Ha Giang Loop - Day 1

After we did the Bolaven Plateau Motorbike Loop in Laos in 2020, we loved it so much that when we heard about another (and more extreme) motorbike loop in Vietnam, we knew we had to do it. The Ha Giang Loop is a 350-400km loop that starts and ends in Ha Giang in Northern Vietnam. A large section of it (185km) runs along Happiness Road, which is a road that was constructed by 1,000+ young volunteers from the 16 ethnic groups in Northern Vietnam, to connect the remote northern districts with Ha Giang (and therefore the rest of the country).

We rugged up and picked up our bike, setting off from Ha Giang around 9.30am. The police in Ha Giang are notorious for "fining" tourists extortionate amounts of money (e.g. 2 million dong, or NZ$133 of bribe money) for having no motorbike drivers license or international driver permit, so we left the rental company with two easy riders. They dropped us past the first permanent police check point just outside the city to avoid being fined within the first 30min of the loop, and then we were off! The drive was spectacular from the start - as soon as we left Ha Giang city, we were driving through windy roads mountain passes and up in the clouds.

About an hour in, we were pulled over at another police checkpoint. We were prepared to pay the "fine" (as Mike has a motorbike license and an IDP, but our IDP version isn't recognized in Vietnam), but the police seemed happy with us and let us go. We were very glad and didn't see anymore police that day.

We spent the next 5 hours driving through some of the most spectacular mountain passes and picturesque villages we've ever seen. The weather, although still freezing cold, held out for us all day, encountering only some fog at the top of some of the passes, and at the famous Heavens Gate viewpoint, which meant we didn't get to see it at all (fairly common in winter).

We arrived in Yen Minh around 2.30pm and checked into our lovely little guesthouse (Tom Homestay), where we were given hot water bottles to keep us warm and played pool until our family dinner. A great first day on the loop!Read more