Trekking in the high Tonkin

Hanoi - Walks (L/D)

Arrival at Hanoi airport, welcome by our guide, then direct transfer to the City Center for the first visits of the capital of Vietnam.

Depending on your arrival time, you will visit different sites or stroll through the old quarter of Hanoi to see the daily life of the inhabitants up close and take photos of the very lively life of the commercial district abundantly described in tourist guides.

Transfer and check-in at the hotel. Free time for rest or personal discoveries of the neighborhood around your hotel.

Welcome dinner and overnight in Hanoi.

Ha Noi – City tour (B/L/D)

After breakfast, a day of visits and walks in Hanoi:
We begin the guided tours of the capital with the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum complex which dominates Ba Dinh Square, and his stilt house to better understand the life of a great man whose life was very modest.

The One Pillar Pagoda is famous for its original construction linked to a legend dating back to the 11th century.
Then visit the Temple of Literature dedicated to Confucius and his disciples, the first Vietnamese University, it bears witness to Vietnam's feudal education.
In the afternoon, let's visit the Museum of Ethnology, the largest and also the most complete museum of Vietnam's 54 ethnic groups. A cyclo-pousse tour in the old quarter and its small commercial streets will allow us to discover the main points of interest of the Vietnamese capital.

At the end of the day, let's visit the Jade temple in the middle of the Lake of the Restored Sword, the giant turtle in this temple tells us the legend of the lake born in the 15th century.

In the evening, we attend the water puppet show, a typical popular art of Vietnam.

Dinner at a local restaurant and overnight in Hanoi.

Ha Noi – Ha Giang (B/L/D)

Departure towards the high region of the far North of Vietnam, passing through the middle region where the flatness of the Delta gives way to a landscape of hilly massifs striated with river valleys.

Arrival in the late afternoon in a Tay ethnic village, at the foot of the Tay Con Linh massif whose summit rises to over 2400 meters. Generously irrigated by a nearby spring, this village surrounded by rice fields resembles a true living museum. Meeting and settling in with our host in his beautiful house characteristic of the Tay ethnic group with a latanier leaf roof.

In the late afternoon, stroll through the surrounding hamlets. Under the benevolent gaze of the stone giants in forest attire, the small paths twist like frightened snakes between hamlets and undulating rice fields.

Return to the host family at the end of the day. Possibility to participate in preparing dinner with the family. Dinner and overnight at the homestay

On the heights of Tay Con Linh (B/L/D)

From the village, we walk uphill along the northern slope of the massif, on a path shaded by broad-leaved palms. The higher we gain in altitude, the more grandiose the landscapes become.
After a few hours of walking, arrival at Lung Vai village, inhabited by Red Dao people, established on the mountainside. The rice fields, which surround the village, spread out on the rolling slopes of the mountains like on the back of a giant animal. Visit the village then we continue on a flat path for about an hour.

Picnic lunch before starting the gradual descent, for about 400 meters, through terraced rice fields, corn and cassava vegetable gardens and the ethnic villages. At the end of the path, arrival in the large Tha village, inhabited by Tay people. This village is composed of about a hundred traditional stilt houses covered with thatch and palm leaves. It is surrounded by lush rice fields and rivers winding at the foot of the mountains. It is a true haven of peace.

Short transfer by vehicle or walk back to the starting village.

First steps in the Du Gia massif (B/L/D)

Departure by vehicle for Quan Ba following the Du Gia massif, a group of karst peaks partly covered by a mountain forest, bordered by villages and White Hmong hamlets.

Approaching Quan Ba, a two-hour hike through narrow valleys inhabited by Red Dao people.
Lunch in Nam Dam then a short transfer to Can Thy on a mountain road leading to the south of the Nui Chay massif. From 3 p.m., walk on a stony track leading to the Hmong village of Can Ho. Dinner and overnight in a White Hmong house.

The Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark (B/L/D)

You will walk along a path that regularly climbs towards a pass culminating at 1670m.

From there, enjoy a view of the Dong Van Geopark massifs and the Yen Minh valley, before starting a slight descent to Sung La, a H'mong village where you will have a picnic.
Afterwards, walk without any real difference in altitude through a countryside made up of hamlets and terraced rice fields then pick-up car to reach the town of Yen Minh. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Around Dong Van town (B/L/D) ~ 4 hours of walking

En route to Dong Van town, crossing the heart of the Geopark, which spans an area of 2,356 square kilometers. A spectacular and unique landscape of high mountains and deep canyons. As we approach Dong Van town, we stop to visit the ancient fortified palace of the Vuong family, known as the H'mong King's Palace, a testament to the opulence of local notables under French rule.
Arrival in late morning in Dong Van, which houses a relatively well-preserved historic quarter in its center, around the "French market".

In the afternoon, hiking in the H'mong villages sector of the Hau De community. The itinerary, traced along the mountainside, passes through terraced rice fields, runs along the Chinese border, offering a panoramic view of the Nho Que River and the Chinese border. Dinner and overnight at the hotel

Dong Van – Meo Vac – Black Lolo Village (B/L/D)~ 4 hours of walking

Morning visit to the Dong Van market before heading back to Meo Vac via a short climb to Ma Pi Leng Pass. A breathtaking view plunging into the canyon of the Nho Que River and, on a clear day, a panorama of the ridge line of the Chinese border, located two valleys away.
Crossing the town of Meo Vac, then, after a short vehicle transfer, a magnificent 4-hour hike in one of the most picturesque areas of Northern Vietnam. The walk first follows a paved track towards the upper part of the Nho Que River valley.

After overlooking a first H'mong village, the track winds along the top of the valley, upstream, parallel to the ridges of the Chinese border that appear on the horizon, two valleys away. Bypassing the peak, we return to the interior of the massif via a short, enclosed valley that closes on a pass: all sheltering 3 H'mong hamlets. After crossing the pass, we take the vehicle back to the town of Meo Vac.

Lunch and drive to the village of Khuoi Khon where the documentary "Rendez-vous en terre inconnue: Frédéric Michalak chez les Lolo noirs" was filmed.

Upon arrival at the village, settle in with Mr. Hai, the village chief.

Black Lolo Village – Ba Be (B/L/D)

Departure for Ba Be Lake via the old Colonial Roads N°4 then 3.
Arrival in mid-afternoon at Ba Be National Park (meaning "three bays"). The site is characterized by a natural lake fed by three rivers and nestled in high limestone formations still largely covered with primary subtropical forest. The villages around the lake are predominantly populated by the Tay ethnic group. Those in the highlands, rarer, are inhabited by the Dao and H'mong.

Embark on a long motorboat to reach the nearby village of Coc Toc: a hamlet of the Tay ethnic group located on an arm of the lake, at the foot of a wooded massif and away from tourist flows.

At the end of the hamlet, on the edge of the jungle, settle in with Mr. Sau

In Ba Be Park (B/L)~ 4 hours of walking

North-west circumambulation walk along the slopes of the highest massif overlooking the lake. The path stretches along the slopes and, on a clear day, a superb panorama of Na Hang Lake, to the west, unfolds before our eyes. We follow the provincial border Bac Kan – Tuyen Quang.

In the early afternoon, departure from the guesthouse, walking along the dry crop fields (corn, cassava, sweet potato...). In the highlands, visit the villages of the H'mong and Dao ethnic groups.

Arrival at the end of the day at a local's house in the village of Na Nghe, populated by the Dao ethnic group. Dinner and overnight at the homestay in a beautiful traditional mountain house.

Ba Be – Ha Noi (B/L)~ 4 hours of walking

Departure from the Dao village of Na Nghe on a path that descends steadily to the outflow river of Ba Be Lake and plunges in rapids into Na Hang Lake.

Visit the Dau Dang waterfall then lunch at "Ong Pirate's", a valiant character from this border area of the Park.

Ascend the river by boat, along dizzying karst cliffs, and cross the lake from north to south. Take the vehicle again and transfer to Hanoi.

Ha Noi - Hon Gai – Bai Tu Long – Thien Canh Son - Cong Do (B/L/D)

At 07.45: Departure for Halong city - the eighth wonder of the world with nearly 3000 limestone sugar loaves spread over an area of 1500 km2.
12.00 – 12.15: Arrival at Hon Gai (Vinashin) pier. A short rest at Phu Dong restaurant while waiting to board the junk.
12.30: Boarding the junk.
12.45 – 13.30: Welcome drink and a briefing on the tour by the junk guide. Check-in to the room.
13.30 – 14.30: You have lunch aboard the junk while it passes through magnificent natural landscapes, multi-shaped islets of the magical Halong Bay.
15.00: Continue the cruise to the hidden cave of Thien Canh Son in Bai Tu Long Bay, the cave is also called Co cave. Time to relax, walk along the beach or take photos at Hon Co island.
16.00: Return to the junk. Enjoy a cup of tea before doing water activities: swimming or kayaking or both...
17.00: You go swimming or kayaking
18.00 – 19.00: A short cooking class – the junk's chef teaches you how to make Nem ("spring rolls") and carve fruits and flowers for dish decoration. Admire the magnificent landscape of the bay at dusk… while the junk heads towards the Cong Do area where it anchors for the night.
19.30: Barbecue dinner is served aboard the junk.
21:00: Relaxation time: movie, games, night fishing. Admire the charming beauty of Bai Tu Long Bay in the evening.

Overnight aboard the 3* shared junk (private Deluxe room)

Continuation of the excursion – Cong Do – Vung Vieng fishing village – Hanoi (B/L)

06.30: You wake up in the middle of the bay. Tai-chi class on the junk's deck
07.00: Breakfast at the restaurant admiring the sunrise in the bay. The junk heads towards the Vung Vieng fishing village area.
07.45: Visit the floating village of Vung Vieng by bamboo sampan. Discovery of aquaculture.
09.00: Return to the junk.
09.30: Room check-out
10.00-11.00: Lunch is served aboard the junk while the junk returns to the pier.
11:30: Arrival at the pier. You say goodbye to the junk crew. Disembarkation.
12.30: Departure for Hanoi. Arrival in Ha Noi in the late afternoon.

Direct transfer to the airport for your return flight