In addition to Ha Long Bay, our other overnight trip from Hanoi was to Sa Pa. This was a very different kind of trip and not even on my radar before we arrived in Vietnam. But I kept seeing people mention Sa Pa online and after a little research, it seemed perfect for us. Sa Pa is a picturesque area on the far north of Vietnam that is known for beautiful hiking and being home to some of Vietnam’s minority ethnic groups like the Hmong. We love nature and interesting cultures, so it sounded like a perfect fit.
However, Sa Pa is actually six hours away from Hanoi, which is a pretty long haul, even for an overnight trip. But, one of the draws of a trip to Sa Pa is that there are numerous bus companies that have developed overnight sleeping capsule buses to cover that route. So we decided we’d leave on a Saturday at midnight, spend Sunday night, and return Monday afternoon.
Overnight Bus
I booked our bus through the Asian website 12Go, which is a transportation aggregator. I did a fair bit of research on various review sites to choose G8 Sapa Open Tour as the company to book. The cost was just $28 each for two bottom bunks. It is a fair bit cheaper (like $15 each) to do a top bunk, but the bottom seemed like it would be safer and have less movement from the winding roads.
We took a Grab up to the bus stop and were checked in and told where to wait. When the bus arrived, there was space for luggage below but we each just had a backpack we kept with us. You have to remove your shoes as you enter the bus and they give you a plastic bag to carry them. We were directed to our two bunks and settled in. It was a very interesting experience. Unfortunately, the kept the outside window lights on through the whole ride so we didn’t get the best sleep (I wished I’d remembered my eye mask I use for long plane rides). But we both got enough sleep and it was a unique experience.
Arrival and Breakfast
We arrived in Sa Pa about 5:30 a.m. and the bus company provided a free transfer service to area hotels, so we groggily exited the big bus and boarded a smaller bus. Unfortunately it was raining a little and very foggy. The front desk was closed but the door was open and there were several people already waiting with suitcases in the lobby of our hotel, Khách sạn Phương Nam. With all the overnight bus companies, Sa Pa hotels must be very used to early morning arrivals from people wanting to drop off luggage. We went to the empty cafe next door to have a coffee and tea and came back at 7 when the front desk was open so we could store our backpacks. From there we went to find some breakfast at a restaurant that had both Western breakfast (which I wanted) and pho (which Chad wanted).
The drizzling rain had tapered off by the time we finished breakfast. Chad had researched some trails so we knew we wanted to start in the nearby village of Ta Van. We wanted to get a map or more information so we tried the tourist information office, but it was still closed at 8:15 despite being listed as opening at 8. But, we figured Chad’s hiking app would get us around well enough.
We weren’t able to get a ride with the Grab app like we hoped but luckily there were several taxis around. We approached one and asked for a price to Ta Van and felt the 200,000 dong ($8) he quoted was reasonable. The drive took about 30 minutes and was quite picturesque. The driver gave us his WhatsApp number and offered to come back to get us for the same price in the afternoon, which we gratefully accepted.
Hiking Around Ta Van
From the village center where the driver left us, we walked up a hill toward several restaurants following the trail on Chad’s app. We took a sharp right off the main road onto a smaller paved path and started climbing toward the area marked on Google maps as the bamboo forest. It was a steep climb past rice paddies and very rustic homes but quite picturesque with all the fog. We were very unsure about how far we’d have to climb but decided to keep going and try to pass by a waterfall that was marked on the map and make a loop back to Ta Van.
Finally the trail flattened out and the fog even started to lift so we could enjoy some better views. It was actually a really lovely hike, though we had to deal with spots of mud. We found the waterfall near another smaller village and managed to find the trail back to Ta Van by asking a group of hikers coming in the other direction with a guide. They said it was quite muddy but passable so we decided to carry on. The nice thing about the guides was they seemed to provide Wellington boots for their hikers, which would have been helpful. But we made it through okay despite the mud. We didn’t get a lot of photos from that part of the hike because it took a lot of concentration.
At one of the crossroads, we were greeted by a local woman who then started walking along with us, chatting a bit in limited English and helping us through the muddiest parts. It was clear she’d probably want a tip or something at the end, but she seemed nice and was good company so we tacitly decided to just go with it. And she did give us a helping hand through the mud a few times. When we reached Ta Van, she asked if we’d like to buy something from her – she’d been carrying a pack full of scarves on her back. We declined but I gave her 200,000 dong as a tip. That made her so happy that she gave each of us bracelets and consented to a photo. She definitely made that part of the hike a memorable experience.
When we made it back to Ta Van, we stopped for another coffee and a watermelon juice, which we enjoyed with a nice view. Then we had a good late lunch before messaging our driver to bring us back to Sa Pa. He came as promised, so that worked out well.
The Sa Pa Fog
By the time we finished lunch it was mid-afternoon so we were able to check into our room, which I’d booked with my Chase Ultimate Rewards points. We’d booked the slightly pricier “panoramic” room, which had walls of windows on two sides. I didn’t realize that Sa Pa was well-known for fog. Something with the mountains and the climate I guess. In fact, the next day I found a sculpture declaring Sapa “The City in the Fog.” It has heavy fog about a third of the year, including the two days we were there. Although the fog prevented us from having much of a view in our panoramic room, it was a neat effect to be surrounded by clouds.
We had a nice nap since we hadn’t slept a lot the night before before heading out to see Sa Pa in the evening. We’ve never experienced such thick fog as we had that evening in Sa Pa. It was almost magical. Many of the downtown buildings have lots of neon lights, which added to the overall effect. And right after we stopped to try a Sa Pa specialty food, chestnut cakes, there was a small fireworks display. We took lots of photos but it really doesn’t do the atmosphere justice.
After walking around a bit, we had a casual dinner that wasn’t that great and then headed back to the hotel for a real night’s sleep.
Cat Cat Village
The next morning we enjoyed the hotel’s breakfast buffet and then headed out to walk to nearby Cat Cat Village. It is down in the valley below Sa Pa and known for its waterfalls and natural beauty, as well as being a hub for H’Mong culture. We didn’t know what to expect but followed the road down and then a sign to a staircase brought us to the entry point of the village. There were ticket booths for the staircase down to the village so we bought two tickets ($6 each) and started heading down the stairs.
While in some ways Cat Cat was very touristic (lots of craft sellers and shops renting local clothes for photo shoots), it really didn’t detract from the natural beauty and it was kind of nice seeing the other tourists in their costumes. Not something I would do but I can see the appeal. We learned a little about the history of Cat Cat after returning to our room to rest before our 11:30 a.m. checkout time, but it’s all available on Google so I won’t recount it here (spoiler alert: it started with the French).
Departure and Summary
After we checked out, we had a really great vegan lunch in a cafe called Thong Dong. Then we walked around the lake taking a few more fog photos and picked up some snacks for the trip home. Rather than doing the capsule bus again, we got two seats on a limo bus, though it was about the same price ($22 each). It was supposed to make the ride an hour faster, but still took us nearly six hours to reach Hanoi.
Despite the long drives and muddy hike, we had a great time overall in Sa Pa and were very glad we did the trip. We’d even consider returning for a week or more on a future trip to Vietnam. It is a special part of the country.
