We heard about both destinations both in France and in Hong Kong. Halong Bay is one of the New 7 Wonders of the World and Sapa is a province tucked away in the mountains of North Vietnam. Doing both in 5 days was a challenge but we took the most of it in our limited time.

Sapa

From Hanoi airport, we hired a driver to the train station where we took a 7-hour train to Sapa at night. The state of the cabin was correct and I slept well, being rocked by the train sounds and movements. We booked a tour including 2 days and 1 homestay with the Sapa Sisters, recommended by Manon. We arrived in Sapa town around 8:30am and after a shower and a light breakfast, we met our guide Lan, a lovely woman. We started the trek by renting rubber boots – definitely, a must have – as paths were muddy from the rain.

Sapa is known for its beautiful landscapes and its rice terraces. We were not disappointed by what we saw. We met many buffalos, pigs and chickens along the road too. That may sound cliche but it felt so good being reconnected with nature, breath the fresh air and just walk, slip in the mud, and talk with L. and our guide. She told us a lot about the history of the region, the 3 tribes that exist there, their culture and way of life. She is a very funny and lively woman, we had a great time with her!

After a lunch along the river and another 2-hour walk, we arrived at the homestay. Even if the view was hidden by the fog, we had a great night with the other guests, our guide and the local people. Food was succulent and we were quite tired after the day so everybody fell asleep at 10pm. Next day of the trek was foggier but shorter. After the morning ‘Into the Midst’, a visit to a Sapa Museum and another Vietnamese lunch, we drove back to Sapa town to pack our bag and discover the small town (and stopped for a foot massage…)

Halong Bay

After another night train trip (more comfortable than the first one: I think the train company was ‘Purple’ something). We arrived in Hanoi and were picked up by a car from Pelican Cruise, our boat for the Halong Bay tour we booked. It was not easy to decide on which bay to go and with which company, there are too many options! We finally chose a ‘classic’ one: 3 days/2 night on the boat on the first bay: Halong Bay.

The boat was nice and only 16 cabins. Ours was cute and spacious for a cabin boat. The first days consisted of a pearl farm visit in the bay, a tour of the Tito island (quite useless I may admit) and a spring roll cooking lesson on the upper deck of the boat. All the meals were included and we ate nice food – even if it remains boat food. All the boat crew was really nice during all our stay.

The next day, we change boat for the day and visiting a floating village where we heard local people singing traditional songs. After a dip into the bay’s water (that we didn’t take given the color or the water…) we visited a cave which was ok. We ended the day with a very nice massage on the boat. We came back to the port on the last day with an amazing sun and took beautiful photos of the bay. When the sun is out, you really feel small between all these rocks scattered in the water.

The highlight of the trip was definitely Sapa and the Vietnamese spring rolls, always very tasty.