Sapa Hiking

This was an absolutely awesome trekking experience. Although the weather was rainy and the trails muddy, we still had a blast and enjoyed the great tour guide Dao!), the fantastic views with a thunderous WOW factor, the villages themselves, the provided lunch, etc. An experience of a lifetime.

It's a fun and memorable experience. Our tour guide Pam is very accommodating and approachable. A tour with additional learning on how they stitch & dye clothes was a great experience! Having a chance to experience the Vietnamese culture and traditional clothing was the best part of the tour. Also, the rainbow ride and trekking for me was fun. If there's a chance you can ask for a tour guide, consider Pam, she's kind and super friendly!

Our guide was so nice and did a great job showing us around Cat Cat Village. She was patient and knowledgeable and answered all questions we had. We also enjoyed the scenery of the village and show at the end. The one part I would change is the set dinner at the hotel. The food was very sub-par. With spending such a short time in Sapa, I would have rather not had that meal included and then gone somewhere else for a better quality dinner. Aside from that, it was a very enjoyable experience.

scenery: Awesome, going through the paddy and corn fields, Village to village. We are lucky some lady is working on her paddy field so I have good shot. difficulty of the hike: Easy hike but the downhill is actually quite steep. Our hiking day is shine bright but not freaking hot. Track is dry, not muddy so it was easy. It surely will be slippery downhill if it's muddy guide: Different guide texted night before and another texted me in the morning. They change our guide but both of them is friendly and easy to communicate. itinerary: We take this so no need to go find lunch after coming back. And food is simple but good. mostly vegetarian, and only chicken. Drinks is separate but the price is cheap and reasonable. The only things I'm a bit annoyed is how persistent the village kids/lady trying to sell things. Try help a bit and 10more coming. Nego until satisfied coz their opening price is scam. I bought from the lady that help me during hike, consider as her tips so it's fine.

We had a lovely morning with Lo Thi Sao our Hmong local guide who was bubbly, lovely and informative. She picked us up at our hotel in town and sent us back at the end. We enjoyed walking through villages and fields with Sao as she shared stories of her life, customs, people. Impressed that she picked up English through interacting with tourists, though it was a shock to discover her so young and already a mother of 3. Lunch was simple but tasty with ice views, and we liked listening to someone who grows her own crops, rears her own animals, weaves her own clothes and even builds her own home. This was a less popular route with tourists, and we could avoid the bigger groups as such. It was foggy, but fine as long as it didn’t rain (just sprays). Sao politely told the local ladies wanting to follow us to stay away as we wouldn’t shop. We sadly saw a puppy being run over by a scooter - more common with roads being built. We enjoyed our private hike with Sao very much.

Honestly, the scenery outweighs everything else. It was my first time seeing such a peaceful yet magnificent view, making it well worth visiting. The downside is that there's a lot of hawking along the way, and they even send out children around five or six years old to peddle goods, which is not something to commend.

We enjoyed our time with May. She customized the walk based on our ability (we took many breaks, I needed them). She made bamboo canes for each of us to helped with the uphill walk. She also explained each of the medicinal properties of the plants she picked along the way. She was caring and attentive. Our walk ended with lunch (reminded me of my mom's cooking) and a herbal foot bath/soaked. Since we are both Mien (aka Red Dao in Vietnam) and it was just us, we conversed mostly in Mien. It was interesting to learn the subtle differences in our language based on our geography (Thai/Lao Mien vs Vietnam Mien). If I were to visit Sapa again, I would do it again. Note: there were women (Red Dao and Hmong) who will try to sell their textiles to you at the end. I know I can get the same thing at the market at a cheaper price, but I didn't have the heart to bargain for a few dollars. I just bought at stated price to support.

our guide Mu is lovely and very cheerful along the way, we get to experience and hear about the culture of the village and enjoy yummy food. thank you:)