I went on a SoTravel Tour! - Ha Giang Loop
helu zesties ✨️
i jUst came back from a vacation in vietnam 🥰 my trip was 9 days 8 nights, 4 days ish was reserved for this tour with soTravel! I'm so glad I went annd I made 2 new friends.
🍵Mini tea 🍵
I went with someone I'm dating 👀
I will be writing about my Hanoi itinerary in another post~ This post will be on the Ha Giang Loop Tour!
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SoTravel has a mobile app where you can see the trip details and message the other people in the group before your trip.
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✨️Here's the Tour breakdown! ✨️
☘️ Night 1
Meet the humans at Bun Cha Ta for dinner.
Proceeded to the hostel to wait for the sleeper bus.
This part was quite funny, so I think the ha giang loop tours in hanoi is allll connected. One person from our hostel gathered us then we went to other hostels to gather other people, like lil chicks. Then we all went to a spot where they picked us up with a mini bus. We were then transferred to our respective sleeper bus.
The sleeper bus then dropped us off at different hostels and we slept there for a few hours before being moved to our actual tours.
Its like so chaotic yet structured LOL which I like about vietnam, so unhinged but it works.
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🫧 Day 2
So someone picked us up from our temporary hostel to I think the tour hq, where we ate breakfast, met our riders and broke into our different tour groups. So Travel is a group on its own. But there were only 4 of us for this tour LOL so we were damn small compared to other groups.
We set off for the tour straight away on the bike annd visited different mountain peaks and waterfalls~ The view was amazing! (It was raining in the morning though but luckily it was just in the morning)
Thier food has been the best vietnamese home cooked dishes we have tried on the trip as well. Lunch and dinner was amazing!
Accoms for this night was an old kampung style place but it was a fun experience! It was really cold at night so we didn't even need a fan.
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💫 Day 3
Visited more peaks, had a boat ride~
Food was great as usual. Hot pot at night! They gave us alcohol every dinner 👀 (40% hard liquor :3 and its in an unassuming plastic water bottle always) but then none of them in my group could drink :/
The accoms was located in Dong van ancient town and it was super lively at night! One of the most comfy accoms we had. My date and I ran off for massage before dinner HAHAH it was like $10 for a 45mins foot massage.
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😵💫 Day 4
Visited a castle and more mountain peaks with different breathtaking views. Had to go back in the evening so we didn't do much :/ The riders left us at 5pm and we waited for the sleeper bus scheduled at 7pm.
Reached hanoi at 2am >< and my flight back to sg was the next dayy.
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Overall its more like 3days 2night.
I paid $369 for this tour and I think it was super worth it!
The views and experience is insane. 🥰
Its for people that are super adventurous and love nature though! Quite sleep deprieving on the sleeper bus nights and earplugs saved my life because hostels can get quite noisy.
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tbh this trip made me reflect on life and how much comfort we get to enjoy in sg. If you saw how people lived there you would be amazed..(and lowkey worried for the children there) they had very little but alot of community spirit. The kids jus roam the road and mountains 🙃
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#hanoivietnam #hagiangloop #travelrecommendation #MyPOV #lemon8review
If you're considering the Ha Giang Loop, here are some tips from my experience that might help enhance your journey. First, pack earplugs and a good sleep mask for the sleeper bus rides and hostel nights—hostels can be noisy and the journey, while scenic, does involve odd sleeping hours. The small group size with SoTravel allowed for a more personal and flexible experience, which I really appreciated. You also get to connect with other travelers before the trip via their app, making it easier to build camaraderie. Food lovers will enjoy the authentic Vietnamese home-cooked meals served throughout the tour—each meal felt like a warm, local treat. Don't miss the chance to try the hot pot dinners; they're perfect after a day of exploring. Besides the incredible mountain peaks and waterfalls, I found the local culture and community life eye-opening, especially noticing the children's carefree spirit despite simple living conditions. It’s a moving reminder of different ways of life and community strength. For accommodations, the traditional kampung-style lodgings may be basic but offer a unique cultural experience and cozy warmth, especially on cold nights. Choosing this tour made me reflect on how comfort in my everyday life contrasts with the vibrant spirit and resilience found here. If you're adventurous and love nature, the Ha Giang Loop with SoTravel is an experience you'll cherish.
Very disappointing experience with SoTravel trip. Poor coordination, slow customer service, weak trip management, and hidden accommodation issues that left us scrambling for a place to stay at 11pm with extra costs. The “tour leader” was just another participant... Definitely not worth the hype or reviews shown online!