9 Day Northeast Vietnam Motorbike Tour – Lang Son, Cao Bang, Ha Giang & Yen Bai

The ride heads northeast from Hanoi through Thai Nguyen, where traffic drops off quickly once the city is behind you. The road runs through limestone hills and farming communities before descending into Bac Son valley. The valley sits between mountains rising 500 to 1,200 meters, with rice fields spread flat across the floor. It’s a solid first day on good roads, a clean introduction to the northeast.

The route continues northeast to Lang Son before climbing to Mau Son, a French-era hill station at over 1,500 meters. The summit road winds through cloud forest with views north into China on clear days. The original colonial buildings were damaged in the 1979 war and have since been rebuilt in a traditional style. The group drops back down to Lang Son for the night.

The road northwest from Lang Son passes through Dong Khe and That Khe before reaching Quang Uyen in Cao Bang province. It’s a rougher stretch than the previous days but moves through rice terraces and small villages with very little traffic. Quang Uyen sits in a mountain cirque and is a good base before the Ban Gioc run the following morning.

Ban Gioc sits on the China border and is one of the widest waterfalls in Southeast Asia, spanning 300 meters with a 53-meter vertical drop across three tiered levels. The natural pool at the base is worth a stop. The ride continues south over Ma Phuc Pass, which has open views across the Cao Bang valley, before arriving in Cao Bang town.

Heading north and west out of Cao Bang, the road climbs steadily into higher country. Villages get smaller and more remote as the route approaches the upper reaches of the province. Bao Lac is a quiet market town close to the Ha Giang border, a low-key stop before the Ma Pi Leng section the following day.

This is the standout day of the tour. The road crosses the Dong Van Karst Plateau and climbs Ma Pi Leng Pass, which sits at around 1,600 meters above the Nho Que River gorge with 20 kilometers of tight corners and exposed cliff edges. Dong Van is a well-preserved H’mong market town with clay-brick houses and tiled roofs, some dating back several hundred years.

The day starts with a 40-kilometer ride to Lung Cu, Vietnam’s northernmost point, marked by a flagpole on a rocky summit. The route back passes the Vuong Family Residence in Sa Phin, a H’mong chieftain’s house built entirely from wood and stone in a Chinese architectural style. The road south through Yen Minh and Quan Ba has long views across the karst landscape before dropping into Ha Giang city.

The ride south follows the main road from Ha Giang through river valleys and forested hills toward Yen Bai. Thac Ba Lake in Vu Linh has around 1,300 islands and is one of the largest reservoirs in Vietnam. The group stays in Tay ethnic homestays on the water, with Tay food and local rice wine in the evening.

The last day follows Highway 2 southeast to Viet Tri before picking up the Red River road back to Hanoi. The final stretch runs along the riverbank through the flat delta landscape, a calm close to nine days in the mountains. The group arrives in Hanoi before the evening rush. That wraps the northeast Vietnam motorbike tour — thanks for riding with IRTouring and Hamid.