Join us for a traditional homestay, (including breakfast) and great entertainment on our tour of Pu Luong Nature Reserve and Mai Chau. The Nature Reserve is an ideal place for trekking with your guide, and the choice of accommodation is yours to decide, either in a stilt house or upgrade to a private bungalow with a garden or valley view. See farmers working their fields, trek to caves with your guide, enjoy a garden party and watch a traditional dancers’ performance are just some of the numerous highlights of taking this journey.

DESTINATIONS

• Hoa Binh province, Mai Chau district, Ban Lac village
• Thanh Hoa province, Pu Luong Nature Reserve ( Les Bais De Hieu Ecolodge)

HIGHLIGHTS

• 3-day trip to Mai Chau valley and Pu Luong Nature Reserve
• Enjoy a welcome drink and traditional Vietnamese lunch in a local village
• Enjoy a BBQ dinner and a garden party
• See a traditional dance performed by an ethnic tribe and sample the local wine (rice wine)
  Leisure cycling across Mai Chau valley
• Trekking to remote and traditional ethnic villages
• Fantastic and picturesque scenery
• Select a homestay or bungalow as accommodations
• Round-trip transport by a/c minivan available, from Hanoi’s Old Quarter

DAY 1 HANOI – MAI CHAU

Meal: lunch, dinner
Accommodation: homestay at a traditional house-on-stilts

8:00 AM – We will pick you up from your hotel. In the morning we will drive to Mai Chau, we’ll leave the city behind and pass through many, mountainous landscape. We drive up a breathtaking mountain pass and end in the mountainous circus of Mai Chau around noon time. A traditional lunch will be served in a local Thai house.
In the afternoon, we’ll have a small walk around Mai Chau valley before getting a transfer to a small village of Ban Lac, weather permitting, there’s a chance for a cycling ride around the green village. Afterward, we return for dinner and overnight in the stilt house for our friendly Thai homestay.
With the ‘Homestay’ experience, your overnight accommodation is provided by a local family in their traditional house-on-stilts. There’s no private room and you’ll sleep on the floor in a large communal area. The sleeping corner is set up with a single mattress, blankets, pillow and a mosquito net. The restroom is at the international standard and a few steps from the main house.

DAY 2 MAI CHAU – PU LUONG

Meal: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation: Pu Luong Ecolodge – bungalow

After breakfast, we drive for about 15 km before entering the Pu Luong Nature Reserve. You’ll then enjoy a 2-hour trek, on a single trail, through Thai villages and rice terraces, with an opportunity to take a break at a local house en-route.
We will then meet your car driver again for a quick transfer to our lunch stop at a small lodge. In the afternoon, we step into the wild with an awesome hike on trails across the second half of the reserve to reach its Western edge. The hike is not too hard and lasts 3 to 4 hours, it is an intermediate level trek. Plan to bring along good shoes and batteries for your camera.
When we arrive at the Ecolodge, we will check into our rooms and go for a refreshing swim in the cascades and natural pools that surround the lodge. Enjoy a homemade dinner before a well-deserved time for rest.
Pu Luong Eco-lodge, (Les-Bains-de-Hieu) is located in the heart of the Pu Luong Nature Reserve and only accessible by foot or motorbike, (so it’s advisable to travel light The lodge has only 3 traditional bungalows, each has a private veranda with no air-conditioning but a fan is provided. There’s no attached toilet but you’ll share a stylish restroom a few steps away.

DAY 3 PU LUONG – HANOI

Meal: breakfast, lunch included
Accommodation and Dinner not included

Enjoy an easy morning, depending on the season and your preference, you can stay at the lodge and relax, go for a walk or a bicycle ride around. It is pretty easy, accessible to most people and offers a unique experience in North Vietnam. We have lunch at the lodge and then walk for about an hour and a half to a road where our car can access. We return to Hanoi on the Ho Chi Minh road and should be there around 6 pm depending on the traffic.

INCLUDED

• Accommodation as mentioned in the program
• Bicycle hire in Mai Chau.
• Meals as specified in the program
• Travel in a private air-conditioned vehicle with an experienced driver
• Activities as mentioned in the tour program
• The services of an experienced English-speaking guide
• A local guide for the trek of the second day
• Water during the trek
• All entrance fees
• VAT and other taxes

NOT INCLUDED

• Hotel in Hanoi (We can help book a hotel if needed at an extra cost)
• We can pick you up from the airport for a small fee
• Beverages and personal expenses
• Drinks, laundry, telephone, and other private services
• Insurance