3-day Sapa trek: Homestay and hotel, village walks
You wake to roosters and rice terraces, not an alarm clock.
A 3-day trek from Hanoi through Sapa's mountain villages combines two nights of accommodation (one in a hotel, one in a Red Dao family homestay in a stilt house) with guided walks through terraced fields, bamboo forest and past waterfalls. The itinerary moves through H'mong and Giay settlements, includes all meals and an English-speaking guide, and ends with transport back to Hanoi by afternoon on day three.
Step-by-step itinerary
Day 1: Explore Cat Cat village and Sapa town
- Pick up from Sapa bus office at 6:00AM
- Have breakfast and freshen up at hotel
- Depart hotel at 8:30AM
- Walk 3km to Cat Cat village
- Visit hydropower station and waterfall
- Learn about local culture and crafts
- Walk 4km back to Sapa
- Have lunch at local restaurant
- Check in hotel room
- Free afternoon to relax and explore Sapa
- Dinner at 6:30PM or 7:00PM
- Overnight at hotel in Sapa
Day 2: Trek to minority villages and homestay
- Breakfast and check out before 8:30AM
- Depart hotel at 8:30AM
- Walk to Y Linh Ho village
- Photograph 100-year-old terraces
- Visit Hmong hometown in Lao Chai village
- Lunch break in Lao Chai for 1 hour
- Continue trek to Ta Van village
- Stay overnight in local Giay family homestay
- Cook and have dinner with local family
Day 3: Trek bamboo forest and return to Hanoi
- Wake up to local farm sounds
- Breakfast outdoors with pancakes and hot drinks
- Trek through bamboo forest and silk waterfall
- Arrive at Giang Ta Chai village
- Enjoy picnic lunch with scenic views
- Walk back to main road
- Take car or minivan to Sapa town
- Arrive Sapa around 2:00PM and shower at hotel
- Shuttle to bus office at 3:00PM
- Check in bus to Hanoi
- Receive sandwiches for journey
- Tour ends
What’s included
- All accommodation for two nights (one hotel, one homestay).
- all meals from breakfast on day one through lunch on day three, plus sandwiches for the return journey.
- an English-speaking guide throughout.
- and return transport to Sapa town by van on day three.
Times
- Every day 06:30
Before you book
Operated by Sapa Private Day Tours
Prices and times updated yesterday
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The experience
The trek starts with a pickup from the Sapa bus office at 6am and a drive to the hotel for breakfast. Day one is a 7-kilometer round walk through Cat Cat village, where H'mong families still work traditional crafts (silver carving, weaving, hand-forged tools), and you pass a colonial-era hydropower station and waterfall. Lunch is at a local restaurant in town, and the afternoon is free to explore Sapa on your own before dinner at the hotel.
Day two takes you down to Y Linh Ho to photograph rice terraces that have been worked for around a hundred years, then through Lao Chai village where H'mong families live. You stop for lunch, then trek to Ta Van, a Hmong and Giay settlement where a local family welcomes you into their home. You cook and eat dinner together in the homestay, sleeping in the stilt house that night.
Day three starts early (the rooster or pigs will wake you) with breakfast outdoors overlooking the terraces. After saying goodbye to the family, you trek through bamboo forest and past a silk waterfall to Giang Ta Chai, stopping for a picnic lunch with views. A van picks you up and drives back to Sapa by around 2pm. You shower at the hotel, then catch a shuttle to the bus office for the return journey to Hanoi, with sandwiches packed for the ride.
Is this one for you?Book this trek if you're staying in or traveling through Hanoi without a car: pickup is from the Sapa bus office, so you'll arrange your own transport there first, but once the trek starts, the guide, meals, beds and route are all arranged, and you return to town by afternoon on day three with time to catch an evening bus back to Hanoi.
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Top questions
Can children come?
Yes. Ticket types: Child (under 8).
What happens if it rains?
It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. No refund if you cancel.
What's the difference between staying in the hotel and the homestay on this trek?
Night one is in a hotel in Sapa town with standard rooms and amenities. Night two is in a Red Dao family's stilt house in Ta Van village, where you cook and eat dinner with the family: a direct look at how they live rather than a tourist setup.
How much walking is involved each day?
Day one is a 7-kilometer round walk (3km down to Cat Cat, 4km back to town). Day two involves trekking from Y Linh Ho through Lao Chai to Ta Van, with a lunch break in between. Day three is a few hours of trekking through bamboo forest and past waterfalls to Giang Ta Chai before a van pickup back to town.
What meals are included?
All three breakfasts, lunches and dinners are included. Day one lunch is at a local restaurant in Sapa; day two you stop for lunch in Lao Chai and cook dinner with your homestay family; day three is a picnic lunch on the trail. You also get sandwiches to take on the bus back to Hanoi.
Does the tour include pickup from Hanoi?
Pickup is from the Sapa bus office at 6am on day one, not from Hanoi. You'll need to arrange your own transport to Sapa beforehand, or take a bus or flight from Hanoi the night before.
What are the villages and ethnic groups you'll visit?
Cat Cat is a H'mong village with a waterfall and traditional crafts. Y Linh Ho is inhabited by H'mong families and known for century-old rice terraces. Lao Chai is another H'mong settlement. Ta Van is home to both H'mong and Giay families, where you stay in the homestay. Giang Ta Chai, where the trek ends, is a Red Dao village.
What's included in the price?
All accommodation (one hotel night, one homestay night), meals, the English-speaking guide, and transport back to Sapa on day three are included. Tips are not covered.
3-day Sapa trek: Homestay and hotel, village walks
3d · EN · at your hotel
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