Northern Vietnam

The Ban Gioc waterfalls are 1/2 in Vietnam and 1/2 in China. They are the highlight of most peoples visit to Cao Bang. Though you can easily make a round trip from Cao Bang city spending the night and taking your time to explore the falls, the temple on the hill and nearby caves is worth the effort.

There is a bamboo ferry crossing of the Nho Que river between the Meo Vac area and Bao Lac. You will also be moving from Ha Giang to Cao Bang provinces. The road down is steep and made of red clay. It should not be attempted in the rain or when roads are wet. You can see the video of this river crossing.

The Nho Que river snakes its way along the eastern side of the Ha Giang loop in Meo Vac. Certainly one of the more iconic views of the trip. The boat rides are worth taking. Just the ride down to the river off of the main road can provide some great photo spots. Avoid the boat tour area closes to Meo Vac town. This is… 

Route DT176 from Du Gia towards Mau Due is a great ride. Along the way you will come across the ruins of an old French fortified outpost. 

Angel Eye mountain is a really special spot fairly close to Cao Bang city. There are homestays close by and even a camping operation that you can book online (though if you message them directly it is a bit cheaper). If you choose the glamping stay you may get lucky and see the sun rays stream through the eye just after sunrise. There are two… 

The ride from the Ha Giang or Hoang Su Phi area will take you past some lovely countryside and parts of Tuyen Quang. A nice alternate route to taking DT279 the entire way is to take DT279 to DT188. On DT188 you will pass the  Chiem Hoa Hydropower plant. The dam has created a striking reservoir. Well worth a stop on your way to Ba… 

Tu Le is the first rice growing area you reach when going from Hanoi to Mu Cang Chai. It’s a bit closer to Hanoi so you can get there in one day if you leave early. Most of the rice fields here are flatter and they grow a special sticky rice. The rice harvest tends to be a bit earlier here with 15 September being… 

When you see images of terraced rice fields in Vietnam, most likely it is an image from Mu Cang Chai. Lots of lovely Hmong homestays to add some local life to your images. The best time to visit is harvest time when the summer rains have ended and the rice is a golden yellow. Mid-September to early October is the typical harvest period but can… 

Sa Pa is a very popular tourist destination with trekkers and photographers. It covers quite a large area but for landscape photographers, it is best to stay anywhere but Sa Pa city which is a bit of a tourist trap. There are certainly lovely restaurants and hotels, as well as a large mountain village atmosphere to enjoy in the city center but to really experience…