Northern Vietnam: Sapa-Hanoi-Ninh Binh

It was not the first time that I traveled right after I landed in Thailand. The day after I arrived at Suvannabhumi airport, I came back to it and flew to Hanoi. It was not the most tiring things in my life, but I will definitely take my word back when I get old. In this family trip, we visited several famous places in northern Vietnam, namely, Sapa, Hanoi, and Ninh Binh. For some people, the more they see the world, the less impressive some places appear to them. We also did not find this part of Vietnam outstanding from all the places we have been together, yet it was still charming and gave us vacation vibes. I’d recommend those who like natures to visit Ninh Binh; Sapa is also beautiful, but it seems have some construction going on at the top of Fansipan mountain.

The first day (Dec 14, 2023) – Hanoi to Sapa

We arrived at the airport at 5 Am and met with our guide, Khun Moss. I forgot to mention that we bought a tour package since the commuting to Sapa from Hanoi is not very easy. It only took us 1:25 hours from Bangkok to Noi Bai airport, Hanoi. We then met with the local guide, Khun Thi, who revealed his aspiration to be a Vietnamese politician.

The first place we visited was the border between Vietnam and China. There was also a shrine next to the border, so we took an opportunity to make a wish for a safe trip in Vietnam. After that, we were headed for a lunch at Budapest restaurant. I had an impression that the owner just loves his trip to Budapest so much (like who wouldn’t fall in love with that charming city?)

We then rode a bus for three hours or a bit more until we got to Sapa. We didn’t get to do much on the first day here, except for exploring the town of Sapa. We went to Notre Dame Cathedral in the middle of the town and wandered around for a bit. The place was covered with thick fog inducing a mysterious yet gorgeous atmosphere. We went back to Passion Sapa Hotel to unload our bags and also had a dinner on the first floor of the hotel. Surprisingly, a signature menu of Sapa is a Salmon and Sturgeon hotpot. The soup was pretty good but much better with the Thai sukiyaki dipping sauce from Khun Moss.

At night we went out to explore the town again. We got to try Vietnamese chestnuts and some kind of dessert that made of chestnuts. (The flour shell tasted like Roti. If who knows what that’s called, please let me know). What was interesting to me was that they heated up the chestnuts in their microwave before handing it to us. So convenient! We also went to Cong coffee to grab a cup of their famous coconut coffee.

The second day (Dec 15, 2023)- Fansipan, Moana café, Cat Cat Village

On the second day, we spent half of the day at Fansipan mountain, where we needed to take a train from Sun Plaza to the bottom of the mountain first. Then we took a cable car to go uphill. The change of the weather was unexpected to me, but it was indeed very normal given the mountain is 3000-ft high. The temperature at the top of the mountain was a little less than 10 degree Celsius, but the wind made it feel like 1-2 degree Celsius. There were not many things to do at Fansipan. We took a tram to the summit and then decided to walk down so that we got to see the big Buddha. (In fact, we did not see the Buddha because of the thick fog.) After 700 steps down the hill, we had lunch buffet at the big restaurant at the bottom of Fansipan. The food line was huge, but the good ones were rare, sadly.

After Fansipan, we went to Moana café, which is 100% a photobooth kind of place. I did not hate it but it was not at all a place that I would visit if I were to travel by myself. Then we went to Cat Cat village. We didn’t went down to the bottom of the hill where the villagers actually live due to my mom and I physical condition (aka, we were so tired from climbing up and down of Fansipan). Instead, we had some drinks at Farm coffee enjoying the view of mountains, fogs, and birds. That was the end of day 2, and, yes, we went to bed at 9PM due to the tiredness.

The third day (Dec 16, 2023) – Hanoi, Tran Quoc, Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, 36 Old streets

8AM in the morning was the time we left our breezy town of Sapa. We were headed to Hanoi and, again, it took us 3 hours to get there. After a lunch in Hanoi, we went to Tran Quoc temple to make wishes and merit. We did not have much time there, plus it was sprinkling. The highlight of this place was the Peepul (Bodhi) tree in the middle of the temple which was 24 years old by the time we visited. The huge tree used to be just a stick gifted as a diplomatic present from India two decades ago. However, that stick was from the 3rd generation Peepul tree that (we believe) Buddha was sitting on the say he was enlightened.

After that we went to Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. We didn’t get to see the cooler where his body is preserved and stored in, but we got a lot of knowledge of this place by listening to Khun Thi, our Vietnamese guide. We were told that all Vietnamese kids must be brought to see the preserved face of Ho Chi Minh so that they appreciate what he has done for Vietnamese people. Afterwards, we went to 36 old streets which is a huge night market full of food, clothes, shoes, and performances. We always love street food, so we went to a food stall and ordered some Vietnamese snack plus fried chickens… The food was delicious, and I can’t deny that they were better than most of the meals I had the days before. We bought some souvenirs, shirts, and drinks before it was time to meet with our group. We were taken to a dinner place afterward, but we were still full of all the snacks we had at the 36 old streets. That night we stayed at a very tall and narrow hotel called Moonview hotel. Not very impressed, but we had a decent night and the view from the breakfast room was nice.

The last day (Dec 17, 2023) - Ninh Binh

On the last day of the trip, there was only one destination left on the itinerary, Ninh Binh. We went to the area to ride a row boat along the river (or what I believe was the weather). Ninh Binh is so stunning that people call it Halong bay on land. It was not very crowded on the day we went to, which made the place even more charming. We rode on a row boat for an hour along the river, passing through bridges, caves, lotuses, egrets, and tall mountains. The view was incredible, but I must say that it gave us the same vibe as Pang-nga boat rides in Thailand. That was more or less the end of our trip.

As you might notice, I didn’t talk much about Vietnamese food. This is mainly because we went to places that could serve a group of 30 people which tend to have decent but not excellent food. The only two staples that I loved so much while I was there were Banh Mi and Pho. I had Pho almost every morning when I was there. Alright, that was it, a quick trip to northern Vietnam. Hope this inspires the readers to travel more and worry less.