LAO CAI – Traveling along Highway 4C from O Quy Ho Pass to Sa Pa town, visitors will see rows of cherry blossom trees in bloom, standing out among the green tea hills.
In the last days of December, when traveling along Highway 4C from O Quy Ho Pass about 7 km from Sa Pa town, visitors will encounter an oolong tea farm. Among the green tea hills are thousands of cherry apricot trees blooming brilliantly in pink.
Normally in the fall, cherry blossoms will lose all their leaves, leaving the spindly branches bare. But when the coldest winds of winter begin to blow around mid-December, the scenery here changes quickly, and the dry branches bloom simultaneously.
Photographer Dao Van Vinh (Vinh Dav), living in Hanoi, came to Sa Pa in the last days of December, when the cherry blossoms are at their most beautiful. Vinh said he had come here many times but each time he had a different feeling.
“The attraction of the tea hills during the flowering season makes me want to be here every year to hunt for the most suitable frames for myself. It can be said that this year is the most beautiful year I have witnessed since the flower blooming season. started blooming since 2017. Just stand in any corner and you can take beautiful photos,” Vinh said.
Cherry blossoms are more beautiful when the sun comes up. In the middle of the winter weather, rows of trees burst into bloom, creating a fairy-tale-like scene. The high angle is the most ideal to see the panoramic view of the pink cherry blossom blending with the green background of the tea hills.
Cherry blossoms are blooming right at the coldest time of winter, so the flower color is even brighter. The ideal weather mixes sunshine, cold air, humidity, and wind speed, creating conditions for visitors to hunt for beautiful moments when flowers and nature harmonize.
Cherry blossoms are a flower with 5 petals like apricot blossoms. The flowers have a light pink-purple color in the first days of budding and become darker in the next stage, so the scenery changes over time.
By the end of the season, the tree will turn orange-yellow like the color of the leaf-changing season when seen from a distance.
Early morning or sunset are the two most beautiful times to take photos of the flower hills. However, visitors should pay attention to timing accordingly. Around 7:00 a.m. – 7:30 p.m., this season there is still a lot of dew on the tea hill and after 5:00 p.m., it starts to get dark.
This area is managed by a Taiwanese tea company. Currently, O Quy Ho ward in conjunction with the company is open for tourists to visit freely, without selling tickets. Visitors can enter the tea hill through the main gate about 500 meters from Highway 4C, then visit the production process and buy oolong tea products, with prices from 150,000 VND (children free).
This is also the time when many tourists come here to take beautiful photos with family and friends.
Mr. Nguyen Hoang Phuong, Chairman of O Quy Ho ward, said that opening the tea hill area for tourists to take photos with cherry blossoms is part of the Winter Festival program of Sa Pa town. Opening time from December 20 to January 2, 2024.
The cherry blossoms in Sa Pa oolong tea hills are at their most beautiful and will fade within the next two weeks. Around the tea hill area, there are a number of homestays for tourists who want to enjoy the scenery in the early morning, priced from 150,000 VND per person per night. However, most tourists will travel from Sa Pa town, with a taxi cost of about 400,000 VND round trip.
($1~24,000 VND)
Photo,Video: Internet (Vinlove.net)