Sapa Vietnam travel guide

Sapa Vietnam travel guide

Share Best Our Experience Sapa Vietnam Travel Guide 

Sapa is the most visited travel destination in the North of Vietnam. Visitors to Sapa have many choices of organised adventure trips, cultural tours and travel accommodation.

   1.Sapa sightseeing 
 
• Sapa (pronounced Sa-PA by the Vietnamese, and othen spelled as Sa Pa) is a small town, and the main travel activities are around the town - hiking trips, visiting local hill tribes, motorbike tours.
 Enjoy the mountain scenery in Sapa and nearby mountain valleys
 
• Visit ethnic minority villages around Sapa to have a close-up look on traditional lifestyles of Hmong, Dao, Tay and other local tribes.
 
• Trekking mountain valleys around Sapa. See rice fields, waterfalls and minority villages.
 
• See colourful ethnic minority markets, from Bac Ha, the most popular among travelers and easily accessible, to other markets, more authentic travel experience.
 
• Climb Fansipan mountain, the highest in Indochina, located a few kilometers west from Sapa.
 
• Sapa is a good starting point for motorbike tours around more remote regions of Northern Vietnam. 
   2.Best time to travel to Sapa is during spring or autumn months.

Specifically, March to May is, perhaps, the very best time to travel to Sapa. The weather at this time is warmer than in winter months, while the amount of rain Sapa receives in spring is a lot less than compared to summer months (rainy season). Average day temperatures in Sapa are +18-20°C (67°F) in March, +23-25°C (75°F) in April and +27-29°C (+82°F) in May
Alternatively, October and November is also a good time to visit Sapa. The temperatures are lower than in summer, and the rain season is finished. Average day temperatures in Sapa are +23-25°C (75°F) in October, +20-22°C (70°F) in November.

   3. Local Advise
 
It is possible to visit Sapa during summer and winter months, however it may be less comfortable for many travellers. Rainy season is the mountains of Northern Vietnam is between May and September. December to February is a relatively dry season, however it can get very cold (often close to freezing temperatures in the evening) in Sapa and nearby mountain locations in the North of Vietnam.
See more details about weather/climate/best to visit North of Vietnam and other regions of the country.
 
• Sapa has a refreshingly cool climate, compared to Red River Delta in Vietnam, where it can get really hot in summer months. However, it often gets cold in Sapa, particularly in the evenings, warm clothes can be recommended for any season. 
 
• The weather in Sapa is highly changeable, due to the town’s mountain location. It is often said that visitors to Sapa may be able to see four different seasons in one day. Clouds and fogs are frequent in Sapa throughout the year, especially in winter and summer months.
 
• Most hotels in Sapa provide heaters, which are essential not only in winter, but many travelers may find it useful throughout the year

Sapa is located in Lao Cai province of Vietnam, a few kilometers south of Vietnam's border with China.
 
• The permanent population of Sapa is less than 10.000 people, which is at least 20 times lower than the annual number of local and overseas travelers visting the town. 
 
• Mountain valleys around Sapa are considered to be the highest (by elevation) in Vietnam.
 
• The settlement of Sapa was established as a French hill station around 1890, during the colonial period. In the first decades of the 20th century, Sapa's settlement became a small but famous mountain resort for wealthy French. Most of the original resort buildings in Sapa (constructed in the first decades of the 20th centrury) are not seen in town these days, the current town architecture is only a few years old.
 
• Fan Si Pan mountain, the highest mountain peak in Vietnam, and Indochina, is located only a few kilometers west of Sapa, and can be easily seen from the town itself.

• The majority of the town’s population are ethnic Vietnamese. Minority tribes, living in nearby villages around Sapa, come to town mainly to shop or to sell their products. 
 
• Mountains around Sapa had about 15 days of snow in the last 30 years. Sapa is one of the very few places in Vietnam to see snow.
   4.How to get To Sapa?

• Tram Ton mountain pass between Sapa and Lai Chau, located at nearly 2.000 meters (6.500 feet) is the highest mountain pass in Vietnam.

• By Train

There is no train station in Sapa itself, but most travelers arrive from Hanoi on the train through Lao Cai station. Lao Cai is 40km (25 miles) northeast of Sapa.

The train journey from Hanoi to Lao Cai is about 8-9 hours.

There is one train from Hanoi to Sapa that runs daily, and there are several trains to Sapa that run every night. Day time train offers only hard seats, while an overnight train has both hard sleeper and soft sleeper coaches. More expensive, but more luxury option is to take Victoria Orient Express (about 150-200 USD for a return trip from Lao Cai to Hanoi). There is also a cheaper, and yet, comfortable option to get to Sapa in the air-conditioned soft sleeper coach, for 25-60 USD one way. Finally, the cheapest, but the least comfortable option is to book a hard sleeper seat for less than 20 USD one way.

It is more convenient and often cheaper to book a return train ticket from Lao Cai to Hanoi with a travel agent or with your accommodation provider in Sapa.

Trains to Lao Cai are departing from the different tracks, adjacent to the main Hanoi’s Railway Station, located at 120 Le Duan St.

It takes about 1 hour to get to Sapa from Lao Cai station on a minibus, or 1.5 hour drive on a local bus. Minibus ride from Lao Cai to Sapa costs 25.000 dong (1.3 USD). More expensive option is to book a private car transfer for about 30-40 USD per car one way from Lao Cai to Sapa.
 

• By Bus

Regular intercity buses run by local travel agents connect Sapa with Hanoi, either directly through Lao Cai, or through Hoa Binh, Dien Bien Phu and Lai Chau.

The cost is around 15 USD one way for the cheapest direct option. 
There is no airport in Sapa or nearby towns. The nearest airport is in Dien Bien Phu, about 220 km. (135 miles) southwest of Sapa, but it has connections with Hanoi only. The closest airport to Sapa with a variety of domestic and international connections is the airport in Hanoi.