Edmond Gagnon grew up in Canada. A retired detective, Ed now travels the world between writing books. One of the most unique places he’s visited on his journey was Vietnam. In this quick preview, Ed shares seven reasons to visit Sa Pa, Vietnam, which he’s written about in his book, A Casual Traveler.
Top Seven Reasons to Visit Sa Pa, Vietnam
When it comes to traveling, I usually venture out on my own to explore new places. In the case of Sa Pa, in Vietnam, I booked a no-brainer packaged excursion from my hotel in Hanoi. Not able to read or understand the language, I felt it was the sensible thing to do. The trip included all travel arrangements, lodging, and two days of trekking in the Hoang Lien Son Mountains, just south of the Chinese border.
After a snafu on the overnight train and a shuttle bus kerfuffle, I found myself standing on the balcony of my Sa Pa hotel. The hotel balcony overlooked the mind-blowing Muong Hoa Valley, nestled in the highest mountains in Vietnam. I found it hard to imagine what I was about to experience hiking this remote alpine paradise.
A Unique & Exotic Place
People say that Vietnam is a unique and exotic destination to explore and they are right. But if you really want to see a truly special place, travel 350 kilometers northwest of the capital city, Hanoi. From there, Sa Pa can be easily reached by bus or train. It’s the last Vietnamese outpost, before Lao Cai, a city on the China border.
Sa Pa is a popular trekking base. Its 10,000 inhabitants consist mostly of people from the Hmong, Tay, and Dao hill tribes. Their villages are scattered throughout the remote valley. Some are only accessible on foot or by serious all-terrain vehicles. No paved roads exist between the hamlets. Much of what is needed is carried in wicker baskets by the local women.
Strolling the main streets in Sa Pa is like walking backwards into time. Uniquely clad women line the sidewalks selling their hand-crafted goods — some with woven baskets and others with colorful blankets, tablecloths, and placemats. Some, wearing the classic straw lampshade hats, sell fresh produce grown locally.
Mountain Trekking
I’m not what you’d call an avid hiker, but when I saw the pictures and read about trekking through the mountains around Sa Pa, I knew it was an adventure I couldn’t pass up. The agents told me in advance that the hike was fairly rigorous and certainly not for the faint of heart. My guide gave me a taste of what I was in for on the afternoon of my arrival. She called it a warm-up, a short jaunt through town along paved roads and easy paths.
The half-day trek seemed easy at first, mostly because it meandered downhill. We walked along a ridge on the edge of town, taking in awesome views of the valley below. Lam allowed me a beer break at a cute little village café where I gawked at the huge mountains that marked the border with China. At this point, my guide sent a woman in our foursome back to the hotel. She’d gotten drunk from a hidden canteen she carried, and my guide was afraid she might fall down the mountain.
The hike back to the hotel was a bit harder because it was all uphill. The incline made my calf muscles tingle, and the thinner air at that elevation had me breathing heavy. I felt proud upon the completion of my half-day hike. Nonetheless, my guide, Lam, burst my bubble saying it was easy and the full-day trek the next day would be much harder.
The Real Deal
I awoke to fog so thick I could barely find Lam outside the front doors of my hotel. It was 9 AM, and upon seeing me she said, ‘we go now’. Walking through the low-lying clouds reminded me of entering a steam bath. I heard roosters crowing but couldn’t see anything on either side of the wet and slippery path. Some local kids tried to sell me a walking stick, but I was clueless as to what lay ahead and didn’t buy one.
It didn’t take long to get off the beaten path, a place where only mountain goats and experienced locals trekked. I found myself balancing on the edge of soggy rice paddies and figured it was only a matter of time before I fell into one. Often, I lost sight of Lam because of my slow pace, only to find her further along the path waiting for me. I tripped and stumbled over loose boulders and rocks. Lam told me my feet were too big.
Hungry and soaked from sweat, I eventually made it to our lunch stop. It was a picnic area with a covered patio and outdoor kitchen, perched on the edge of a gorge. I heard what sounded like rushing water but the fog obscured anything below me. An eerie-looking cable bridge shrouded in fog led to the other side of the river. We ate a fresh salad and a tasty chicken stir fry for lunch.
Amazing Scenery
After lunch, we headed across the bridge and into another valley. Like a bedsheet being drawn back, the fog slowly retreated, revealing bright green rice paddies built on terraces that climbed the side of the mountains. Puffy cotton ball clouds sat atop the rocky peaks, crested by powder- blue sky. It was rural and rugged and wickedly wonderful all at the same time.
Oxen and Water Buffalo grazed in fields and fat pigs played in muddy pens. Village men used hand tools to chisel and carve new terraces into the mountainside for their rice paddies. Dirty-faced and bare-bottomed children chewed on sugar cane and played, oblivious to the large and sweaty white man grunting and puffing on his way by.
Colorful Hill Tribes
The indigenous people were more colorful than the scenic valley they called home. Lam explained to me how at the age of 12, their culture expects women to weave, sew, and dye the materials to make their own clothes. The deep red and indigo colors may seem haphazard to a stranger but each village has their own particular outfits, some including headdresses or knee socks. I saw one woman stirring a vat of indigo dye, another weaving a basket, and plenty of others carrying them to their villages.
The men work the fields while the women tend their children and homes. The average household comprised itself of nothing more than a grass and mud hut, some built with wood and corrugated metal that villagers hauled up the mountain manually. Lam showed me her village and checked in on her kids while I snooped around town and took some pictures.
She’d been guiding for seven years, picking up as many languages just by conversing with trekking tourists. She only earned a few dollars a day and she worked seven days a week. Nonetheless, Lam said it was better than trying to pedal cheap souvenirs. It was no wonder to me that she was in such great shape, hiking five to ten miles every day. Her sister minded the kids while she was away at work.
Remote Mountain Villages
Each village we came across was different, although each was mostly distinguishable by the women’s attire. Some places were so remote access could only be made on foot or by animal. Lam commented after one of my trips and near falls that if I became disabled, she would simply strap me to the back of the closest oxen to get me down the hill. The vision worried me but I liked her sense of humor.
I saw a man fishing from a boulder about the size of a large bulldozer. It practically blocked the stream. We had to walk across fields of bowling-ball-sized rocks in one dry river bed and a rickety bamboo bridge that crossed the water. Lam went first to watch me cross. She waited until I was about half-way to say she wasn’t sure the structure would hold my weight. A picture of me on the back of a smelly beast flashed through my mind and I scurried to safety.
Lam grinned, turned, and carried on, expecting me to play the part of a good soldier and follow the leader. Our 10k trek ended at a mountain village that eventually met up with Sa Pa via road. I had time for a well-deserved beer and reflection of my all-day awesome adventure before getting on the shuttle bus back to the hotel. I wanted to hug Lam for getting me back alive but gave her a huge tip instead.
Land of Lam
My trip to Sa Pa and trekking in the mountains was easily one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. It is a truly beautiful and unique place that I will never forget. If you’re interested in reading more about my adventures, Land of Lam can be found in my travel book, A Casual Traveler.
More of my travel stories can be found on my website at www.edmondgagnon.com.
60 Comments. Leave new
Ah, what an amazing adventure, and great pictures too. This is exactly the sort of thing I would love to do myself so I’ll definitely check out Edmond’s book for more stories.
Thanks Fiona, one of my best adventures for sure.
I’ve shared others on my blog, as well as my book.
Happy travels!
Sounds like an amazing place to visit. Maybe one day I can visit it.
I hope you can visit too, Leelo. Cheers!
I have always wanted to visit Vietnam. I hope I can make it here one day. I love your photos.
Thanks Amber, I hope you make it there one day too.
This post is really informative. This looks like a wonderful place to visit. I would love to visit.
Thanks, Tasheena. I loved my visit there and hope you get there.
Oh! Vietnam is on my list of places to visit. It looks so pretty.
There are many places in the country with natural beauty like this.
Seems like a wonderful place to visit in Vietnam. Thanks for all the lovely pics
You’re welcome, Nikki, it was quite wonderful.
This looks like it would me an amazing trip. I hope to visit Vietnam someday.
It was quite amazing, Heather, I surely hope you do get there someday.
I would say that when it comes to places so little known by the masses, giving reasons and ideas certainly helps to convince you to visit them and … with me you did it!
Cool. That was my intent, although it’s been a few years now and I’m not sure how popular the area has become. It definitely wasn’t as busy as some European destinations I’ve been to.
Vietnam is my home country’s neighboring country, but I’ve never been there. I’d love to go someday.
China, Thailand, or Laos, Lyndee”? I hope you get there some day.
Oh, wow! Sa Pa looks like an amazing place to visit. We’ve been to Japan, and we love that area of the world. I think a trip here is next on our Asian trip agenda.
I haven’t done Japan, Colleen, but Sa Pa and other parts of Vietnam were amazing. Happy travels!
I have never been to Vietnam, but it sounds like it would be an amazing place to visit. Certainly plenty to see.
This place looks incredible. I would love to see those women and their home made goods.
Definitely lots to see, Marysa, put it on your bucket list.
Definitely incredible…and I got to see them making home made dye for the clothes they make. Very cool.
That is truly an amazing place. I wish traveling were easier these days.
All in good time, Cinny…
Sa Pa is not a place I have heard of before. With its small size, it looks like a place that is easily navigable and I would love to take a hike in those mountains.
It’s definitely not well known on this side of the world and yes, the town itself is mostly walkable. In the mountains you can hike for days.
Sa Pa looks beautiful! I can see why you loved your trip there so much.
Thanks for your feedback, Beth, it’s easily one of my favorites.
I have been to Vietnam but not yet to Sa Pa, Vietnam. I have been reading about this and planning to visit too but wasn’t able to do so due to the pandemic. Hopefully, I can plan again when traveling go back to normal.
I share your frustration Anosa, I’ve cancelled Croatia and Mexico plans so far. Sa Pa will be worth your wait.
Ever since I was a teenager I have read a lot of novels and nonfiction books that are located in Vietnamn, and that has always inspired me to go there – but I have just never gotten around to it.
Keeping my fingers crossed that there’s safe travels soon!
Cheers to that, Anngelic, and I hope you get there one day.
I will one day visit Vietnam. Because it looks like a beautiful country.
It truly is, Steven, happy travels.
That definitely looks like an adventure. I haven’t been to Vietnam before but this would be an interesting place to see. I might skip the Mountain trek though LOL
There are plenty of other places to see in Vietnam, Dominique….google Ha Long Bay and Hoi An for starters.
I have never considered to put Vietname on to my travel to visit list! But after seeing these photos? I fear I must! What a stunning place!
It is a truly unique place, and deserving of a place on your list.
I’m sure the tip was well appreciated. LOL It’s nice to visit new places.
Yes, Rosy, new is nice, as was the country itself, but Sa Pa was a unique experience in itself.
My kids and I just watched the Vietnamese food documentaries on youtube! We can’t wait to visit! It sounds like an amazing place!
I hope you get there, Rika, the food was good and always fresh.
Looks like great place to visit and trek love those fresh fruits . Beautiful place. hope you had a wonderful time there
The trek was truly unique, Swathi, a nice and unexpected surprise.
Whoa…Can’t describe. This is really wonderful place. I envy you. You had such a amazing experienced visiting Vietnam. I would love to go there one day.
I hope you do get there, Yudith, you won’t be disappointed.
I have never been to Vietnam, but would like to go to experience the food, culture, and the architecture.
Go for it, Janeane, you won’t be disappointed.
Sounds like an amazing place to visit. I heard they have beautiful weather too.
It was amazing, Angela. They basically have two seasons…rainy and dry, but I’m sure it gets colder in the mountains.
ive always wanted to go, this looks amazing
Put it on your list, Katrina, it is as it looks. Amazing.
Sa Pa is one place in Vietnam I have never made it to yet. I often kick myself for not going when I first visited Hanoi circa 2002. I’ve heard numerous conflicting reports since regarding the abundance of tourists and decline of appeal. Some say yes and others say no. Of course, the only way is to experience for yourself. The statement about kicking myself for not going previously is due to the fact that I now have a gimp leg and an attractive place like Sa Pa becomes less realistic. My message to the younger readers is to take the opportunity if and when you have it..
It’s been a while for me, Michael, and too many tourists all clambering for space on mountain trails or in town would definitely have a negative impact. Perhaps they’ll have to do like in Picchu and limit tourists, making them book in advance.
I have been to Hanoi before but not yet on Sa Pa, Vietnam. It seems like an affordable destination. I can’t wait to travel here after the pandemic.
I took the excursion from Hanoi, and found the whole county cheaper than Canada at the time, but that was over ten years ago. I can only assume it is still cheaper than here or the US.
Vietnam is so rich with culture. I can’t wait to travel again!
You and I both, Lily. And yes, Vietnam has a lot to offer.