Category: Sapa Culture Guide
Trekking in the mountains
For the ones really fit, I recommend the three day trekking to the Fan Si Pan mountain. Mount Phan Xi Pang, as locals call it, is a 3500 yard high peak (3143 m). During the trek you will have the chance to see how locals live. And even sleep in a local home. You will Read more
Black Hmong woman
45 miles (75km) from Sapa takes place the Muong Hun market. Muong Hun is one of the remotest towns in the area. It will take you more than three hours to get to Muong Hun. In the saturday market you will have the chance to see many different ethnic minorities. Among them, people belonging to Read more
Tram Ton Pass
While traveling around this zone, you can experience big variations in the weather. On one side of the mountain it can be cold and foggy, while on the other side the sun can shine, and the temperature can be quite warm. To visit the area you can rent a motorbike in any agency in Sapa. Read more
Traditional ethnic people
Two and a half miles (4 km) from Sapa is the Catcat village. This is a traditional Hmong people town. You can get here on a jeep and/or on a motorbike. Another nice town to visit is the Tafin village, nine miles (15km) from Sapa. you can get here by car or motorbike. In this Read more
Local fields Sapa
If you come to Sapa you do have to do some excursions. There are three possibilities. You can do the excursions on a four wheeled vehicle, on a rented motorbike and on foot. One of the shortest trekking is the Ham Rong mountain. In a two-three hour hike you can get to the top of Read more
Hmong girls Sapa
In this picture you can see a group of local girls trying to sell something to a tourist. When I saw these young girls harassing the visitors, I had a mixed feeling. Tourism is bringing money to these people. This money will change the life of the local people. Quality of life of the future Read more
Local old women Sapa
You can get to Sapa on train or on bus from Hanoi. The train is more convenient. There is even a luxury train departing every evening to Lao Cai from Hanoi’s main station. If you are traveling in a normal train, buy the soft sleeper tickets. You get to Lao Cai at first time in Read more
Local people Sapa
70 miles (110 km) from Sapa sits a town that you should not miss, Bac Ha. In this town takes place another famous local market every sunday. This market is less touristy than the market in Sapa. In the market of Bac Ha you will have the chance to see more ethnic minority groups than Read more
Red Dzao women in the market
Sapa is also famous for its love market, which takes place on saturday evenings. The love market of Sapa used to be the place to find a partner to get married. With the tourism, the real love market does not take place anymore. Currently you can only see a representation of the love market. Do Read more
Traditional Saturday Market Sapa
I was told the saturday market in Sapa was just a tourist attraction. I expected to find more foreigners than locals. But to my surprise, this was not the case. Of course there are tourists in the local markets, but most of the people I found were locals wearing their traditional clothes. If you want Read more
