The Full Monty: All of Vietnam!

Approx. 230km We gradually see the towns get smaller and the roads less crowded as we take the easiest route out of the city. Hills and countryside abound for the second half of the day. Later, we’ll head into Ba Be National Park and make our way to the wooden stilt house we will stay in. We may have time to jump on a boat to explore the lake. Waterfalls, caves, jungle, and mountains make this a truly beautiful place.

Approx. 240km Heading north, we’ll follow small roads through steep-cliffed mountains. As we enter the Ha Giang province, the limestone Karst formation mountains are the most impressive in the country and our road takes around, over, and through them on an amazing ride. The Ma Pi Leng mountain pass is surely one of the best roads in Vietnam. Along the way, we’ll make many stops to look out over the steep cliffs and high valleys. A climb of over 1,500 meters will take us to Dong Van town. Next to our hotel is the old French fort set on top of a high cliff. The stairs are steep and many, but it’s worth it for the panoramic views of the area.

Approx. 140km To the north, the road is like a rollercoaster, winding over the Karst formation mountains up towards China. We’ll follow it all the way to the Lunc Cu tower, marking the northernmost point In Vietnam. Climbing the tower, you ’ll get great views across the border into China. Next is a visit to the old palace of the Hmong emperor. Surrounded by steep cliffs, they were unassailable to both the French and Chinese. Following small roads, you’ll see more limestone Karst mountains as we head towards the beautiful Quan Ba mountains. Also known as ‘Heaven’s Gate,’ this area is famous for secret grottos and caves as well as colourful plum and peach trees. As we enter the valley, you’ll be greeted by two amusingly shaped hills, famously known as the ‘stone breasts.’ Our rooms are in a traditional Red Dao village where you’ll be looked after by a local Dao family.

Approx. 240km Dropping out of the Karst mountains, we pass the route 4 kilometer 0 marker and stop to look around Ha Giang town. Around this area you’ll see mountains, countryside, hill tribe villages, and more. The palace of king Hoang A Tuong is well preserved on the outskirts of Bac Ha. He ruled the hill tribes of the area with French permission as he controlled the trade routes out of the mountains—notably the opium trade. Bac Ha town is famous for its hill tribe markets. Here the many different tribes of the area can be found bartering and swapping their goods.

Approx. 170km Today begins by heading back up to the border to twist and wind along the high peaks and steep valleys. Along the way, you’ll see stepped rice paddies everywhere and tiny wooden houses halfway up the slopes. We’ll take a stop at the Lao Cai border crossing to see the big Chinese city that towers over Vietnam, and then continue along a steep winding road that leads us up the mountain to and into the famous hill tribe town of Sapa.

Approx. 140km On the way out of town, you’ll get views over the amazing Cat Cat valley and Vietnam’s highest mountain, Fan Si Pan. Along the way, we’ll make sure to stop at the impressive 100 meter Silver Waterfall. After that, we come to the incredible O Quy Ho pass, the biggest climb of our tour. We’ll stop at the top, 2035 meters high and enjoy some fresh tea and dried buffalo meat with the local hill tribe folk who live up there. As we continue south, the hills become steep and terraced rice paddies get steeper. This area is some of the best scenery in Vietnam. We’ll arrive at our traditional hill tribe accommodation in a wooden stilt house surrounded by rice paddies and mountains, where local food & cold beer will complete the day.

Approx 180km The day begins by riding through the rice paddy terraces and hill tribe villages all morning. Later, we’ll stop at a local hill tribe market and head to lunch at a restaurant in Nghia Lo. Following lunch is a climb up to a sleepy village at the top of a mountain to get great views. Next, we’ll take a trip over Lung Lo mountain pass, where the Viet Minh made their way west to defeat the French in 1954. Finally, we arrive in Phu Yen town and try the local German-style beer!

Approx. 160km The road twists and turns its way along the banks of the Da River lake past small fishing and farming villages. Expect to see the local people using small horses to carry their goods to market. We’ll cross a lake on a small ferry before having a White Thai tribe style food for lunch at a local restaurant. Then it’s up the high mountain roads of Moc Chau around the hundreds of tight bends and steep cliffs. Along the way, you’ll get a chance to head off to a hidden waterfall for a photo. There are some great views over the vast Hoa Binh lake you can catch before we come to Mai Chau, where you’ll see small villages of wooden stilt houses and traditional farming families. Here, we can watch the sunset over the rice paddies and mountains with a cold beer.

Approx. 300km Today begins by heading down the valley through the small villages and small farms, passing through the chopstick-making village of Co Luong. Later, we’ll ride through Pu Luong national park where incredible stepped rice paddy terraces climb up steep cliffs and thick bamboo forest. Next, we’ll join the Ho Chi Minh Trail and follow it south through rolling hills and peaceful farmland before having a local style lunch at one of many roadside rest areas. Along the coast, there are beautiful beaches and countless shrimp farms as well as small fishing villages. As we get to Vinh city, we’ll finish at our hotel relaxing by the pool.

Approx. 210km We start with tanks, missiles, planes and other military vehicles parked up at the Vinh museum and from here we’ll head to Dong Loc junction, the official start of the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Following the trail, you can see all types of countryside and farming styles in the small villages. We’ll stop for a local style Lunch on the lake and then continue along the Ho Chi Minh trail. The road starts to climb into the mountains and eventually reaches the limestone karst formation mountains that mark the edge of Phong Nha national park. Finishing our ride with some of the most amazing mountain scenery in Vietnam, we will reach the Farmstay in time to watch the sunset over the rice paddies

Approx. 0km - option to book any one-day Phong Nha-based activity. Today is a rest day. You can book an excursion to explore the national park if you wish. There are many options including trekking, bicycle rides, a national park tour, boat trip, buffalo ride, or just relaxing by the pool.

Approx. 250km We follow the historic Victory Road through the jungle and out towards the Laos border through Phong Nha National Park, a UNESCO Heritage area of natural beauty. Next, we’ll join the Ho Chi Minh Trail West road. One of the best roads in Asia for bikers, this road should be on everyone’s bucket list. As we come to the start of the giant limestone Karst formation mountains we can stop for lunch in a small hill tribe town. in the seemingly endless mountains and jungle, you can see small wooden stilt house villages where the tribes live a peaceful traditional style. After that is an 1100 meter climb over a mountain pass in untouched jungle followed by a visit to the Khe Sanh combat base. The longest battle of all the wars in Vietnam took place here and we can see tanks, helicopters, and planes still sitting on the runway as well as a small museum. Finally, just a short ride through the coffee farms brings us to Lao Bao.

Approx. 240km We begin by following Route 9 past the remains of many US Bases and out of the mountains and start to cross the DMZ itself, now covered in rubber plantations and pine trees. We’ll visit the 17th Parallel marker and see the famous Hien Luong bridge. Heading down to the coast, you’ll get a chance to see the incredible underground tunnel network at Vinh Moc village. The entire village lived underground for 8 years to escape the American bombing! A truly amazing place. Following that will be a local style lunch at Vinh Moc and then we’ll track the coast through small fishing villages and aqua-farming ponds. After crossing the beautiful Tam Giang lagoon, we’ll take the small back roads into Hue city where a cold beer awaits us at the hotel!

approx. 120km Begin the day with a visit to the imperial citadel of Hue, a UNESCO world heritage site, and home to the last emperors of Vietnam. Heading out of the city, you’ll quickly find yourself back in endless rice paddies and riding small roads through the countryside where you can see the massive square fishing nets spread across the giant Tam Giang lagoon system. Afterwards, we’ll visit the City of Ghosts, Vietnam’s most luxurious cemetery followed by lunch on the beach. Next is a real treat: a short ride down the beautiful Lang Co bay brings us to the incredible Hai Van Pass, where 21 kilometers of sweeping bends over 500 meters of jungle-covered mountain gives us the most amazing coastal views in central Vietnam. Finally, it’s back to base for a cold beer!

Approx. 0km Today’s a rest day, with many options available. A day wandering the streets of Hoi An ancient town is delightful, and diving and snorkeling are available in the summer months. If you choose to stay in Danang, keep in mind that Danang’s beach is one of the nicest in Vietnam. Diving and snorkeling are available in the summer months. Danang beach is one of the nicest in Vietnam.

Approx. 320km We’ll start by heading down the coast past the Marble Mountains and along the beaches of Hoi An. Leaving the coast, we can see the mountains ahead as we slowly climb through small villages and rice farming areas. The rice farming turns to acacia tree plantations and later to jungle as we climb into the hills. In the dense jungle, we’ll find waterfalls and other impressive sights. Lunch will be local style in a remote hill tribe town. The road from here is only a few years old and we often have it all to ourselves as we’ll climb up to about 1800 meters. From here, there are amazing views of untouched jungle as we ride through small ethnic minority hill tribe villages. We’ll come to Dak To with time to pose for a photo on the army tanks in the town square. A last stretch of the Ho Chi Minh trail brings us down to Kon Tum in time for a cold beer!

Approx. 200km We’ll start with a quick look at the famous wooden church of Kon Tum. Built by the French, this was the centre of Catholicism in Vietnam. After that, we can stop and marvel at the high thatched roofs on the hill tribe village halls in the SeDang tribal villages. Next is a drive through the endless pepper plantations and rubber tree forests before heading east. The road will start to drop steeply off the high plateau with endless zig-zag hairpin turns to bring us down the mountain. As we finish our descent we are back into the beautiful rice paddies and corn fields, we’ll pay a visit to the towering Banh It temple sat on top of a hill. Built in the 12th century by the Cham people, it gives great views down to the coast Our hotel sits right on the beach and we’ll arrive in time for a swim and a cold beer!

Following the coast, you can see traditional fishing villages and beautiful beaches. We’ll cross the famous bamboo bridge to head towards the Ganh Da Dia rock formation, where black basalt rock was formed into geometric shapes by volcanic forces. Passing by the newly built and unused Tuy Hoa airport, you’ll get amazing coastal views from up on the hills. A visit is possible to the old French lighthouse if you don’t mind a few hundred steps. We’ll take the road south through the countryside and, with a few more stretches of a sweeping coastal bend, get our first glimpse of Nha Trang A boom in tourism sees nearly 5 million visitors come to this town each year. Not bad for a city of just 500,000. After checking into the hotel, it’s out to the beach or into the lively bars and nightclubs.

Approx. 140km Leaving the city, we stop at the Dien Khanh Citadel. Built in 1793, it is still in remarkable condition. Now we’ll start to climb the Khanh Le mountain pass, one of Vietnam’s most fun roads. Climbing steeply to over 1600 meters, you can’t keep count of the zig-zag bends! Scenic viewing areas are abundant. As we come into Dalat there are huge fruit and vegetable farms and fields of strawberries. Dalat grows all the produce that needs a cooler climate. We’ll a local style lunch in Dalat town, and in the afternoon we have time to visit 2 or 3 of Dalat’s many tourist sights. Some are interesting, some are romantic, and some are just totally crazy! Riding between tourist sights lets us explore the small lanes and French colonial villas of the city.

Approx. 200km The Dalat area has many famous waterfalls, and this morning we have time to enjoy 1 or 2 of them. With rolling hills and great views, we make our way to Cat Tien National Park. Cat Tien is one of the largest areas of lowland tropical forests left in Vietnam. It has been a protected area since 1978 and is home to many rare animal species.

Approx. 150km Leaving Cat Tien, we’ll follow the small countryside roads, staying away from the heavy traffic on the main highways. There are river crossings and the Tri An Lake to enjoy today. As we head south the traffic eventually gets a bit busier, but if we time it right we should reach the city early afternoon when the traffic is quieter. The city is full of amazing architecture with new skyscrapers everywhere we look. When we reach the city, we’ll park up the bikes and enjoy a nice cold beer! When we reach the city centre, we’ll finish the tour with a nice cold beer!