Sapa
Sapa Trekking, Market Tours & Homestays
Choose from 1 to 5 day treks, visit the hill tribe markets, and spend the night in a village homestay. You can also cook local dishes, climb Fansipan, join a batik class, or take part in the rice harvest. Every trek is private and built around your interests, your fitness, and the weather.
A typical trek starts around 9am at our office in Sapa town, then heads out into the mountains and valleys. Trails wind through terraced rice fields, along quiet mountain paths, and across rivers on footbridges. If you are here in summer, bring a swimsuit and ask your guide about swimming spots.
Whether you want a hard climb, a gentle walk through the villages, or a slow day with long stops and a good lunch, we will build the trek around that. We only do private tours, so there is no group to keep up with and no itinerary you have to fit into.
You don’t have to be hardcore. You just have to be here.
Your guide
Every trek is led by a Hmong woman who grew up in these mountains.
Our full-time Sapa Sisters guides are employed, not freelance. They earn well above what most work here pays, and we enrol them in Vietnamese social insurance for their pension and medical cover. Separately from that, we lend money interest-free to buy land or build a house, pay for healthcare in Hanoi for guides and their children, and cover legal fees when they are needed.
The money matters, but it is not the whole reason they stay. Ask your guide how long she has been a Sapa Sister. Most will tell you with some pride.
Homestay
We offer 2-5 day treks with homestays, a fantastic way to explore Sapa Valley and escape the city. Homestays are family-run inns in the valley, where you’ll wake up surrounded by stunning scenery.
Guests typically share a loft room on the second floor of a traditional house, while the host family lives separately. Some homestays offer private rooms for an additional fee—let us know when you book if you’d like one. All homestays provide hot showers, western-style toilets, comfortable beds, and delicious traditional food. They are clean, safe, and welcoming.
Lunch
After the morning’s walking we either stop at a restaurant or eat at a family’s house down in the valley. Many of our guides can take you to their own family home.
If you would like lunch in a local house, just ask and we will add it to your booking. Your guide or the family cooks, sometimes you shop for the ingredients together on the way, and you are welcome to join in and learn how H’mong food is made. It is not a formal cooking class, just a kitchen with people in it.
We can work around most dietary requirements. Tell us in advance and we will sort it.
Private Bungalow
If you’d rather stay in a private bungalow, we offer several options down in Ta Van Village. Each cottage features its own bathroom, giving you the freedom to wake up refreshed and unwind in complete comfort. Your private retreat invites you to experience the authentic serenity of Sapa on your own terms. After a hard trek through the mountains, there’s nothing better than coming back here to recover and enjoy a truly restful night’s sleep.
Other ways to see the valley
Not everyone wants to walk all day. Our car tours cover more ground at a relaxed pace, taking in the viewpoints and the more remote villages, and can be combined with shorter walks along the way so you still get out on the trails.
You can also combine a few days of trekking with a market day. Bac Ha runs on Sundays, Can Cau on Saturdays and Coc Ly on Tuesdays. Or continue north to Ha Giang afterwards. Tell us what you have in mind and we will put the route together.
Trekking with Children
We are happy to welcome parents with children to trek with us. We offer discounts for younger children and children 2 years or younger, trek for free.
We know from experience that children often are stronger hikers than their parents may think, but of course, their energy might run out. Our guides are flexible to arrange the tour to fit your family’s needs all throughout the trek.
We can arrange tours that start by going down the valley by car. You can then have a short walk and visit some villages and maybe have lunch in your guide’s home.
If you prefer to do it all by car, we can arrange that as well. You can still have lunch in local houses and sleep overnight in a homestay.
Sometimes our guides bring their own baby with them on the trek.
Hotels
We have partnered with hotels in Sapa and can offer better rates for customers who are trekking with us and want to explore the city on their own before or after their trek. Please let us know your budget and we will be happy to make a recommendation.
How to get to Sapa
Private Car to Sapa, the smoothest way to travel
The driver will pick you up from any address in Hanoi or from Noi Bai airport and drive you directly up to Sapa. For an extra fee he can drive you (almost) all the way to the homestay! Or the other way around, Sapa to Hanoi.
You will do a shorter stop along the way where you can use the restroom and buy something to eat.
Traveling with Children?
Let us know if you need a booster seat or a baby car seat and we will do our best to arrange that.
Night Train Hanoi -Lao Cai
The night train may not be the fastest but it is the safest and most comfortable way to get to Sapa. We sell tickets in shared cabins with 4 beds.
All trains have international standards, soft-sleeper with AC. All tickets include a small bottle of water, wet tissue, and biscuits.
Children 5 years or younger and shorter than 100cm travel free of charge if they share a bed with their parents. Two children under 7 years travel as one passenger if they share a bed.
A note about sellers on the trails
Need more information?
Transportation, accommodation or more information. If you have any further questions don’t hesitate to contact us, contact@sapasisters.com
F.A.Q
Frequently asked questions
Contact Us
Still have questions?
Need to add anything else to your booking?
Transportation, accommodation or more information. If you have any further questions don’t hesitate to contact us, contact@sapasisters.com
Contact Us
Still have questions?
F.A.Q
Frequently asked questions