year round. It is a source of water for the paddy fields and a place for reflection.
Tat Nang waterfall
Stop for a tea break here and swim. Or you can skip the swimming until we reach Phụ Mẫu hot spring where you can soak and rejuvenate your body in these natural hot springs. Lunch at our friend's Thai family in Chieng Xuan village.
Soak your body in Phu Mau wild hot spring
After lunch, we will head back to Mai Chau. On the way, stop at Hoà Bình Lake, formed during the construction of the Hoa Binh hydropower plant, the lake is called Halong Bay on the mountain thanks to its stunning views of the jade reservoir.
Arrive at Mai Chau at around 3:30. Time for a shower for refreshment (if you wish) and a short break with some snacks before hopping on the car back to Hanoi. The estimated arrival time is about 7 pm. End of our services.
Note: You can extend your trip by staying more at Mai Chau to enjoy the peaceful valley or take another adventure with a 1-day extension to Pu Luong National Park. Contact our team for more details.
