Sapa is the “meeting place between heaven and earth” with the most majestic natural scenery in the North. This is also the convergence place of ethnic minorities living for many generations. Have you come to admire and experience this exciting land? If not, now let’s pocket with Origin Vietnam useful Sapa travel experiences from A to Z through the following article!
I. Introduction to Sapa
Sapa is a small town in Lao Cai province, Vietnam. This is a famous tourist destination from the early 20th century up to now. The nature creator favorably bestows Sapa with a picture of a landscape that is both romantic and majestic, immense with mountains of the same message as the clouds waiting for the wind, terraced fields, eye-catching, watching the pine trees. Silently witnessing many stories from Indochina in the heart of town, …
Especially Sapa climate is cool all year round with unique indigenous imprints. The most of interesting things is the culture of the two major ethnic groups in Sa Pa, the Mong and the Dao – combined with European architectural space. Classic Europe. All of the above factors have created a special attraction for tourists who want to explore this land.
II. When is the best time to travel to Sapa?
Coming to Sapa every season has its own interesting experiences of this beautiful tourist destination in Vietnam.
- The appropriate time to travel Sapa is from September to November or from March to May. This time, Sapa’s weather is stable, dry sunny days, cold nights.
- April – May is the season of water pouring, the terraced fields with eyes feel like running to the horizon.
- September – October is the season of ripe rice, at that time Sapa was like wearing a shiny yellow coat. You should go in the middle or the end of September. Because in October the terraced fields in many places have finished.
- December to February is very cold, can appear ice and sometimes snow. This is also the blooming season of cherry blossoms, azaleas …
III. How to travel to Sapa Vietnam?
Sa Pa town is only 38km from Lao Cai city and 376km from Hanoi. You can choose to take a passenger car or train.
To Sapa by passenger car
If you ride a bed, the price ranges from 230k – 280k / person / way. The bus departs from My Dinh bus station, Luong Yen or Gia Lam (Hanoi) to Sapa only 8-9 hours. Traveling by passenger car has the advantage of saving time, but in the rainy season it can be hampered by many bumpy passes from Lao Cai to Sapa. You can contact a number of buses company. Such as Sapa Express, Queen Café, Hung Thanh, Sao Viet, …
Travel to Sapa by train
Trains have a variety of chairs such as soft chairs, hard chairs, air-conditioned beds … Train running at 9 or 10 pm in Hanoi until the next morning will arrive at Sapa tourist destination. For the type of seat, there are 2 types of hard seat (about 150k / person) and soft seat (about 280k / person). For bed types, 6-person beds cost about 480k / pax, 4-person beds cost about 560k / pax and premium 2-person beds cost about 3,200k / pax (all come from Hanoi).
IV. What to eat when traveling to Sapa?
Besides admiring the lyrical natural scenery of Sapa, do not forget to try the unique local dishes here. We would like to introduce to you some of the following Sapa specialties that you should try once.
Salmon, fresh sturgeon
Unlike imported salmon and sturgeon, cold-water fish raised in Sapa often have firm meat, firm texture and no fat.
Fresh vegetables in cold origin
Sapa is the land of vegetables typical of temperate regions. Such as cauliflower, broccoli, red ornamental tubers, chayote
Pigs
Pigs are the specialties of the Mong ethnic people. The pigs weighing only about 4-5kg were cleaned, marinated and left to roast or roast whole.
Grilled specialties in SaPa
According to tourism experience, because of the cold climate, in Sapa, any dish is brought to grill from eggs, skewers, vegetables wrapped in meat, … all dishes are made by local people.
V. Sapa tourist attraction sites
Fansipan peak – the roof of Indochina
What is better than standing at an altitude of 3143m, stretching and breathing the high air, enjoying the feeling of touching the clouds and panoramic eyes down to the panorama of Sapa below.
Ham Rong mountain
Ham Rong Mountain is located right in the town center, with a ticket price of 70,000 VND / person. You can stay at the hotel near Ham Rong tourist area to enjoy panoramic view of Sapa, Muong Hoa valley, Ta Phin hidden in the smoke …. Also on the way up the mountain, you will see a lot of colorful flowers blooming together.
The waterfall of love
Love Waterfall is about 12km from the town center. It’s located on the way to the top of O Quy Ho Pass. Visiting one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Sapa, you will not only feel refreshed in the direction of the cool steam, but also hear the legendary story of Love Falls. On the way through Love Falls, don’t forget to visit the Silver Falls too.
Stone Church
Sapa stone church was built in 1895, this is considered an ancient work bearing the imprint of the intact French architecture in Sapa. Through many ups and downs, the church still stands there like a symbol of Sapa.
O Quy Ho Pass
One of the things you should do when coming to Sapa is to immerse yourself in the majesty and magnificence on O Quy Ho at sunset. You should come here at 17:00 to watch the sunset behind the mountains.
Ta Phin- village of the Red Dao
Ta Phin village is an interesting place you should not miss when traveling to Sapa. This is where the Red Dao people live. The Red Dao in Ta Phin are famous for their herbal remedies for osteoarthritis pain. After giving birth, Red Dao women bath with traditional tobacco only a few days to go to the fields and fields. Children of Red Dao are also allowed to take a cigarette bath after giving birth.
Sapa ancient stone area
Sapa ancient stone is located in the area of Ta Van to Temple village, with more than 150 large rocks engraved with strange patterns and shapes. Scientists have yet to explain the meaning of the engraved shapes. Many people talk about the mystery of an ancient civilization, and some people also talk about the future prophecy.
Currently, the pattern on the rock has faded a lot, but this is still an interesting place you can combine when visiting Lao Chai – Ta Van.
Lao Chai – Ta Van villages
Lao Chai – Ta Van is inhabited by ethnic minorities, the village is located about 7km from the center of Sapa town. From the center of Sapa town, you go along Cau May street, then turn to Muong Hoa street to reach a peaceful place – the residence of the native Mong, Dao, Giay, Tay … ethnic groups.
The village has a full range of modern amenities. But indigenous people still maintain the traditional culture and lifestyle. That is also the attraction of tourists.
Cat Cat village
From the center of Sapa town, follow the road towards Fanxipan mountain about 2km. You will come to Cat Cat village (San Sa Ho commune, Sa Pa district, Lao Cai province). Located at the foot of Hoang Lien Son mountain range, amidst clouds of wind and mountains, Cat Cat is an ideal ecotourism destination for visitors who want to learn and explore the cultural life of people in Sapa.
What specialties buy when traveling to Sa Pa?
According to the Sapa travel experience, on Saturday evenings, there is usually a love market of the Dao in the yard of the ancient stone church. At that time, you can buy special brocade items from ethnic minorities. Such as brocade scarf, brocade handbag, brocade dress, …
Or go to the markets of Bac Ha, Khau Vai market, Cao Son market, you can also see thousands of typical Sa Pa items, from bunches of wild vegetables to colorful silver and bronze jewelry. You can also go to souvenir stalls to buy, but should go to love markets to enjoy the festive atmosphere here.
The above are all the most complete and detailed Sapa travel experiences that Origin Vietnam team has gathered. Hopefully all these experiences will help you have a Sapa tour with lots of fun and wonderful experiences.
