YEN BAI – Rice on terraced fields in Tu Le and Mu Cang Chai is starting to ripen, visitors should plan to visit in the next two weeks.
The journey starts from Nghia Lo town, 220 km from Hanoi. This is often a transit point to many tourist destinations of Yen Bai such as Mu Cang Chai, Tu Le, Tram Tau, and Van Chan. Tourists should depart the previous afternoon in Hanoi and stay overnight in Nghia Lo. This is where there are many accommodations and food services.
The itinerary was referenced from a travel and experience company by Mr. Nhat Quang (Hanoi) during his trip in early September.
Day 1
Morning and noon
You can have breakfast at Nghia Lo or on the road. Suggested dishes include black chung cake, five-color sticky rice, and ant egg sticky rice.
The journey to visit terraced fields from Nghia Lo through Tu Le and then to Mu Cang Chai, a total distance of nearly 90 km. The road surface is beautiful but has many slopes and zigzags, visitors should be careful when driving.
Mr. Nhat Quang suggests booking a room for the night in Tu Le commune, about 50 km from Nghia Lo because there are many hotels and homestays here, quiet, not crowded like in the center of Mu Cang Chai.
“Muong Hoa Hotel costs 500,000 VND per night for two people, quite clean and has all the necessary equipment, located right on the main road. If you go in a large group, you can go into the village, like Lim Thai, to stay. community house,” Mr. Quang said. There are many similar hotels around the area where you live.
After checking in, you move to Mu Cang Chai, about 35 km from Tu Le, passing Khau Pha pass, one of the “Four Great Passes” of Vietnam along with Ma Pi Leng (Ha Giang), O Quy Ho (Lai Chau – Lao Cai) and Pha Din (Dien Bien). From here, you can admire the beautiful scenery of Lim Mong village. The top of the pass is a check-in and photo-taking spot that cannot be missed.
During September and October, every weekend there will be a paragliding activity “Flying over the golden season”. Flying with a parachute from Khau Pha peak to watch the golden season is one of the experiences to try in Mu Cang Chai during the ripe rice season. Each flight lasts 10-15 minutes, with or without a companion, with full equipment. Even if you’ve never flown, you won’t have any trouble.
Be sure to register in advance for this service because each day, only about 20 to 50 guests will be served. In addition, whether you can fly or not depends on the weather. Paragliding prices range from 2.2 million to 2.6 million VND per person, depending on weekdays or weekends.
After that, visitors can have lunch at the top of Khau Pha pass.
“Right at the top of the pass, there is a small restaurant serving ethnic dishes. Grilled buffalo meat rolled in cabbage leaves, wild vegetables served with dipping sauce mixed with the local recipe is a dish you should try,” Mr. Quang said. said. A piece of grilled buffalo meat enough for two people costs 180,000 VND, a package of black sticky rice costs 50,000 VND.
Afternoon
The entire afternoon is time spent visiting Mu Cang Chai’s famous rice season destinations. Even if you just stop along the road, you can take countless beautiful photos. But according to the experience of many tourists, rent a motorbike to go deep into the area with the most beautiful terraced fields. “Many roads are quite steep and small, so you need a strong driver, or hire a local person to drive you,” Mr. Quang said.
The three communes of La Pan Tan, Che Cu Nha, and De Xu Phinh are places not to be missed. These are places that have been ranked as special national monuments. Horseshoe Hill, Raspberry Hill… are names that are often mentioned. At the end of the year, you can also come here to admire the buckwheat flower fields.
If you have time, visit Mo waterfall in Mo De commune of Mu Cang Chai district. The waterfall impresses with its clear water, white foam, and brightly blooming forest flowers, creating an impressive scene.
Shopping at Mu Cang Chai market then return to Tu Le for dinner and overnight.
Day 2
Morning and noon
Wake up early and walk among the rice fields in Tu Le to enjoy the fresh air and the faint scent of rice. The morning is cool, only about 25 degrees Celsius. Remember to bring a thin jacket. If you actively spend a lot of leisurely time in the morning, you should choose to cycle to Thai village, at the foot of Khau Pha pass on the Tu Le side.
Thai village leans against the mountains, has poetic natural landscapes with stilt houses, and easy-to-travel roads. Interwoven are green and yellow terraced fields. If you have time to go deeper, you will reach Lim Mong village.
Near noon, return to the commune center and learn how people make the famous Tu Le green rice grains. Along the road and in the village, you can see activities of harvesting rice, threshing rice, and roasting green rice. Tu Le green rice has hard grains, not as soft as green rice in Hanoi, but fragrant. In addition, if you know how to preserve and process (sprinkling water), you can turn Tu Le green rice into delicious dishes.
Lunch at roadside restaurants with grilled chicken, grilled buffalo meat, and Tu Le sticky rice. A meal for two people ranges from 300,000 to 400,000 VND.
A step in making Tu Le green rice. Photo: Nhat Quang
Rice produces green rice grains in Tu Le. Photo: Nhat Quang
Afternoon
After more than a day of traveling and lots of activities, relax by bathing in the natural hot springs at Le Champ Tu Le. This is an accommodation, hot mineral bath and entertainment area right in the center of the commune. Overnight stays will be free of charge, otherwise, tickets will have to be purchased. The package ticket price is 700,000 VND. If buying individual tickets, prices range from 200,000 VND to 500,000 VND.
The natural hot mineral area has water flowing directly from the hot spring near the resort. There is one large tank and many small tanks here. If you like thrilling and highly challenging games, you should go to the Adventure Camp entertainment area with a series of exciting games such as zorbing (climbing into an inflated transparent ball, then rolling down the hill), high rope, mountain climbing, especially the longest zipline in Vietnam, more than 1 km.
You can have dinner at Le Champ before returning to the city. The menu is popular Vietnamese dishes, priced from 200,000 VND to 400,000 VND per person.
($1=24,000 VND)
Photo,Video: Internet (Vinlove.net)