Tour de um dia ao Mercado de Bac Ha e à Vila Ban Pho saindo de Sapa

Communication about the pickup time was very clear, and the minibus arrived within the scheduled timeframe; it was comfortable and clean. The journey from Sapa downtown to Bac Ha took over 2.5 hours, and there were no pit stops for a toilet break. The road is winding, so be prepared if you experience motion sickness. Once in Bac Ha, the guide will lead us into the heart of the Bac Ha market and show us the restaurant where we will have lunch. Afterward, we are given about 1.5 hours of free time to explore on our own. The provided lunch is also substantial and good, but drinks are sold separately. Please note that they moved the buffalo and horse market to Saturday because it was too crowded on Sunday. Originally, all the activity took place on Sunday, so I was quite disappointed when I didn't see the large animals on a Sunday. At Ban Pho village, we learned how they make the fragrant corn wine, and it seriously tastes good if you can handle strong alcohol (40-60%). Finally, we also stopped by the border bridge that connects Vietnam (Lao Cai) to China (Yunnan) for photo opportunities. Overall, I highly recommend this tour for anyone visiting the Sapa area for the first time.

It's also possible to depart from Sapa, get off at Lao Cai, and then travel from there, so those with such an itinerary might consider it. The true local market experience, only available on Sundays, was enjoyable. While the atmosphere didn't lend itself to buying much, there was nothing missing: clothes, manufactured goods, food, small items, and even livestock. You could see ethnic minorities living their lives, genuinely buying and selling, rather than being commercialized for tourism. The provided lunch was adequate (water and drinks were charged separately).

Rode minibus for about 3h to Bac Ha market, got to see various items on sale. then had lunch and short visit (about 30 min) to a small flower Hmong village and house (see them make corn wine). managed to go to the border between Vietnam and China. Was dropped off at Lao Cai upon request to take train back to Hanoi.

The tour product and the guide themselves were very good. It's true that Bac Ha Market is held on Sundays, but unfortunately, the cattle market, which I was most looking forward to, had been moved to Saturday, so I couldn't see it. Instead, the guide was very kind and explained many interesting things, taking good care of us, which was great. It was also a novel and good experience to visit and try the corn distillery in Ban Pho village. At the end, in Lao Cai, you can take photos at the place where the Chinese border is just across the river. Please note that vehicle travel takes 2 and a half hours one way, totaling 5 hours round trip.

This is a very far trip to make from Sapa town. About 3 hours one way. it is like going back to Singapore in the 1960s. We had a very enthusiastic guide who explained about the Bac Ha market origin and the products sold by the hmong folks and also the Ban Pho house that we visited. quite an interesting trip.

I had a good time with my guide Su. She was nice and spoke really good English, providing us much interesting information about the culture and life of local people.

I waited at the meeting point, Sapa Snow Hotel, but after 30 minutes, no one came to pick me up, which made me anxious. It was a tour for 7 people, and we visited Bac Ha Market, the homes of ethnic minorities, and the border with China. I apologize for the harsh opinion, but I felt that it might have been sufficient to visit these places individually without specifically joining a tour.

It was a wonderful market. It's not easy to go to this market on your own, so I'm glad I joined the tour. There were clean toilets available. At the end, they also took us to the Chinese border and the tea plantations.

Was not too sure if it was worth the long drive to Bac Ha market. It was not bad though our tour guide was not really talkative and giving us much information unless we asked her. Local Sunday Market with all kinds of stuff for sale including livestocks. Many cute puppies! I liked the area selling handmade fabric items. Need to bargain hard, opening prices are ridiculously high. After the market we had a simple lunch of local food, then sightseeing and boat ride.

The itinerary was a bit more relaxed than I expected. I originally thought the tour guide would provide commentary along the way, but it turned out to be a self-guided visit. I didn't see any cattle trading, but I did see puppies for sale. Lunch was average.