TREKKING IN SAPA VIETNAM | Hiking to Lao Chai village
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- Опубліковано 3 січ 2020
- Today we are in the small mountainous town of Sapa, Vietnam.
A big draw to Sapa is its hiking trails which is a popular tourist attraction. Not being big trekkers, we decided to test our physical abilities when we took on a 1 day trek (12km) to Lao Chai Village.
We took the difficult route to Chai Village through mud and fell a number of times! We were almost run down by a herd of frightened buffalo, ate lunch in the remote village of Lao Chi and enjoyed an amazing trek with only our guide and the nature around us which is beautiful Sapa, Vietnam.
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Eight bits of advice when travelling to Sapa:
1 - Look for local expertise, preferably an experienced guide from the Hmong or Dao ethnic groups. This will open up greater cultural opportunities and make your time in Sapa more rewarding.
Please also bear in mind that all tour guides dealing with international travellers are required have a licence or work with a company who have an Inbound Tour Operator certificate. Without this, your trek will be illegal and almost certainly uninsured. Unfortunately, at this time, most freelancers are working illegally, and this comes with risks to you and your group. Avoid this by asking your guide their licence number.
2 - Choose your trek carefully. While villages like Lao Chai, Ta Van and Giang Ta Chai have developed to cater for tourists, they have lost their traditional charm. If you need WiFi, a hot shower and access to bars and a pool table, then these are the villages for you. They have a backpacker feel and are good places to meet other travellers. That said, they do experience a large volume of tour groups every day. These are the villages people are talking about whenever they mention that Sapa is too touristic. They are not representative of the wider area.
Likewise, Cat Cat Village is owned by a tour company and is an ideal option if you like the thought of dressing up in tribal clothes and seeing organised dances and routines with hundreds of other paying spectators. Think of this village as a an attraction. It has a theme park feel and is very busy, especially with Vietnamese day trippers. Because it features in many poorly written guidebooks, the village receives many unsuspecting guests hoping for authenticity. Cat Cat has been landscaped to include many sites for taking selfies with designated view points throughout. If you’re interested in nature, culture or authenticity, this place will not suit you.
Do some research and find a trek that suits your own needs. Because almost everyone goes to these few locations, it does mean that the all of the other villages are wonderfully authentic. If you want an off the beaten track adventure, away from tourists, look at organisations such as ETHOS who offer award winning private treks with experienced local guides to more remote areas. All treks and experiences are tailored to the needs of the traveller. They are heavily involved in the community and have been rated as number one on TripAdvisor for over five years.
3 - Ask your chosen guide / company where your money goes. In an area where 50% of the population are registered as poor, it is essential that any income from tourism spreads to more than one individual. Have a look at their literature or down their news feed on social media to gauge what they are like as individuals or as an organisation. Are they in tourism purely for profit or are they involved in community development projects like village clean ups or education for instance?
4 - Skip the well recommended but not particularly interesting Silver Waterfall. The Love Waterfall is a far more beautiful option with the added benefit of now having canyoning and abseiling as an activity. The walk to the Love Waterfall is very picturesque and the plunge pool makes a great place for a swim on a warmer day.
5 - Be prepared for a decent hike. Sturdy walking shoes are essential. That being said, you don’t need hiking boots. Depending on recent weather conditions, paths will be slippery regardless of what you have on your feet. If required, shoe hire is available in the Sapa area. Choose a hike and difficulty level that suit your personal fitness and adventure levels. Walking in a big group will mean your guide will choose a route that the least well prepared can manage. Alternatively, you’ll end up with an unpaid entourage of local ladies hoping to help you over the slippery sections in exchange for you buying their textiles. This can be eliminated by assuring a fair distribution of wages and choosing a private trek.
6 - Do the overnight experience. You can opt for a day trek, and I’m sure you’d love it, but staying with a local family, in their village, in their home, is incredible. See how they live day to day, meet additional family members and feel like part of the village. Check out the reviews for the top outdoor activities in Sapa and the homestays are very highly regarded by travellers, with good reason.
7 - Time your visit well. While Sunday plays hosts to the busiest market day, weekends see many more travellers, particularly Vietnamese from the lowlands. A typical weekend sees Sapa’s visitor numbers swell to almost ten times that of a typical week day. Hotel rooms become more expensive and the town feels much more hectic and noisy. Monday to Thursday is far quieter, more relaxed and altogether more pleasant.
8 - Consider an alternative to Mt.
Fansipan. Although the highest mountain in Vietnam, the cable car construction train at the summit takes away from the climb to some degree. Ascending only to find 50 others at the top taking selfies certainly spoils the ambience. Look at climbing other mountains instead. There are plenty that offer challenge, natural beauty, forests and are very rarely climbed. Examples include Bach Moc and Pu Ta Leng.
Finally, it is important to know that Sapa is a huge district with a central town and 94 villages and hamlets. All tour companies offering packages from Hanoi, booked from hotels in Sapa or organised in tourism information office in Sapa offer pretty much the same trek. This sometimes gives the illusion of over-tourism. They sell these tours to make a profit. Their objective is to minimise costs and maximise profits.
The great news is that you can trek almost anywhere else, stay in local homestays or walk in the 30,000 hectares of protected forest and you’ll really see the other side of Sapa. It is a place rich in wildlife and culture and it is very easy to do walks well away from places visited by tourists.
Those who have been to Sapa and say it’s too touristy either visited on a package tour and only spent time in the busy villages or travelled independently and stuck to the few villages recommended in the guide books.
Food wise - don’t miss the freshly made hotpot with local vegetables. Many places also sell rainbow trout spring rolls.
Amazing !
Thank you for sharing. My family and I are planning on a trip this summer to Vietnam and really looking forward to it. I have been to Vietnam a few times but never made it to Sappa. You guys are so cool and loved your video :)
Thank you very much! 😊We hope you have a lovely time in Vietnam, and we're sure you will! 😀
I really enjoy watching your vlogs. Keep it up :)
Thank you so much!! 🤗🙌
Good view and fresh Air 😎
Great video you have inspired me to go here
Probably our favorite video you guys have ever done! So well edited and the footage you guys got was incredible. Luke ripping that piece of sugar cane off like a rabbit cracked us up 😂
Thank you so much guys!!! 🙌🙌🙌
Love you bro for India
LOL, you guys have never tried sugar canes before. That was healthy sugar before they get crystalized.
Love your content!! A new subscriber here 😄
Thank you so much lingchie07! 😊
This is National Geographic level type of quality video. Stable, crisp, interesting commentary, informative. I read Guernsy is pretty big into finance and banking, but you guys have a natural knack in travel type work. I have seen many, and you are definitely up there in the upper 5 - 10 percent. Your subscriber and views will increase soon too. Your buddies you met in Krabi make good videos too. The ladies have some similarities in their personalities...fun loving, honest and expressive. Not saying the guys aren't...Thanks a bunch for the sharing and hard work.
Hi Steven! Great to hear from you, we hope you had a lovely new year :) Thank you so much for your lovely words. Hopefully 2020 will be our year! 🤗
Penang always remember you guyz...stay cool
I miss the spicy food! 😫🙌
Awesome video guys!
Thank you so much!! 🙌🙌🙌
@@TrueLoveTravels no problem!
always been a dream to visit Sapa i travelled across Vietnam via motorbike but never managed to fit going to Sapa due to visa expiration. Next time I will definitely be going. Great video guys.
Hi Whalebomb, travelling through by motorbike sounds amazing! It's hard to fit everywhere in in 30 days isn't it. Definitely recommend 😊🙌
I like your video. Very detailed. Thanks. I’m using it to plan my hiking.
It looks foggy & the rice was not planted yet. Do you remember the month? Thanks
It was December 🙂 glad you enjoyed the video enjoy your hiking trip
i love cane sugar juice
which month did you visit
👍💖
Hi guys visit Philippines too. So many beaches here.. i recommend boracay, coron and siargao.
Hi Beatriz (lovely name!) thank you for your suggestion the Philippines looks beautiful!
Hai...may i know where u buy the shoes for the hiking?
Hi Azalea they were actually lent to us by our hotel. Check with the hotel you book with as I am sure it's quite normal here 😊
@@TrueLoveTravels ouh...i will btw thanks yaa😉
This is the worst time to visit North Vietnam especially Sapa : cold, foggy, wet, muddy, some times SNOW too
Hi n L! We were so lucky because the day before it was so foggy and rainy you couldnt see anything! I am sure spring and summer and very beautiful 😎
Thanks for sharing! Nice couple you guys. Be careful man for somebody not to steal your girlfriend :) .
Bathroom on bus?
No bathroom! They have a handfull of breaks on the way there
Thank you! Very cool video
Lesson 1
Don't wear Gum boots...
Anywhere, other than milking the cows...