Going Alone: Explore the Ha Giang Loop by bike
🏍️ Discover the thrill of biking through Vietnam’s stunning landscapes and find freedom, nature and adventure
You can choose to do the loop with a tour group offered through out Ha Giang or by yourself. This was my experience of doing the loop by myself.
Day 1
Ha Giang to Dong Van – 8am to 2pm without any major breaks (6 hours)
I stayed at Ha Giang Odyssey hostel and rented my bike from them with insurance semi automatic for 250,000 VND per day. (£7) Once out of Ha Giang, the roads are quiet and beautiful. There are small villages and hairpin bends. There was fine rain on a few occasions and I used my plastic waterproof I bought at the convenience store. I only saw one other biking group on this section. There is at least 2 other decent sized towns you pass through at around 3 – 4 hours in case of any unexpected weather or problems where you can stay overnight or buy essentials.
Dong Van is lovely. It has everything from pubs, pizza, massages, wine and ATMs. Arriving in the afternoon allows you to enjoy these things. My hotel was very comfortable with AC, fan , kettle, hairdryer and hot water shower. I stayed at Ancient Town 29. It was just less than £10 / night. I didn’t make the booking for the hotel until I was 2 hours or less away to be flexible in case of heavy rain. Also my tourist SIM card with Viettel worked perfectly throughout the whole trip with good internet connection everywhere
Day 2 Part 1 Dong Van to Lung Cu Flagpole Detour
7am – 10am
This took about 3 hours including parking at the flagpole and climbing the steps to it. I left early and the roads were very quiet and incredibly scenic and well maintained . They are perfect roads for biking and worth the detour.
By 10 I was back in Dong Van for breakfast
Day 2 Part 2 Dong Van to Bao Lac
11am – 3pm
This was the most stunning scenery of the entire trip through Meo Vac which you enter very soon after leaving Dong Van. I wanted to stay here at Xua Vu Homestay due to its beautiful views but I passed through too early in the day and decided to continue. There were many more bike tours in this section. I stayed in Bao Lac which is about 40 mins off the loop. It’s a more local town than Dong Van and less aimed at tourists. I stayed at Vietnam Hoang Hotel with good views of the river keeping to an approximate £10 per night budget. Again it had kettle, AC and fan and I slept well.
Day 3 Bao Lac to Ha Giang
8am – 2pm including coffee stops
This was a more leisurely 4.5 hours and I took it easy at Ben coffee which I passed on the main road. It follows the river and so was much flatter than the previous 2 days. It had its challenges though with more damage to the roads next to the powerful Gam river. There were 2 or 3 areas in mid reconstruction meaning short sections of thick mud and work machinery.
Getting there
From Hanoi you can use 12go.asia to organise travel. Also many hostels and tour agencies can organise your bus ticket. I used Bang Phan Bus. They provide a nice sleeper cabin for the 6-7 hour journey. They communicated well on what’s app, gave me the bus registration plate and on the return journey offered to pick me up at Ha Giang Odyssey hostel where I stayed.
Bike Rental, licences and training
Bikes and Licences
I rented a 110cc semiautomatic Honda Blade for 250,000 VND (£7/ day). You definitely need an international drivers licence with police fines in the millions VND or £100 to £200. The police will check both your main licence and your international drivers licence if you are not part of a local tour. The best thing to do is to choose a hostel or company with a good reputation for renting bikes. They almost all use what’s app. Send them a picture of your licences and they will tell you before hand if what you have is suitable. It’s not always obvious, for example, a Spanish family were told on arriving in Ha Giang that there was a problem with the International Driver’s Licemce agreement between Spain and Vietnam so they could not do the trip alone and had to join a tour. Be aware that you will 100% definitely have traffic stops and your licences checked several times over. The police were reasonable and friendly.
Driving Instruction and Practice
Having only ever ridden automatic bikes, I went to Chicks n Bikes in Hanoi for a 2 hour private lesson on a semi automatic.It was really good. We basically practiced changing gears around a deserted car park . The instruction was really good and taught me a lot and gave me confidence. The lesson cost about ÂŁ22 plus a tip for the instructor. Also when I arrived in Hagiang I rented the bike and drove around the local area to make sure I was comfortable.
Other Information
The use of the horn makes a good driver in Vietnam. One blast means “Hey I’m here” , two blasts means “I’m overtaking” and the big loud long blast means a truck or bus is coming so move out of the way. It’s a good idea to give a beep of the horn on corners and when passing any person or vehicle.
Use Agoda to book hotels on the loop as they have a bigger range of options. Most hotels have ac , fan , kettle and are generally good.
Things to take: a waterprrof plastic mac, sun cream, there were very few insects in June but took spray, towels were provided in the hotels, phone charger