VIETNAM - The Finale and Conclusion

 

So that was Vietnam (and Bali, can't exclude the Manta Rays!)— an amazing place, with such a diversity of experiences.

The first week over Tet (New Year) was a challenge — closures, confusion, plans shifting daily. A steep learning curve, but part of the experience looking back.

From the intensity of Ho Chi Minh City with its strong military history, to the contrasts of the tourist devopments on Phu Quoc island — ridiculously overdeveloped in places, but with some good scuba when conditions played ball, and quieter, unspoilt stretches on the east coast if you looked for them.

 

 Hoi An at sunset, irrespective of the crowds… beautiful with the boats and lanterns... Da Nang and the Dragon Bridge was a magic spectacle (with even larger crowds!) as of course  plus that final trek into the hills, from Bac Ha, so close to China, staying at family homes with the Muong people — moments that stays with you (complete isolation).

Then the landscapes — Ha Long Bay living up to its reputation, but also stepping away from the crowds into Mai Chau Valley and Pu Luong, where things felt quieter, more real, and of course Bac Ha, close to China, with the ethnic Muong farmers. Even the dramatic mountain scenery around the Ha Giang Loop, irrespective of the backpacker selfie viewpoint conveyor belt!

And then Hanoi:
At first, hard work, draining — busy, noisy, overwhelming. But it grew on me. Those final couple of days, especially over the weekend, seeing it come alive around the lake — and finally understanding how to move through it, especially discovering different areas, using Grab bikes. Ended up being a real highlight - I struggled to return to my hotel on the last night, knowing it had all come to an end, for now!

Would definitely recommend — and happy to advise anyone thinking of going. I’m sure I’ll return one day… a little wiser, with a growing list of lesser-known places, especially in the north, still calling to be explored.

Until next time, but where to next? 🤔😊

 

 

VIETNAM - Bac Ha - March 17th to 20th 2026

Bắc Hà – Walking the Quiet Hills of Northern Vietnam

 After the intensity of the Ha Giang loop, Bắc Hà felt like a reset. There are no dramatic karst passes here or headline viewpoints, but the scenery still holds its own — rolling hills, terraced farmland, and the occasional peak rising unexpectedly, all set close to the Chinese border. It’s a place that doesn’t try to impress, but gradually reveals itself the longer you spend in it.

 
Day 1 – Leaving the Noise Behind
Leaving Bắc Hà town, the shift was immediate. The roads gave way to narrow paths leading through maize fields and small villages, climbing steadily into the hills toward Tả Văn Chư.
This is a working landscape. Fields of corn spread across the slopes, livestock wander freely, and daily life plays out without any sense of performance. The people here — mostly Flower H’mong, instantly recognisable in their bright, embroidered dress — live directly off the land, growing what they need and producing the rest themselves.
By the time I reached the homestay, it felt properly remote. The evening with the family was simple but memorable: shared dishes of greens, pork(hope it was pork 😳), soup and rice, and plenty of corn wine ("happy water") passed around the table. No menu, no fuss — just a glimpse into everyday life.

 Day 2 – Space, Variation and Solitude

The second day opened the landscape up. The route moved through constantly changing terrain — terraced farmland, quiet valleys and more open hills where the views stretched further.
While it lacks the dramatic punch of Ha Giang, the scenery here is still impressive in a quieter way. Layered hills roll into the distance, and the occasional higher peak adds depth and scale. It’s not about standout viewpoints, but about the way the landscape unfolds as you move through it.
What stood out most was the solitude. Long stretches passed without seeing anyone, just the sound of footsteps and the occasional distant activity from a village. Then, suddenly, a small cluster of homes — a brief interaction, a glimpse of daily life — before slipping back into silence again.
It’s a rhythm that feels natural, not constructed.

Day 3 – Market Life and the Return
The final day added another dimension with a stop at the Friday market in Lũng Phình.
This wasn’t a curated experience. It’s a working market — livestock trading, food, tools, clothing — everything part of everyday life. Chickens, pigs, and dogs among the trade. Raw, at times uncomfortable, but completely genuine.
From there, the walk gradually led back toward Bắc Hà, with the quiet of the hills giving way to more connected roads and the subtle return of town life. After three days of relative isolation, even that felt noticeable.

 

 Life on the Land

What became clear over the three days was how self-contained life is here. Villages aren’t reliant on anything external — they grow and produce what they need.
Maize dominates the hillsides, alongside small fruit plots and vegetables. Turmeric is used both for cooking and colouring rice, while wild tea is picked and drunk daily. Local roots referred to as “ginseng” are used for strength and often infused into corn wine. Livestock form part of the system, moving freely through the villages and markets.
Nothing is decorative. Everything has a purpose.

People and Place

The region is home to a mix of ethnic groups, most visibly the Flower H’mong, alongside Dao and Tày communities. Each has its own identity, but here they exist not as a display, but simply as part of everyday life.
Unlike more developed areas, there’s very little sense of tourism shaping behaviour. You’re not watching something staged — you’re passing through a place as it is.

 Final Thoughts

Bắc Hà doesn’t deliver big moments. It doesn’t compete with the drama of Ha Giang. But over three days, it offers something more subtle — varied terrain, genuine solitude, and a grounded sense of how people live in these hills.

 It’s less about what you see, and more about how it feels moving through it.

 

 

 

VIETNAM- The Ha Giang Loop - 13th to 17th March 2026

The Ha Giang Loop in far northern Vietnam has become one of those places that constantly appears on travel feeds – motorbikes winding along mountain roads with vast limestone landscapes stretching away into the distance. After several days travelling the route myself, I can say the scenery genuinely deserves the reputation. The landscape here is extraordinary.

Northern Vietnam sits on the Dong Van Karst Plateau, an ancient limestone landscape where thousands of jagged peaks rise from narrow valleys. Small villages, maize fields and thin terraces occupy the rare patches of soil that have accumulated between the rock. It is rugged terrain in the truest sense – a place where human life has adapted to an environment that looks almost impossible to farm.

 

I joined a small group travelling the route with local “Easy Rider” drivers, which has become the standard way most travellers experience the loop. Only several years ago this region was fairly untouched, but a viral Tik Tok series of posts, were exploited by hostels creating full tour packages (from Hanoi) and soon it became one of SE Asia's most popular "must do's" for the Gen Z backpacker tribe....

You sit on the back of a motorbike while experienced local riders navigate the winding mountain roads. For those unfamiliar with motorbikes it is probably the safest and easiest way to see the region, though it also creates a slightly strange way of experiencing such a dramatic landscape. Much of the time you feel as if you are flying past the mountains rather than really being IN them – racing from selfie viewpoint to selfie viewpoint along a well-worn itinerary, catching glimpses of spectacular terrain without quite having the time or space to fully absorb it, it ultimately feels like a tourist conveyor belt.

 The first days of the route took us across the high karst plateau around Dong Van. The weather unfortunately had other plans. Thick cloud and mist rolled across the mountains, often reducing dramatic viewpoints to little more than a wall of grey. Normally the famous Ma Pi Leng Pass offers one of the most spectacular views in Vietnam, looking down into the deep canyon of the Nho Que River. On our day the entire gorge was completely hidden in cloud. Riders would stop at the viewpoint, stare out into the fog where the canyon should have been, take the obligatory photograph anyway, and continue on.

Later we descended into the canyon itself for a boat ride on the Nho Que River. Here the landscape revealed itself in fragments. Limestone cliffs hundreds of metres high occasionally appeared through the mist before disappearing again into cloud. It was enough to hint at the scale of the gorge, even if the famous panoramic view from above remained invisible.
One of the curiosities of the Ha Giang Loop is the way it has evolved into a kind of travelling circuit for backpackers.

Dozens of groups follow the same route each day, stopping at the same viewpoints, the same waterfalls and the same roadside cafés. Waterfalls become something of a circus as travellers gather for photos and swims, and the evenings in homestays often turn into predictable party scenes with karaoke and drinking games.

Despite this well-worn itinerary, there are still many moments where the deeper character of the region becomes visible. In villages along the route we saw women weaving hemp cloth on traditional wooden looms, a centuries-old craft still practiced by Hmong communities. Farmers worked steep plots of maize using oxen to plough the rocky soil. Smoke drifted across the valleys as vegetation was burned before planting. Life here feels closely tied to the landscape in a way that is increasingly rare.

The road eventually descended from the harsher rocky plateau into greener valleys around Du Gia. Here the scenery softened slightly – rice paddies appeared, rivers wound through broader valleys, and the villages felt quieter and less exposed than those perched among the limestone peaks further north. We visited a waterfall near Du Gia which, like many stops on the loop, had become a magnet for tour groups, the rock pool itself was snided, rather a contrast to my rock pool experiences over the last year! I chose not to take a dip!

Travelling by motorbike through these mountains is undeniably exhilarating. The roads twist constantly through the terrain, climbing over ridges and descending into hidden valleys. At one point our driver attempted to ride across a muddy section of track and the bike slid out beneath us. Fortunately I had already jumped off, which turned the moment into little more than a muddy inconvenience rather than a serious accident. Such moments are a reminder that these mountain roads remain rugged despite the growing popularity of the route.

Looking back on the journey, the Ha Giang Loop feels like a slightly unusual mixture of elements. On one hand it is one of the most spectacular landscapes in Southeast Asia – dramatic mountains, deep river canyons and villages living in extraordinary terrain. On the other hand, the way it is typically experienced today has become a well-organised backpacker circuit that sometimes sits oddly against the wildness of the surroundings.

I think for 2 days I was ok, but by the third the monotony and predictability of the conveyor belt started to grind....racing from viewpoint to viewpoint, with repeated selfies by the Gen Z's....it also sat uncomfortable with me how all these 1000s of motorbikes daily impact the local communities...do they all get a financial gain, probably not....racing through tiny communities with toddlers walking alone on the roadside, just didn't seem right....offering money to farmers, homeowners to get that tourist "authenticity" - the worst being the home where a woman looked unwell in bed, it turned out she'd given birth just a few hours before...they needed money, and couldn't refuse, irrespective....insane!

But if I'd returned home and not witnessed this region, I would've regretted it...and later learnt a number of regions where the scenery is as impressive and hardly visited by Western tourists....so one day I may return, but not on the back of a motorbike on the Ha Giang loop!