Top 10 best places for cycling in Vietnam
Vietnam is well-known for its diverse nature, ranging from vast rice paddies to long coastline of mesmerizing beaches and enormous mountains after mountains. But what makes biking adventure in this country possible and interesting is the dense network of roads that can get tourists anywhere they wish, be it remote or central.
1, Ha Noi
See another side of Hanoi with a day cycling trip that takes you away from the busy chaos of Hanoi’s city centre and into the nearby countryside. Observe local life as you cycle through villages and along the banks of the Red River. Visit a traditional craft village (ceramic, painting, pottery, wood carving..) where you will see their magical traditional way of producing and also past floating houses to colorful flower gardens. Before finishing the active day, you can cycling around the West Lake.
Hoa Lu is a district of Ninh Binh Province located in the Red River Delta region of Viet Nam, approximately 100km southwest of Ha Noi. Hoa Lu is surrounded by lush green forest and breathtaking limestone mountains, provides travellers and locals gorgeous sceneries that are unlikely to be seen anywhere else.
The one day cycling tour, provided by the Amity Smile Travel in Hanoi takes you to Hoa Lu and Tam Coc, Ninh Binh province. You travel by car from Hanoi to Hoa Lu where you will make a stop visiting the Dinh and Le temples before embarking on a push-bike and start your fun bicycle ride from Hoa Lu to Tam Coc. You cycle on paved roads, through rice fields and local agricultural villages. Most of the bicycle ride is on a peaceful inter-communal routes where the traffic is not two busy. After the bicycle ride from Hoa Lu to Tam Coc, you can either enjoy a sampan cruise tour or another cycling trip around Tam Coc before getting on your car again for the journey back to Hanoi.
3, Mai Chau – Hoa Binh
Mai Chau valley is a perfect place to experience Vietnam's village life in a remote setting. Mountain bikers will love this trip for the variety of trails - from good single track paths, undulating rough jeep trails to some climbs that are rewarded with ultimate descents. The ride passes through many villages, across lush rice paddies and above a valley for stunning views. This tour takes us into the countryside where we will encounter the. We'll get to know the local hill tribe people - the White Tai - and their culture better when we overnight in local home stay. After a day or remote cycling you will be rewarded and spoilt with dinner and a night at the lovely Mai Chau Valley View. The next day the rewards continue with a mostly downhill ride before transferring back to Hanoi.
4, Moc Chau
Moc Chau is a small peaceful town of Son La province in Northern Vietnam. The place produces some the best tea in Vietnam. The place is becoming a tourist attraction among the avid travellers owing to its immense green tea plantation, situating on ranges after ranges of hills. The place possesses heavenly atmosphere when, during spring, wild flowers are blossoming everywhere amid the hovering mist.
5, Cat Ba National Park
Cat Ba National Park is based on an island in northern Vietnam and east of Hai Phong. This park is one of the most important nature reserves in Vietnam with large collection of animals and plants, some of which are unique to Vietnam. What is special about Cat Ba National Park is the wide ranges of experience you can get cycling around the park. There are plenty hidden beaches, waterfalls, caves, mountain by limestone and stunning valleys.
6, Ba Be Lake and National Park
Ba Be belongs to Bac Can province, which is situated in the North of Vietnam. The landscape here is marvelous with towering limestone mountain, deep valleys, dense forests, waterfalls, caves and lakes. In addition, the national park possesses a rich biodiversity with hundreds of unnamed plants species and other hundreds of wildlife species.There are scenes of stilt home of the ethnic minority Tay along with Dao and Mong people. The most famous tourist site is Ba Be Lake. With a size of 8km in length and 400m in width, the lake deserves its title “the emerald of Northern Vietnam”.
7, Hoi An
Hoi An should deserve your consideration if you seek for a relaxing cycling trip. Cycling through the rural areas and into the city is an easy biking tour but can still provide you ample chance for nature sightseeing and opportunities to experience Vietnamese rural landscapes and lifestyles. Rice paddies, water buffalo, bamboo houses and bamboo ranges are the iconic images of Vietnam and now appear in front of your eyes. Hoi An city, however, offers a different view: a city once was thriving and prosperous and now is pretty and poetic.
8, Cham Island
Cham Island is an unspoiled island about 18km offshore from Hoi An. The island has amazingly rich biodiversity and is recognized by UNESCO as World biosphere reserve. There are many ways to do cycling on the islands: you can either cycle along the coast and around the island to experience both the seascape and the green forest on the sides, or you can get visit a few fishing village by going deeper into the island.
9, Mekong Delta
The road in Mekong Delta (South of Vietnam) is much more comfortable for cycling than the mountainous parts. But the scenery is just as idyllic with rice paddies expanding to the horizon.There is a particularly dense network of rivers, canals and streams where people have their house, their boats and even markets floating on. Cyclers can experience quaint riverside towns, a dazzling variety of greens and colorful floating fruits on the rivers.
10, Da Lat