Discova Active Highlights: Day Tours in Vietnam
An easy way to grow your responsible travel offering? A selection of slow, immersive active day tours that introduce your travellers to the heart and soul of Asia’s most welcoming destinations. Think gentle-on-nature cycling, hiking, and kayaking.
Our blog series on these day tours moves from Thailand to Vietnam. Your clients can enjoy soft adventure accompanied by local life immersion, and discover parts of Vietnam not many get to see.
Our active day tours in Vietnam include:
- A stunning Sapa trek, meeting the Hmong people
- A cycling tour through bustling Hanoi
- An adventurous exploration of Phong Nha’s cave system
- Two cycling tours in charming Hoi An, both involving some delicious traditional cuisine
Active day tours in Vietnam
A country of charmingly humble and polite people, complimented by breathtaking landscapes and famous cuisine. Vietnam’s stoic but approachable nature is becoming increasingly popular with visitors the world over, especially when it comes to adventure travel.
What we have on offer:
Sapa Full Day Mountain and Terraces Hiking
Sapa is known as one of Vietnam’s most picturesque areas, with good reason. We have a curated full day hiking tour here that will take your travellers along its breathtaking mountains and terraces, with visits to less-traversed spots and a toe-dip in cool mountain waters. The highlight of this tour is a priceless Batik-making lesson with a local master from the Hmong tribe.
Distance: 13 kilometres
Level required: Relatively experienced hiker/challenging route
Best season to go: August to October (harvesting season) & April to May (water pouring season). The dry season is from November to February and is less green.
Hanoi Cycling (Private Morning Tour)
Your travellers will get to know the dynamic and surprising facades of Hanoi on this exciting half-day cycle with snippets into local life and habits. They begin by cycling away from the city’s busy Old Quarter into the countryside. Here, they will reach the Long Bien Bridge, which was designed by Gustave Eiffel at the end of the 19th century. Just like the locals, they will cross the bridge and stop in a unique countryside area in the middle of the capital. Afterwards, they will cycle around the city’s biggest lake, West Lake, stopping for a coffee or fresh drink at one of the lakeside cafes, before passing the famous Ho Chi Minh Complex and returning to the starting point.
Distance: 20 kilometres
Level required: Novice/moderately challenging
Best season to go: All year around, however, note that the rainy season is from roughly July to September
Tu Lan One-day Trekking Tour (Phong Nha)
During this cave adventure, your travellers will discover the unspoiled beauty of the Tu Lan Cave System – once the film set for the Hollywood blockbuster, Kong: Skull Island (2017). The Tu Lan trekking tour involves a hike through two large valleys, Tan Hoa Valley and La Ken Valley, and exploration of the magical geo-formations in the Rat Cave and Little Rat Cave (recently opened for adventure tourism). In-between, your clients can enjoy swimming in a refreshing stream and a picnic lunch.
Distance: 9-kilometre trek, 800-metre cave exploration, 5-metre ladder climbing, 150-metre swimming in underground river
Level required: Novice – basic fitness
Best season to go: November to mid-September. April and May are spring months with cool air. June to August are the warm months of summer and great for those swim breaks.
Hoi An Food Tour by Bike
Vietnam is world-renowned for its fresh, delicious cuisine, and pretty Hoi An is one of the best places to experience it in. Coming in at number 2 of Tripadvisor’s Top 25 Trending Destinations in the World, it’s no surprise how frequently this quaint town is in our client request list.
Our half-day food cycling tour, designed by our partners at Grasshopper Adventures, features some of the region’s most popular meals and treats, quiet alleyways, countryside pathways and select city streets. Hoi An’s friendly residents are mindful of bicycles and our guides will ensure your travellers see every facet of the small city, including inviting local homes.
Distance: 15 kilometres
Level required: Novice
Best season to go: Year round, but the warm (and dry) season between about February and August is most ideal
Bike and Kayak Hoi An
Travellers set off in the morning to explore the iconic Old Hoi An, before crossing the canal bridge and continuing to the new metal bike bridge, connecting Hoi An proper and its southern villages.
Out in the countryside, guests will visit a local family who makes Banh Dap, a traditional breakfast staple, and stop at a local home to learn about the tradition of family chapels (the visit is hosted by a 90-year-old Vietnam-American War veteran who has many an astounding story to tell). From here they’ll meander through the peaceful countryside, enjoying a visit at a traditional mat weaving shop and a family distillery where rice wine has been produced for generations. A delicious homemade lunch of Hoi An specialties will then be served at a local house. Afterwards, your clients switch active modes and kayak along the Thu Bon River, with a stop at one of the little islands to rest before returning to their hotel. Designed by our friends at Grasshopper Adventures.
Distance: 20 kilometres
Level required: Novice
Best season to go: Year round, but the warm (and dry) season between about February and August is most ideal
Interested?
Adapt any of these experiences for your travellers, or design a customised multi-day active itinerary with us.
