Detailed 4-day, 3-night Hà Giang Loop itinerary

This plan suits riders with some experience on mountain roads, guests travelling with an easy rider, and groups going by car. If you're unsure about riding yourself, read easy rider or self-drive on the Hà Giang Loop first.

Before day 1: getting ready in Hà Giang city

Most people reach Hà Giang city by night bus or limousine van from Hanoi, about 300 km (see Hanoi to Hà Giang). If you can, spend a night in the city before you start: it gives you time to pick up your bike, test the brakes, and buy a rain jacket, gloves and warm layers.

Three things are easier to do in the city than up on the plateau:

• Get enough cash. Many homestays, eateries and markets take cash only, and ATMs are scarce on the plateau.
• Book your flight for day 1 if you want to fly in Quản Bạ, and note roughly when you'll pass through. Booking is online, no deposit.
• Check the wind forecast on the flying weather forecast page to see whether tomorrow morning looks good.

More about the city, where to eat and sleep, and the Km0 marker: Hà Giang city.

Day 1: Km0 → Quản Bạ Heaven's Gate → paragliding → Yên Minh

Distance: about 45 km up to Quản Bạ, then about 31.4 km on the new road to Yên Minh. About 76 km in total.

Morning: up to Quản Bạ Heaven's Gate

Take your photo at the Km0 marker and set off around 6:00–6:30. Highway 4C starts climbing as soon as you leave the city; the first bends are a good chance to get used to your bike and to mountain roads. Riding non-stop takes about 1 hour 15 minutes to Quản Bạ, but with photo stops allow 1 hour 30 minutes or more.

Around 7:30–8:00 you reach Quản Bạ Heaven's Gate (Cổng trời Quản Bạ). From the viewpoint on the pass you look down on the Tam Sơn valley and the Fairy Twin Mountains (núi đôi Cô Tiên) rising out of the fields. Early mornings often bring a thin mist in the valley that clears as the sun climbs. More about this stop: Quản Bạ Heaven's Gate and the Fairy Twin Mountains.

Mid-morning: flying over the Quản Bạ valley

Our flying site is in Quản Bạ, around Km45 of the Loop, open every day 06:30–18:30. There are two ways to fly:

• Tandem paragliding (PG): you take off on foot from a ridge at about 950 m, fly over the Miện river valley, the Fairy Twin Mountains, corn fields and "cat-ear" limestone peaks, and land on a wide flat field on the valley floor at about 450 m.
• Tandem paramotor (PPG): you take off right from the valley floor next to the Miện river; flights are longer and the pilot has more freedom over where to go.

No experience is needed: the pilot does all the flying, and for a paragliding take-off you just run a few steps when told. Be at the meeting point about 30 minutes before your flight. Directions from the city and the location of both fields: how to get to the Quản Bạ flying site.

After the flight, have lunch in central Quản Bạ. If you have time, visit Nậm Đăm village with its rammed-earth houses, or the Lùng Tám linen-weaving village right next to the landing field — see Lùng Tám linen weaving and beeswax batik. If you'd rather fly at dawn than mid-morning, ride up to Quản Bạ the afternoon before and spend the night there; ideas in where to stay in Quản Bạ.

Afternoon: the new Cán Tỷ – Yên Minh road

From Quản Bạ to Yên Minh we recommend the new Cán Tỷ – Yên Minh road. Follow Highway 4C down the Miện river valley to the Cán Tỷ area, turn onto the inter-commune road through Lao Và Chải, and rejoin Highway 4C about 7–8 km before Yên Minh town. The whole stretch is only about 31.4 km, compared with about 50 km if you stay on Highway 4C all the way.

The road is newly built with an excellent surface, and it runs along the mountainsides with wide views over valleys and villages. The last section is shared with Highway 4C, so you still ride through the Yên Minh pine forest. A few tips:

• Some map apps may not show this road yet. If you're not sure where to turn, ask locals in Cán Tỷ, or ask the flying team before you leave Quản Bạ.
• Fill up and buy water in Quản Bạ; don't count on shops along the way.
• A smooth surface tempts you to speed, but it's still a mountain road: take blind bends slowly.

You'll reach Yên Minh by mid-afternoon, with time to stop in the pine forest, refuel, get more cash and stroll around town. Yên Minh is small and quiet, a good place for an early night before the passes. More in the Yên Minh guide.

How to fit the flight into your itinerary

The flight is the only part of the Loop that depends on the wind, so it's worth planning a little more carefully.

Prices and flight times

Prices include GoPro video (ask your pilot during the flight), insurance, drinking water and free pick-up/drop-off within the Quản Bạ area (Nậm Đăm village, Cán Tỷ, H'Mong Village…). You can add a drone (flycam) or a 360° camera for 400,000 VND (≈ US$ 16) per guest each. Cloud-chasing and sunrise flights are paramotor only. If conditions don't allow a special flight, it becomes a standard flight.

Timing and meeting point

• The exact time is confirmed on the morning of the flight, after the pilots have checked the wind and visibility.
• Morning slots suit day 1 of this itinerary; afternoon and sunset slots suit guests coming back through Quản Bạ on the last day.
• The meeting point is sent by Zalo/WhatsApp when your booking is confirmed. Motorbikes and small cars can drive up to both fields; large coaches park at Long Anh restaurant at the turn-off, and the team drives guests the last 1.5 km.
• Coming by bus, or leaving your bike in the city? The team has a 4-seat car from Hà Giang city to Quản Bạ for 500,000 VND (≈ US$ 20) per car per direction.

Booking and payment

Book on the booking page: no deposit, nothing to pay when you book. You pay at check-in at the flying site, before the flight: cash, bank transfer, card (+3%) or PayPal (+3%). Bad weather means free rescheduling. First-timers and children from 3 years old can fly; guests over 90 kg should tell us in advance, and please tell the team about heart conditions, pregnancy, recent surgery or epilepsy. Package details on the flying site page.

Day 2: Yên Minh → Thẩm Mã → Sà Phìn → Lũng Cú → Đồng Văn

Distance: about 50 km from Yên Minh to Đồng Văn, plus about 45–50 km for the return trip to Lũng Cú.

Morning: Thẩm Mã slope, Sủng Là, the Hmong King's Palace

Leave Yên Minh around 7:30. Riding straight through to Đồng Văn takes only 1.5–2 hours, but almost everyone spends the whole morning on it because there are so many places to stop. First comes the Thẩm Mã slope, then the Chín Khoanh pass, with hairpin after hairpin stacked up the mountainside. Go down slowly in a low gear and give way to trucks on tight bends.

Next is the Sủng Là area, with the Lũng Cẩm cultural village and Pao's House, the rammed-earth home from the film "Pao's Story" (entry about 10,000 VND). Some 7–10 km further is the Vương family mansion, known locally as the Hmong King's Palace (Dinh Vua Mèo), on a mound in the middle of the Sà Phìn valley, about 13–15 km from central Đồng Văn.

Built around 1898–1907, it was the home of Vương Chính Đức and his son Vương Chí Sình, and mixes Chinese (Yunnan), French and Hmong stone-working styles: blue stone, pine wood, yin-yang roof tiles, two rings of stone walls with gun slits, and 64 rooms on two floors. It is a national architectural and artistic relic (1993). Tickets are about 20,000–25,000 VND and may change; allow 45 minutes to an hour. Morning light is best for the gate and the avenue of fir trees in front. The full story: the Hmong King's Palace in Sà Phìn.

Midday: Lũng Cú flag tower

The turn-off to Lũng Cú is on Highway 4C, about 2 km from central Đồng Văn on the Sà Phìn side. From there the road heads north between limestone peaks and villages; the flag tower is about 24–25 km from Đồng Văn, 45 minutes to an hour each way. It's a dead end: you ride up and come back the same way.

The tower stands on top of Dragon Mountain (núi Rồng), flying a 54 m² flag near Vietnam's northernmost point. You walk up the stone steps, then take the spiral staircase inside the tower to the viewing deck, looking down on Lô Lô Chải village, the fields and the ranges towards the border. Take it slowly, bring water, and follow the signs in the border area. Full guide: Lũng Cú.

Evening: the Đồng Văn old quarter

Come back down to Đồng Văn (around Km150 of the Loop) in the late afternoon and check in inside or near the old quarter so you can walk around in the evening. The old quarter is about 1 km long, with some 40 houses of rammed earth, yin-yang tiles and red lanterns; at its heart is the U-shaped stone market hall built by the French in the 1920s.

In the evening there are cafés in old houses and stalls selling cháo ấu tẩu (a bitter-root rice porridge), thắng cố (Hmong horse-meat stew) and grilled skewers around the market. Đồng Văn has no regular weekly night market; some months there is an "old-quarter night" around the full moon, and festival seasons bring evening programmes — this year the 12th Buckwheat Flower Festival opened on the evening of 25 October 2026 in Đồng Văn, with activities running until the end of December. Ask your homestay what's on that evening. More: Đồng Văn old quarter, markets and evenings and the Đồng Văn guide.

Want to fly in Đồng Văn too? Only tandem paragliding is possible here, over the old quarter and the Rocky Plateau, landing in town. There are no fixed daily slots: the team schedules each group in advance according to the wind, so get in touch early. The two sites compared: paragliding in Quản Bạ or Đồng Văn.

Day 3: Đồng Văn → Mã Pí Lèng → Nho Quế boat → Mèo Vạc → Du Già

Distance: about 20 km up to the top of the pass, 15 km down to Mèo Vạc, then about 80 km to Du Già, plus the side road to the boat dock. This is the most beautiful day and also the longest, so start early.

Early morning: the Mã Pí Lèng pass

Leave Đồng Văn around 6:30–7:00. The Mã Pí Lèng pass is about 20 km long and about 1,200 m high, part of the Happiness Road (Highway 4C). Early sun lights up the Tu Sản canyon and the Nho Quế river far below. Stop at the main viewpoint at the top of the pass; only park where the shoulder is wide, never on a bend.

Near the Happiness Road monument and museum starts the Sky Path, a free walking trail along the cliff edge that takes 2–3 hours end to end. It does not go down to the river, so on a 4-day plan you'll usually have to choose between the Sky Path and the boat. Don't walk it in rain or fog. Pass guide: Mã Pí Lèng.

Mid-morning: a boat on the Nho Quế through the Tu Sản canyon

The way down to the dock now starts at Pả Vi:

1. Ride over the pass on Highway 4C towards Mèo Vạc as far as Pả Vi (now part of Mèo Vạc commune).
2. Turn left onto the road to Xín Cái and head downhill to Tràng Hương bridge, below the Nho Quế 1 hydropower dam.
3. Buy your ticket at the booth under the bridge (sign: "Canyon boat trip") and leave your vehicle in the car park next to it. Cars cannot drive down to the dock.
4. An electric shuttle takes you about 2–3 km to the dock; the boat runs about 1–2 km into the Tu Sản canyon, stops for around 15 minutes and comes back. The boat trip takes about an hour.

Tickets are about 150,000 VND (≈ US$ 6) per adult (July 2026), insurance included; life jackets are compulsory from the moment you board. The ticket booth opens roughly 7:00–18:30; try to arrive before about 16:00. From the turn at Pả Vi until you're back on Highway 4C, allow 2–3 hours. The Tà Làng dock (reached from the Tà Làng junction on the pass, on the Đồng Văn side) was no longer taking visitors as of August 2026, so don't follow old maps. The Pả Vi – Tràng Hương road is steep with many bends: check your brakes and use a low gear. After heavy rain the water turns muddy and boats may pause. Full guide: boat trip on the Nho Quế river through the Tu Sản canyon and the Nho Quế river guide.

Midday: Mèo Vạc

From Pả Vi it's a short ride to central Mèo Vạc (around Km185). Have lunch, fill up and get cash here, because there are few shops on the next stretch to Du Già. Mèo Vạc is a highland town going about its everyday life, quieter than Đồng Văn.

If you pass through Mèo Vạc on a Sunday morning, that's Mèo Vạc market day: people start arriving at 4–5 a.m., it's busiest around 6:30–10:00, and you'll find thắng cố, mèn mén (steamed corn meal), cháo ấu tẩu, a row of corn-wine stalls run by women, handmade and machine-made Hmong skirts, and buffalo, cattle, pigs and chickens. How to fit the market in is explained below; a section-by-section guide is in Mèo Vạc Sunday market and the Mèo Vạc guide.

Afternoon: Mèo Vạc → Du Già

Mèo Vạc to Du Già is about 80 km and takes 3–4 hours: about 35 km to Mậu Duệ, then about 44 km into Du Già. The Mậu Duệ – Du Già stretch is narrow with some rough sections — the hardest part of the Loop. Leave Mèo Vạc by about 13:30–14:00 at the latest; days are short at the end of the year (sunset around 17:15–17:30), and you shouldn't ride this section after dark or in heavy rain. If your morning runs long and you can't leave Mèo Vạc before 14:00, staying the night in Mèo Vạc is the safer choice.

Day 4: Du Già → Hà Giang city, or via Lùng Tám – Quản Bạ

Du Già (around Km265) is a quiet rural valley of terraced fields, stilt houses and green hills. Rice here ripens around September and is harvested by mid-October, so late in the year you'll find resting fields under dry, clear skies. On the morning of day 4, walk around the village or go to the Du Già waterfall, about 2 km from the centre; watch out for slippery rocks and don't swim when the water is high. In the village, keep things quiet after about 22:00. See the Du Già guide.

Then you have two ways back.

Option 1: straight back to Hà Giang city

About 70–90 km depending on the route, roughly 3 hours. The road gradually descends and is easier than the way into Du Già, but you'll be tired after three days of riding, so take a break halfway. Leave Du Già around 9:00 and you'll be in the city by early afternoon, in time for a bus back to Hanoi.

Option 2: Du Già → Lùng Tám → Quản Bạ (fly at the end) → Hà Giang city

From Du Già a small mountain road cuts across the middle of the Loop, through Lùng Tám village and out into the Miện river valley at Quản Bạ, about 47.7 km. From Quản Bạ it's another 45 km to the city on Highway 4C, about 93 km in total — not much more than the direct route. The side road is slower than the highway, so leave in the morning and ask your homestay about road conditions first.

Lùng Tám is a Hmong village with a linen-weaving and beeswax-batik cooperative, right next to our landing field. Have lunch in Quản Bạ, fly paragliding or paramotor in the early afternoon, then ride back to the city before dark. If you choose a sunset flight, remember you'll land close to nightfall: stay an extra night in Quản Bạ, or book the team's 4-seat car back to the city rather than riding a motorbike in the dark.

This option is also your back-up plan: you pass through Quản Bạ twice (days 1 and 4). If the wind isn't right on the morning of day 1, the team moves your flight to day 4 free of charge.

Fitting a Sunday market into 4 days

The Đồng Văn and Mèo Vạc markets are both held on Sunday morning, so on one trip you can usually only do one of them properly. Pick your start day according to the market you want:

Don't try to do Mèo Vạc market and then ride Mèo Vạc → Du Già → Hà Giang city in one day: that's about 150–170 km of mountain road and you will certainly end up riding in the dark.

Only 3 days and 2 nights?

You can still fly; just drop the night in Du Già:

• Day 1: Hà Giang city → Quản Bạ (fly in the morning) → new road to Yên Minh.
• Day 2: Yên Minh → Thẩm Mã, Sà Phìn → Lũng Cú → Đồng Văn.
• Day 3: Mã Pí Lèng → Mèo Vạc → Mậu Duệ (about 35 km) → side road to Yên Minh (about 14 km) → new road back to Quản Bạ (about 31.4 km) → Hà Giang city (45 km). From Mèo Vạc to the city alone is about 125 km; add about 35 km over the pass from Đồng Văn and it's about 160 km, so skip the Nho Quế boat if you want to be back before dark. Passing Quản Bạ a second time also gives you another chance to fly if the wind ruled out day 1.

This pace is tighter; watch the wind forecast 2–3 days ahead to choose your start date. Even less time? See the Hà Giang Loop in 2 days and 1 night.

Tips for a 4-day trip

• When to go: October–December is the dry season with clearer skies; buckwheat flowers from about October to early December, peaking from late October into November (see buckwheat flower season). Mornings and evenings on the plateau are cold, often 5–15 °C in November–December and colder in Đồng Văn, so bring a warm jacket. For flying at this time of year, see paragliding and paramotor in Hà Giang in November–December.
• Book rooms ahead in Đồng Văn at weekends, in flower season and during festivals.
• Ride in daylight: avoid mountain passes after about 17:00, especially Mèo Vạc – Du Già.
• Book your flight 1–2 days ahead, saying which day you'll pass through Quản Bạ. No deposit, nothing paid in advance.
• In villages and markets: ask before photographing people, especially the elderly and children; don't hand out sweets or money to children; take your rubbish with you.
• Corn wine: if you try it, just a sip — and don't ride afterwards.

Frequently asked questions

Is 4 days too long for the Hà Giang Loop?

No. You only ride about 3–4 hours a day, leaving the rest for photo stops, meals and rest. It's a good pace for first-timers on mountain roads or anyone riding with an easy rider, and there's room for a flight without rushing.

Should I take the new Cán Tỷ – Yên Minh road?

Yes. From central Quản Bạ to Yên Minh it's only about 31.4 km instead of about 50 km on Highway 4C, the new surface is excellent, the views are beautiful, and the last section still runs through the Yên Minh pine forest. Some map apps may not show it yet, so ask the way in Cán Tỷ.

Should I fly in Quản Bạ or Đồng Văn on this itinerary?

Quản Bạ has both paragliding and paramotor, flies every day 06:30–18:30, and falls on day 1 (and possibly day 4), so it's the easiest to schedule. Đồng Văn has paragliding only, with flights scheduled in advance per group according to the wind; contact the hotline beforehand.

How much does paragliding in Quản Bạ cost?

A standard 9–15 minute tandem paragliding flight is 2,290,000 VND (≈ US$ 91) per guest; a 15-minute paramotor flight is 2,490,000 VND (≈ US$ 99). Prices include GoPro video, insurance and transfers within the Quản Bạ area. Nothing is paid when you book; you pay at check-in at the flying site.

What if the wind is bad on the day I pass through Quản Bạ?

The team lets you know in the morning and reschedules free of charge. On the 4-day plan returning via Lùng Tám – Quản Bạ, you can fly on the last day.

Book a flight: book online — no deposit, free rescheduling in bad weather

Hotline / Zalo / WhatsApp: +84 964 073 555 (Mr. Mỹ) · +84 965 651 300 (Ms. Judy)

Read more: The Hà Giang Loop stop by stop · Flying guide · Flying weather forecast · Before you fly

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