Sapa Vietnam, the district of Lao Cai Province, is a quiet and modest area nestled in high mountains and drifting clouds, surrounded by magnificent natural beauty.
From April 15 to 20 the 'In the Clouds' festival will brighten up this region with colorful national costumes of the ethnic groups living in Sapa, including Mong, Dao, Tay and Xa Pho, Giay.
During these festivities tourists in Sapa will feel like time is standing still in the mountains, wrapped in the drifting clouds with music from natural instruments such as bamboo, leaves and dry gourd and the jubilant atmosphere of the “Love Market.”
The event also has exciting activities such as a display of cultural daily life, customs and traditional festivities of the ethnic people, folk music performances and a chance to sample the local food.
Visitors will discover the beautiful flowers of Sapa, learn about local wedding customs, see handicrafts such as fabric waving and silver carving and may participate in folk games and sports.
Saigontourist offers a tour to Sapa which includes the festival. Starting from Ho Chi Minh City, tourists will fly to Hanoi to visit well-known destinations such as Quan Thanh Temple, Hoan Kiem Lake and West Lake, Tran Quoc Pagoda and Ngoc Son Temple, and from Hanoi travel by bus to Sapa Vietnam to join the festival and the ‘Food Culture in the Village’ fair, with specialties from eleven ethnic groups in the highlands.
At night is the not-to-be-missed ‘Love Market’, one of the special cultural features of Sapa.
The tour also gives tourists a chance to conquer Ham Rong mountain, enjoying 200 species of Sapa flowers and the plants of Hoang Lien Son mountain range, and to visit the Ta Phin ethnic village to explore the culture of the Red Dao people and shop at the boundary market.
This is a three-day-and-four night tour by airplane, priced between VND2mil and VND3,262,000 (not including the airfare).
(Source: SGT)
Hotels in Sapa: http://www.activetravelshop.com/?name=product&op=listProducts&subcat=SapaHotels
Sapa trekking tours: http://www.activetravelvietnam.com/tour.php?op=listByCategoryId&catId=9
Fansipan trekking tours: http://www.trekfansipan.com
