Thrilling 3-day Motorbike Tour to Mai Chau, Ta Xua

Itinerary:

Day 1: Vietnam offroad motorbike tour to Mai Chau, Ta Xua: Hanoi motorbike tour to Mai Chau

We begin the tour at about 9 o’clock, after somewhere 40 minutes in the busy streets of Hanoi you will hit Highway No8, from here, the traffic is much better as we head straight to the countryside. Stop for a quick coffee and we keep rolling on some backroads through rice fields to Hoa Binh province where the terrain becomes mountainous, from here the sceneries are much greener and decorated with charismatic karst mountains. After a nice lunch in Ky Son town, we will have chance to do some challenging offroad via local farms in the mountains. In the afternoon, from National road 6 we take a turn to Road 450 for a backroad ride to a spectacular view to the majestic Hoa Binh lake, one of the largest man-made lakes in Vietnam, formed when the dam blocked the water to build the Hoa Binh hydroelectric power station. We arrive Mai Chau – our destination at about 4 or 5 o’clock.

Nestled in a peaceful valley, Mai Chau is an ideal escape place for nature lovers. Here, small ethnic minority villages sit among a patchwork of paddy fields surrounded by green mountains. Mai Chau is a village of ethnic Thai people, one of 54 different tribes in Vietnam. The Thai women are masterful weavers who ensure that there is plenty of traditional-style clothing to buy in the village centre.You will see women weaving on looms under or inside their houses in the village, we can buy some souvenirs here such as handmade traditional-style clothings, knife or cross-bow. We spend a night here immersing in Vietnam’s rural culture, dining on delicious home-cooked cuisine, and learning about the traditions of the local Thai people.

Summary:
Distance: 160-190 km
Meals: Lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Homestay

Day 2: Vietnam offroad motorbike tour to Mai Chau, Ta Xua: Mai Chau motorbike tour to Ta Xua

The ride today will begin from 8 to 8:30 o’clock, before leaving, we can have a little walk around to enjoy the peaceful vibe of the village, breath some fresh air on the beautiful rice fields near our homestay. After saying goodbye to the homestay hosts, we hop on the bikes to continue our adventure, in the morning we will explore some ethnic villages on the forgotten Old Road No6. This road used to be the most important main road of the North West Vietnam, now it lies silently along mountains and some small farms of local people, you will see almost no truck or car here, just a remarkable silent vibe and peaceful sceneries of nature. This route ends when we hit National road 43 in Moc Chau district, where we stop for lunch. Moc Chau boasts a pioneering dairy industry that started in the late 1970s with Australian (and, later, UN) assistance, we can see several milk cow farms on the way.

After lunch in Moc Chau, we keep riding 40 kilometers more to Van Yen ferry terminal where we cross  the epic Da river, from here we will have a beautiful ride along Da river heading to Bac Yen town, this could be the highlight of this Northwest Vietnam motorbike tour. From Bac Yen, we’ll keep following the weaving road QL37 to ride up to our famous destination known as Ta Xua peak or the “dinosaur backbone”.

Ta Xua is a mountain range in the Bac Yen district in Son La province. At the highest point of 2865 meters, the Ta Xua peak is the tenth highest peak in Vietnam. The three most important peaks form a line that looks like the backbone of a dinosaur. It is a real off the beaten track destination for adventure travelers

If time permits, we also try some dirt-track experiences to get deeper into remote villages around to see how the locals live & work otherwise it’s our time for beer, and relaxation amid this remote and pristine nature’s playground amid the clouds.

We overnight in a stilt house of the H’Mong people (homestay in the village)

Summary:
Distance: 160-190 km
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Homestay

Day 3: Ta Xua motorbike tour back to Hanoi

Though we better make it back to Hanoi before rush hour to avoid traffic jam, but on the other hand there are many beautiful things to explore on the route today so let’s get up early for the last day of our adventure. From Ta Xua we head back to Bac Yen and head to Phu Yen by the main road, or else, we take a challenging dirt track straight there without going back to Bac Yen. Stop for a quick drink in Phu Yen then we take the main road to Thu Cuc town via the beautiful Con pass, keep rolling 40 kilometers more and we have a nice picture stop in the remarkable tea farms of Thanh Son. After lunch, we take some backroad to Dong Quang bridge then come back to the highway back to Hanoi.

Summary:
Distance: 210 km
Meals: Breakfast, lunch