Wanderung im Land der Tay-Ethnie

Arrival in Hanoi – Walks & Relaxation (A)

Your tour guide will meet you at the airport and take you directly to the city center for your first contact with the capital of Vietnam.

You'll visit various sights or stroll through Hanoi's Old Quarter (depending on your arrival time). Whichever you choose, you'll be captivated by life in the Old Quarter and want to take photos constantly!

Transfer and check-in at the hotel. Free time. Welcome dinner and overnight stay in Hanoi.

Hanoi – City tour (F/M/A)

After breakfast, a full day of discoveries awaits:
Let's begin with the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum complex at Ba Dinh Square and visit the stilt house where this Vietnamese icon lived, to better understand the life of a great man whose life was very modest.

The famous One Pillar Pagoda will surprise you with its unique architecture. The legendary story of its construction will equally fascinate you.
Afterwards, visit the Temple of Literature , dedicated to Confucius and his disciples. An oasis of calm amidst the hustle and bustle of Hanoi, it was Vietnam's first university, founded in the 11th century. It educated generations of officials until 1915! Even today, it remains a favorite spot for students to celebrate their graduations.

In the afternoon, you will learn about Vietnam's 54 ethnic groups at the Ethnographic Museum . The visit takes place both indoors and outdoors, featuring replicas of houses and tombs.

Have you ever ridden in a rickshaw? You absolutely must try it in the old town and its small shopping streets! A pleasant and lively immersion in the crowd is guaranteed!

At the end of the day, you'll find a more tranquil atmosphere in the Jade Temple, situated in the middle of the Lake of the Restored Sword . The giant turtle in this temple will tell you the legend...

In the evening, be enchanted by the water puppet show , a typical Vietnamese folk art created by a monk. Dinner at a local restaurant and overnight stay in Hanoi.

Hanoi – Thai Nguyen – Ba Be (B/L/D)

In the morning we set off for Ba Be (the three lakes).

After a 240 km drive from Hanoi, lined with tea fields and stilt houses, we reach the Tay (or Tho) region.

Ba Be National Park is one of the most peaceful and popular in northern Vietnam.
This water reservoir is picturesque and inviting, with waterfalls, rivers, valleys, and caves spread across 500 hectares.

Dinner and overnight stay with a host family.

Cruise on Lake Ba-Be (F/M/A)

The lake lies within a large national park that protects over 417 plant species, 299 mammal species, and 11 bird species.
A boat trip on the lake to the Dau Dang Waterfalls will convince us of the unspoiled beauty of the place. On the way back, the boat reaches a large cave ( Puong Cave ) inhabited by thousands of bats, who greet us with their unmistakable whistles.

Lunch is prepared in a small Tay hut on the lakeshore.

Ba Be is also the land of the H'mong and the Red Yao.
We meet them in their homes in the afternoon. They still lead a self-sufficient life and preserve their traditional ways of life.

We spend the night with the Tay in their stilt house; dinner is prepared by the women.

Ba Be – Cao Bang – walks (B/L/D)

After breakfast with the Tay family, we set off for Cao Bang . The very scenic road leads to the Bao Lac Pass (Wind Pass), and a stop at its summit adds to the thrill.

Along the roadside, we encounter the Tho (Tay) and Yao Tien women, who are walking to the market. They smile and ask us, "Where are you from?" and "Is our country beautiful?"
We arrive in Cao Bang around noon.
After lunch , we continue our excursion to Pac Bo , a border region with China, characterized by a complex landscape of karst peaks covered in vegetation. This was Ho Chi Minh's first refuge in 1941 after 30 years abroad, and also the first Viet Minh military base during the Indochina War.

Dinner at a local restaurant and overnight stay at a hotel in Cao Bang.

Cao Bang – Trekking to Tra Linh and Na Rai (F/M/A)

On our way north, towards the Chinese border . We cross the Ma Phuc Pass (the kneeling horse) – this magnificent pass impresses upon us the wild beauty of the northeast.

We stopped in Tra Linh , a small border town, where we had lunch.

Our hike then begins with an easy walk to the village of Na Ma , where the houses overlook a beautiful green valley surrounded by limestone cliffs on the mountainside.
We will have the opportunity to meet the ethnic minorities in their indigo clothing: Tay, Yao, and Nung. Dinner and overnight stay with a host family.

Na Rai – Quang Uyen (F/M/A)

Today's excursion takes us through a stunning karst region dotted with small lakes. The route leads through forests, beautiful valleys, rice terraces, and alongside a river.
We'll admire the magnificent and poetic scenery of Nui Thuong and Quang Ngoc . Lunch will be provided en route.

In the late afternoon, we'll arrive in Quang Uyen . Dinner and overnight stay with local families.

Quang Uyen – Kong Hau (B/L/D)

Our bus takes us to the village of Thong Hoe , a one-hour journey along a scenic mountain road. In Thong Hoe, we begin our hike along the Nam La River . The trail leads through rice paddies and over hills, offering magnificent views of the river and waterfalls. We'll have
lunch along the way.
In the late afternoon, we reach the village of Kong Hau in the Halang district.
Dinner and overnight stay with local families.

Kong Hau – Rang Hoai (B/L/D)

In the morning, departure from the village of Kong Hau to the village of Rang Hoai , where the scenery is particularly beautiful: sugarcane plantations as far as the eye can see... karst peaks surrounded by forests, lined with a series of waterfalls... miles of untouched and wild nature, a true hiker's paradise!

We reach the village of Rang Hoai after a drive of approximately 18 kilometers.
Dinner and overnight stay with locals.

Rang Hoai – Ta Lung – Lang Son (F/M/A) (Tour guide + driver)

Our last hike today takes us through sugarcane plantations, past waterwheels, and rice paddies. We reach the village of Phuc Hoa around 10:00 AM. From there, we head to the Chinese-Vietnamese border post (10 kilometers from Rang Hoai). After visiting the border , we continue along Colonial Route 4 to Lang Son .

We pass through the Dong Khe basin, surrounded by karst peaks . Dong Khe and That Khe were mentioned in books about the Indochina War as the bloodiest battlefields of 1950.
The scattered bunkers along the roadside stand as silent witnesses to the battles.

In the late afternoon we reach Lang Son , a border region with China; smuggling flourished there, and this led to the prosperity of the town in 1988.
Dinner and overnight stay at a hotel in Lang Son.

Lang Son – Dong Mo – Bac Giang (B/L/D)

In the morning we visit the town of Lang Son : its shopping streets, its Dong Dang market , stocked with Chinese goods, then we drive to the historical caves of Tam Thanh and Nhi Thanh before taking National Highway N1 to the border between the two provinces of Bac Giang and Quang Ninh.
Arrival in Dong Mo , overnight stay with a family near Ngo Don.

Bac Giang – Ha Long Bay (F/M/A)

Morning hike up Yen Tu Mountain (approx. 3 hours walking time).
Visit to the Yen Tu Pagoda , then take the cable car down to the Quang Ninh side . There, we will be met by car and driven to Ha Long Bay .
Arrival in Ha Long around noon , embarkation for the 5-hour cruise .
Lunch with shellfish on board.

"The eighth wonder of the world" truly lives up to its name! This extraordinary landscape consists of almost three thousand islets and limestone rocks in fantastic shapes: turtle, sampan sail, etc., scattered across an area of ​​1,500 km² in emerald-green water.

Stop at the "Surprise Cave" . Mysterious atmosphere amidst thousands of stalagmites and stalactites... After the cave, climb to the summit of Titov Island or, for the less athletic, relax on the beach and swim , weather permitting.

The sunset from the upper deck of the junk is one of the highlights of this tour... Dinner with shellfish and overnight stay on board.

Ha Long Bay – Ha Noi (B/L)

After breakfast, we continue our cruise in the bay, leaving beautiful scenery behind, but even the best things must come to an end! However, we'll take some time for an early brunch on board.

Return to Hanoi with sightseeing stops at a ceramics workshop and a school for traditional Vietnamese handicrafts , then transfer to Hanoi Airport for your return flight (after collecting your luggage from your hotel).