12-Day Ho Chi Minh Trail Motorbike Tour from Hanoi to Saigon

Leave Hanoi along the Red River, passing villages, rice paddies and local markets before turning toward Quan Son Lake for a short off-road ride around the water. From there, join the Ho Chi Minh Trail into Pu Luong Nature Reserve, stopping at waterfalls, jungle streams and Thai ethnic villages along the way. Arrive at Hieu hamlet around 5:30 pm and stay overnight in a traditional stilt house.

Ride a narrow single-track road along the Ma River to Cam Thuy for lunch, then join the Ho Chi Minh Highway south toward Tan Ky in Nghe An province. The road is straightforward with plenty of stops for photos and short conversations with locals along the way. Overnight at a hotel in Tan Ky.

Head center on the Ho Chi Minh road to Pho Chau, where a roadside monument marks the historic starting point of the Trail. Continue riding to Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site with 65 km of caves and underground rivers formed over 400 million years. Arrive and check in at our lodge. if time permits, we take an optional boat ride along the river

Start the day and before heading west on Highway 9 into the Truong Son foothills, passing the Rock Pile and stopping at natural springs near the road. After lunch, continue on the Ho Chi Minh Trail with a stop at Truong Son National Cemetery to pay respects to soldiers who died on the trail during the American War. Next, we visit DMZ site and an underground tunnel used as a shelter during the bloody war years. Arrive in Khe Sanh around 5 pm, a former forward base built by US forces near the Laos border. 

Spend the morning riding around Hue to visit royal tombs for a two hours visit to the former royal throne. Once the visit dine, we carry on and follow the coastal road south over Hai Van Pass with views down to Lang Co beach, then stop at the Marble Mountains outside Da Nang before riding into Hoi An. Free time in the Ancient Town in the evening. 

This is a free day to spend at your own in Hoi An. Walk around the historic town, take a visit to few of it’s old mansions, enjoy a coffee time, take a boat through the Thu Bon river and or get drenched at the nearby beach at An Bang, Hoi An has them all.

Leave Hoi An in the morning for My Son Sanctuary, a UNESCO-listed complex of Cham Hindu temples dating back to the 4th century. From My Son, the road climbs into a steep river valley with waterfalls and unusual rock formations along the Nong Son River. Lunch is in along the road Dong Phu before the final stretch to Kham Duc, a quiet highland town in Phuoc Son district.

Ride north on through a bumpy but rewarding section of the Central Highlands, crossing Lo Xo Pass with stops to meet De and Trieng minority communities living along the Dak Po Ko River. Pass through Dak To and outpost Charlie, two significant Vietnam War battle sites, before arriving in Kon Tum. Visit the French-built Catholic cathedral and a Bahnar village near town if time allows.

Today we will follow a long stretch of dirt trails along the border with Cambodia south through Pleiku, where coffee plantations and Gia Rai stilt houses line the road. The route crosses the Nha Rong Pass and descends into Buon Me Thuot, the provincial capital of Dak Lac and the site of the final major battle of the Vietnam War in March 1975. The local coffee grown in this region is considered the best in Vietnam. 

We have a few stops today before reaching to Dalat, first we take a 45 min ride to visit Dray Nur, a waterfall that follows strongly during the rainy season. Then, take a road 27 to Lak Lake, home to around 31 ethnic groups, known for elephant taming and weaving traditions. After lunch at the lake, the road climbs through dense forest over three passes, Krong No, Chuoi and Phu Son, before dropping into the hill town of Dalat in the late afternoon.

Ride down through pine forest to Cat Tien National Park on a dirt track. Cat Tien is one of the last lowland tropical forests in southern Vietnam. The park was heavily sprayed with Agent Orange during the war and large sections are still covered in bamboo and grassland as a result. Explore the park on foot or by boat in the afternoon.

The final ride into Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) on a relatively short but busy day as traffic builds approaching the city. We ride to the central train station where the tour officially ends. I can recommend places to stay (Or tell me ahead and i book them for you), and eat in Saigon if needed. Thanks for joining the 12 day ride from Hanoi to Saigon via Ho Chi Minh Trail