One of the most beautiful areas in northern Vietnam, the mountainous Pu Luong Nature Reserve presents a challenge to those who are fit enough to explore it. This is an area of outstanding beauty, an exciting mix of cultures, and rich biodiversity stretching from Mai Chau in the northwest to Cuc Phuong National Park in the southeast. The region is blessed with lush forests, vast limestone panoramas, magnificent rice terraces, and breathtaking scenery. On this six-day trip, you will experience the everyday life and culture of the Thai and Muong people in scenic villages with traditional, rustic home-stay accommodations. This is a challenging trek, with unforgettable rewards!
Day 1: Hanoi – Pu Luong (Hang Village)
After breakfast, a four-hour drive brings you to Pu Luong Natural Reserve. Enjoy a lunch break in the scenic Mai Chau valley, then, drive further into the reserve. The first leg of your trek is a 2.5-hour hike to the Thai village of Hang. Spend the night with a local Thai family in a traditional house built on stilts. Enjoy their hospitality, and discover a little about their lives and culture.
Day 2: Hang – Kho Muong Village
In the morning, you can stroll around Hang village before continuing your trek. Today you will be walking for approximately six hours. Along the way, you’ll pass through several Thai villages before arriving at Kho Muong. This is a Muong-minority village, and you will be their guests for the night.
Day 3: Cao Hoong Village
A full-day trek awaits you as you climb to the top of Pu Luong Mountain through a number of small hamlets and minority villages. At the summit, the panoramic views of Pu Luong’s spectacular landscape are magnificent. The climb takes around eight hours with a further two hours for the descent to the village of Cao Hoong where you will stay overnight.
Day 4: Cao Hoong – Hin Village
Your hike through the verdant countryside today will take around two hours as you encounter local villagers going about their daily lives cultivating the fields and herding buffalo. The way of life here has changed very little for thousands of years. It’s like journeying back in time. In the afternoon, you’ll arrive at your destination: the picturesque village of Hin.
Day 5: Hin – Son Village
Leaving Hin village, a six-hour trek brings you to your next home-stay in Son village. This hillside village is high enough to be usually cool year-round.
Day 6: Son – Hanoi
From Son village, you’ll walk approximately three hours through fertile farmland, hamlets and villages to rendezvous with the vehicle that will take you back to Hanoi.
