Cycling in the Northern Vietnam

Welcome to Hanoi!

Upon your arrival, you are welcomed by your local tour guide at the airport arrival hall, and then transferred to the hotel for check-in. Have a welcome dinner at a local restaurant and take a brief introduction about your cycling hotel.

Meals included: Dinner

Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi

Driving distance: Noi Bai Airport to Hanoi City center - 28km (17 miles) – 35 – 45 minutes

Note: Hotel standard check-in time is 14:00. Early check-in is subject to room availability.

After breakfast at the hotel, you will meet your tour guide and begin exploring Hanoi City. You will visit the Ho Chi Minh Complex, where iconic structures such as the Mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh, the One Pillar Pagoda, and the Presidential Palace are located, and visit the properties where Uncle Ho used to stay. Thereafter, pay a visit to the Museum of Ethnology to take a look at the history & culture of Vietnam’s 54 ethnic groups.

After lunch, you will visit the Temple of Literature, which was constructed in 1070 and is well known as Vietnam's first university. Lastly, stroll through the Hanoi Old Quarter and immerse yourself in the local lifestyle.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch
Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi
Tour duration: 8 hours

After breakfast at the hotel, you will begin your cycling journey to reach the authentic local places in the rural area of Hanoi. Kick off with a short briefing about the trip. You then begin cycling, passing landmarks in Hanoi such as West Lake, then head to Long Bien Bridge, leaving the city centre for Co Loa Temple in Dong Anh District. There are a variety of opportunities for you to stop en route to photograph and visit local places of interest, such as temples, pagodas, railway stations, local markets, and agricultural plantations.

After lunch at a local restaurant, you will carry on your cycling route and get back to your hotel this late afternoon. Have free time to freshen up and rest on your own.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch

Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi

Tour duration: 8 hours

Cycling distance: 35km – 5.5 hours

Check out of the hotel in the morning. You will travel by car to Mai Chau, a charming valley situated 140km (87 miles) south-west of Hanoi. Upon your arrival, you will check into your accommodation and have lunch at the traditional house of a Thai minority group. In the afternoon, let’s hop on your bicycles and explore the valleys to discover different neighborhoods and witness the daily lives of the ethnic minorities. Afterward, you will get back to the accommodation to rest and have dinner.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Accommodation: Local homestay in Mai Chau

Driving distance: Hanoi to Mai Chau - 140km (87 miles) – 3.5 – 4 hours

After breakfast, you will travel to Pu Luong Nature Reserve, where you will make your way to the welcome gate of Dong Dieng Village and begin your cycling. Traversing the rolling hills along the hidden trails through the forest of beautiful, diverse flora, you'll finally reach the bottom of the valley, where you're completely enveloped by the lush rice fields of Kho Muong Village. Have lunch at the local family. Thereupon, you will continue along the trails from Kho Muong Village toward Uoi and Don Village. The trails will lead through some mandarin gardens and bamboo forests, where you can gain a fantastic overview of the villages and their rice-field terraces from above. Then, amble down a steeper dirt road to reach Don Village. You will finish your hiking day and spend time resting at a local homestay in Pu Luong.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Accommodation: Local homestay in Pu Luong

Driving distance: Mai Chau to Pu Luong

Trekking distance: 15km – 7 hours

Note: Depending on today's timing and your physical health, today's trekking route can be flexibly adjusted accordingly.

Head out from Pu Luong and arrive at the Hoa Lu site by taking a road that passes through beautiful, picturesque landscapes. At the beginning of the afternoon, you will start to explore the Van Long Nature Reserve and take a pleasant bike ride on the dam levee. After cycling through the countryside, step aboard a small rowboat for a peaceful journey through the flooded rice fields and the spectacular landscape of rocky peaks, canals, and vegetation. You will then make your way to Cuc Phuong National Park for an overnight stay.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Accommodation: Lodges in Cuc Phuong National Park

Driving distance: Pu Luong to Ninh Binh – 110km (68 miles) – 3 hours

Take the day to explore the verdant green jungles that stretch along in seemingly endless blankets of foliage. Magnificent limestone mountains rise up from behind the picture-perfect rice terraces and traditional stilt houses of the Muong hill tribe, and suddenly, you’ll find yourself at the heart of the beautiful, authentic Vietnam.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Accommodation: Lodges in Cuc Phuong National Park

Distance & duration of cycling: 50 km (31 miles) - 5 to 6 hours

Terrain: path and paved road

After breakfast, you will travel by land from Ninh Binh to Halong Bay. Upon arriving at the harbor, you’ll embark on an overnight cruise to explore Halong Bay, a world-famous destination featuring some of the 1,900 karst islands and islets, offering spectacular marine scenery that earned Halong Bay a UNESCO World Heritage Site designation. Besides cruising, you also get off the boat and explore the uninhabited islands, caves, lagoons, etc.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Accommodation: Halong Bay overnight cruise

Driving distance: Ninh Binh to Halong Bay - 180km (112 miles) – 4 hours

Wake up on the bay, surrounded by fascinating scenery and a peaceful atmosphere. You will have breakfast on the boat, then continue exploring other parts of Halong Bay before sailing back to the shore at noon. After lunch, you will get off the boat and start traveling back to Hanoi.

Check into the hotel in Hanoi, and you will have the rest of the day free on your own leisure.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch

Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi

Driving distance: Halong Bay to Hanoi 150km (93 miles) – 2.5 hours

Have breakfast and rest at your hotel. At an appointed time, you will see your tour guide at the hotel lobby for the transfer to Noi Bai Airport for your flight to the next destination.

Meals included: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Accommodation: Hotel in Hanoi

Driving distance: Hanoi to the airport 28km (17 miles) – 35 – 45 minutes

Note: Hotel standard check-out time is 12:00 pm