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North Vietnam Tour – Ban Gioc and Ba Be Lake

Highlights

  • Discover Vietnamese history at Chi Lang, the Mother’s Temple, Dong Khe and the Quy Mon Quan gate, both integral locations in the Vietnam war
  • Visit to meet the indigenous local people of the village Phoc Sen, which is on the border of China
  • Stay in a traditional Vietnamese house and have dinner with an indigenous local family
  • Adventure to Ba Be Lake and discover the fascinating wildlife that surrounds it
From £431 (Depending on group size)
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What you'll do

Overview

This tour will take you from the vast lakes and chalky karsts of Ba Be National Park to the wild and rugged landscapes of Cao Bang to visit the most spectacular Ban Gioc waterfall in Vietnam. You will travel through the remote areas in the north of Vietnam, brushing along the Chinese border and staying with local families to find out about the unique cultures and customs of Vietnam.

Hanoi - Lang Son - Quang Uyen

Early morning your local guide will pick you up at your hotel, then you’ll transfer to Lang Son. You’ll head up towards the Vietnam and Chinese border. After about 3 hours, you’ll stopover at the historic Chi Lang – a 20-km-long structure formed between a narrow valley between two mountains. This place is associated with a great victory of Vietnam in the past and considered as the strongest citadel at the time. You have 1 hour to walk to explore and visit the “Quy Mon Quan” gate which means the Gate of Monsters where many of the invaders came to Vietnam in the numerous incursions had to enter and where many were killed by the Vietnamese defenders.

After lunch at a local restaurant in Dong Dang, you’ll continue your trip into pass as you visit Mother’s Temple and Dong Khe – the history site where The Battle of Dong Khe was fought during the First Indochina War. The fight took place in Dong Khe, in the Province of Tonkin, during September and October 1950, ending with a Viet Minh victory.

Tonight, you have dinner and stay overnight in the homestay of a Nung’s family in Quang Uyen.

(Meals included: lunch and dinner).

Cao Bang - Ban Gioc Wterfall - Ba Be Lake

After breakfast at the homestay, you will depart for Trung Khanh which lies on the border with China. Here you will have the chance to meet the Nung people in the village of Phuoc Sen, a mountainous village famous for its traditional blacksmith craft. The farming tools made here are an integral part of the lifestyle which is evident in the surrounding rice paddies and fields. Nestled in amongst these amazing landscapes is the breathtaking Ban Gioc Waterfall which spans over 300 meters, half in Vietnam and half in China. You will have time to soak up the powerful atmosphere of the falls and take some fantastic photos before heading to another natural wonder, Nguom Ngao Cave. This cave stretches out 2,144 meters underground and is brimming with incredible stalactites and stalagmites. You will then make your way to return to Cao Bang town and head down snake pass to Ba Be Lake, tonight you will stay overnight on traditional house of Tay ethnic family. At the homestay, you can relax and unwind  and enjoy a home cooked meal by the family.

(Meals included: breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Ba Be Lake - Hanoi

Today you’ll spend the day exploring Ba Be Lake. As you float on the lake, you can relax on board, spot some wildlife  or if you need to cool off, jump into the cool waters for a refreshing swim!  you can take in the scenery of the surrounding karsts decorated with patches of wild vegetation and inhabited by all sorts of interesting creatures. The boat ride also takes you along the Nang River, with time to visit the caves of Puong Grotto where you can explore the stalactites and stalagmites which are a result of the erosion from the river, as well as the bat colony which is several thousand strong. After your boat tour, you will depart for the journey back Hanoi, a drive of approximately 150 miles (230 kilometers). We will stop at some hills and a tea plantation before returning to your hotel in the bustling city of Hanoi.

(Meals included: breakfast and lunch).

What's included

Included

  • Accommodation for nights 1 & 2, as mentioned in the itinerary
  • Meals mentioned  in the itinerary
  • Local experienced guide
  • All sightseeing tickets
Your local host

Nguyen Tuan Linh

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

I was born in Vietnam up in the rural areas of the tea country and growing up I developed a passion for the outdoors and just exploring the unexplored. I worked for my grandfather, in the rice fields in the Phu Tho province. And as I grew, so did my curiosity for the world, bringing the ambition of working to discover the world.

At 19, I took my first footsteps in following my dream, and travelled to Hanoi to study tourism at university and to learn English.

With a dream of becoming a professional tour guide, I continued studying tourism and spent three years working in the tourism industry as a tour guide for a number of travel companies in Hanoi. Responding to the travel aspira... Read All

Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

I was born in Vietnam up in the rural areas of the tea country and growing up I developed a passion for the outdoors and just exploring the unexplored. I worked for my grandfather, in the rice fields in the Phu Tho province. And as I grew, so did my curiosity for the world, bringing the ambition of working to discover the world.

At 19, I took my first footsteps in following my dream, and travelled to Hanoi to study tourism at university and to learn English.

With a dream of becoming a professional tour guide, I continued studying tourism and spent three years working in the tourism industry as a tour guide for a number of travel companies in Hanoi. Responding to the travel aspirations many international travellers seek, I sought out off-the-beaten-track places to show visitors, and approached many ethnic minority villages to arrange visits there too. I gained expertise in everything from giving travellers tips on how to get around the country, to itineraries ideal for business travellers.
The combination of volunteering, environmental protection and sustainable tourism development gave me the idea of forming my own tour company and have been doing this ever since.

What inspired you to work in travel? 

The one thing that sticks out as being the main inspiration has to be the country I grew up in, Vietnam.When I was working as a tour guide, I would ask people where they were going and it would always be the main tourists places. So I realised there was so much that people were not seeing and I wanted to change that.

I also love travelling myself, the people you meet, the stories you hear, and the things you learn are just fascinating. So I wanted to share this passion with others.

What makes your experiences special? 

Finding off the beaten path experiences has always been a passion of mine. I always make sure the experiences I offer are truly authentic, that you can’t find anywhere else.

All of our partners are local people living in and around the places that we visit. We make annual trips to all of our destinations to research and re-verify the quality of service provided, as well as spend time training and teaching the people how to best run accommodation and other services for visitors. When staying in luxury hotels, we always pick ones situated near nature, and the homestays we work with work exclusively through us, ensuring that we offer unique experiences through our partners that you can’t find with anyone else.

Nguyen Tuan Linh image

What our travellers are saying...

This trip was amazing. My friend and I really wanted to experience parts of Vietnam which weren’t the classic travelling destinations and tourist traps, and this did not disappoint. Your friendly guide drives you quite far north, but gives you the chance to have regular stops and experience some authentic food on the way. Both home-stays are great, with friendly hosts and very luxury accommodation, especially considering that they are in the mi

Jonty Stephenson

This was a fantastic tour and well worth the long journey to get to Ban Gioc. Our tour guide, Loi, was excellent and made the journey interesting with several impromptu stops for photographs, walking through isolated villages, rice fields etc. Loi was always willing to take group photos and help with any requests. The scenery was amazing and the stay at Ba Be lake was beautiful, loved the boat trip, too! We were a little concerned about "Homestay

Louise

This trip does NOT disappoint. It is a relatively far drive from Hanoi, so you're in the van for a while, but it was totally worth every single second. Staying in the incense village and Mr. Linh's homestay on Ba Be Lake were incredible. What really made the trip stand out was our awesome tour guide, Nhã, who spoke English wonderfully, was extremely knowledgeable, always offered to take pictures of us, and always made sure we were comfortable

Linda

I have just returned from a 3 day fun packed tour. It was more of a journey through local eyes. Great food with lots of local things to try. Homestay were very clean and comfy. Waterfall was amazing, Ba Be national park was spectacular. Boat trips, caves, kayaking, swimming and much much more. Loi our guide was very helpful, caring and informative about local culture. Well done everyone. Great fun!

Chris

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