1. Delightful Sapa Valley in Northern Vietnam Take an overnight train trip from dynamic Hanoi and you will certainly arrive in the remote mountainous area of Sapa Valley, home to stunning mountains and valleys, numerous minority hill-tribes and interesting street markets. By leaving to Sapa you will certainly find right here real life and culture and pure relaxation. Sapa is an old French Colonial Hill station situateded amongst the highest range of mountains in Vietnam, Hoang Lien Boy which is close to the Chinese border. Sapa is well known for its impressive natural appeal and the range of hill-tribes individuals that live in the area. As a destination it provides lots of experience outdoor activities, cycling and hiking are the most popular of these. The very best trek in the location takes three days to the top of Fansipan, standing at 3143 meters, it is the greatest peak in Vietnam, managing awesome scenic views into neighboring China. Taking a trip to the summit, is not the hardest trek on the planet, so if you are fit and healthy and have a great many energy, you ought to think about making this expedition to the roofing of Vietnam, where you'll be among the clouds. Sapa is home to many minority Hill-tribe, visits and home-stays are a very popular activity in the Sapa region. One of the most renowneded hill-tribes in the area is the Black Hmong Hill-tribe, who frequent the villages throughout the area. They have their own culture and customs and many tourists delighting in visiting and learning about their lifestyles, Vietnam Cycling Tours. By visiting the tribes people you will learn about farming techniques, how their wonderful garments are made and be treated to traditional hill-tribe fare and music, a fascinating experience, which will allow you to immerse yourself in how simple life can be!Vietnam Cycling Tours Home-stays are an ideal choice if you wish to have a reality experience of how these people live and work their daily lives and the people of the Hmong people and other minority groups are very welcoming to foreigners visiting them. Another aspect of local culture not to be missed is a visit to one of the numerous, hill-tribe markets. Each market has its own unique feel and is generally a place for the locals to get together to sell their items and to socialize with loved ones, perhaps even fulfill a partner! The biggest of these markets in Bac Ha market, 80 Kilometres from downtown Sapa in the Lao Cai area, this market takes location every Sunday under the look of the neighboring mountains and the border with China. Here you will see tribes individuals from all over the region and even from over the chinese border who come here to barter and trade. This is a typical sight at all of the markets in the Sapa region, a real cultural experience, where horseback is the mode of transportation of goods for sale. A Hmong culinary specialty you might want to attempt is Thang Co Blood Porridge, made from a mix of pony and goats meat, slow cooked to produce a fine 'blood soup' served in a big hot-pot. This dish is a popular staple of the hill-tribes people in the region and is shared by everyone, using chopsticks to dip the succulently cooked meat into a spicy dip and then eaten, normally accompanied with bread, instant noodles, vegetables and herbs. It is best to try this dish at one of the restaurants in the Sapa area, rather than experiencing it at one of the markets, like Bac Ha, right here you will see the locals socialize, eat and wash the soup down with wine! Thang Co is popular amongst the locals and warms the body in a region where temperatures and plummet dramatically in the evenings. Other activities you would be able to arrange are Cycling, camping and trekking and even traveling by motorcycle are all very popular ways to explore the Sapa Region. To get to Sapa you need to travel by train from Hanoi, overnight to Lao Cai, the main town in the region and then take a 90 minute journey by road and dirt track to get to Sapa itself. For a time-out to visit hill-tribes and expedition, 3 to 4 days is the recommended amount of time for a trip here, for the more daring there are various treks, biking routes and home-stays that can be arranged for those wishing to spend longer, and a perfect combination with the Sapa Region would be Hanoi and a cruise around stunning Ha-long Bay, renowneded for its limestone cliffs, typically referred to as the Gullin of Vietnam! So consider going to the Sapa region as part of a tour to Vietnam Hanoi Cycling Tours and certainly Indochina, Vietnam offers a fantastic mix of history, culture, exceptional natural beauty and stunning beaches, more than comparable to other Asian destinations such as Thailand and Malaysia. You would also be supporting Responsible and Sustainable tourism and growth throughout the region as a whole.Hanoi Cycling Tours