Grand Ho Chi Minh Trail Motorbike Tour – 15 Days

Day 1: Hanoi motorbike tour to Mai Chau: 190 km.

Start this amazing Ho Chi Minh trail motorbike tour with an enjoyable ride to beautiful Mai Chau valley.  At 8:00 am, Our tour guide and driver will take you by bus to the outskirt of Hanoi, from here we get the bikes & gears and start the motorbike ride to Mai Chau. So just after 30 minutes riding , we will be in the countryside of Hanoi we the ride will on backroad or offroad crossing some rice fields…before heading up to mountains…After lunch in An Lac (Hoa Binh province) We will ride through endless limestone karst scenery (known as Halong bay on land), the extensive farming lands comprising a sea of paddy fields split by tree-lined roads. We can also have another offroad motorbike tour near Mai Chau valley. Arrive in Mai Chau in late afternoon. Here we stay overnight with the White Thai minority in a traditional stilt house. The local women here are famous for cooking and dancing so in the evening, after feasting, we can enjoy a cultural show of Thai dancing and a range of special local liquors. Overnight in Mai Chau – home stay.

Day 2: Mai Chau – Tan Ky: 240 Km

After enjoying breakfast in the peaceful village of Mai Chau, Start the ride at around 8:30 am, we will start the day with an easy offroad motorbike ride through the valley of Mai Chau crossing some rice paddies and villages of teh Thai poeple then we will keep riding on a small, spectacular and paved trail along the Ma river until Cam Thuy town where we stop for lunch. Hit the historical Ho Chi Minh trail and then the Ho Chi Minh trail motorbike tour really starts…just enjoy it and stay all the way to Tan Ky town where we spend the night in a hotel.
Tan Ky is a very small town located in two sides of the Ho Chi Minh road, with some thousands of people this is good chance to experience the daily life of people in remote area.
Overnight in Tan Ky – Hotel

Day 3: Tan Ky – Phong Nha: 280 Km

After breakfast with Banh My and Cafe served by local restaurant, We continue the Vietnam motorbike tour on Ho Chi Minh trail to Phong Nha – Ke Bang, one of the most beautiful national parks in Vietnam in which you can see the biggest and also the most beautiful caves in Vietnam and Indochina and is now a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site. The karst formation of Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park has evolved since the Paleozoic (some 400 million years ago) and so is the oldest major karst area in Asia. Subject to massive tectonic changes, the park’s karst landscape is extremely complex with many geographic features of considerable significance. The vast area, extending to the border of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, contains spectacular formations including 65 km of caves and underground rivers. The motorbike ride nearby the national park in the afternoon must be one of the best part of this motorbike tour in Vietnam.

If time permits, we can spend a 2 hour boat trip to one of the biggest cave in the National part, Phong Nha cave.

Diner and overnight in Phong Nha – Hotel

Day 4: Phong Nha – Khe Sanh: 220 Km.

From Phong Nha, the Ho Chi Minh Trail is divided into 2 branches one in the eastern side and another one is in the western side. Motorbike Tour Expert recommend to ride on the western Ho Chi Minh trail. The trail goes through the National park of Phong Nha – Ke Bang, in more than 200 km, you will just see few other motorbikes but a lot of beautiful and beautiful mountain view. Especially, we will get chance to visit the former US Marine Base with tunnels, Air base and a interesting museum in Khe Sanh. The scenery and the stories about the Vietnam history today can make this day become the best day of all our Vietnam motorbike tours.
This motorcycle ride is surely the highlight of this 15 day motorcycle tour Ho Chi Minh trail.
Diner and overnight in Khe Sanh – Hotel

Ho Chi Minh trail Motorcycle Tour

Day 5: Khe Sanh – Vinh Moc tunnel – Hue: 190 Km.

The Ho Chi Minh trail motorbike tour to Hue today is quite long with a lot of activities, it’s mostly smooth ride from the west to the east of Vietnam via the DMZ. After breakfast, we will ride along the 17th parallel – the former border between the north and south of Vietnam. We will do some stops to visit the famous historical vestiges such as Hien Luong Bridge. Vinh Moc tunnel…
After lunch we will have a joyful ride along the coastal roads down to beautiful city of Hue.
Arrive Hue at about 4.30 PM.

Dinner and overnight in Hue – Hotel.

Vinh Moc (Vịnh Mốc) is a tunnel complex in Quang Tri, Vietnam. During the Vietnam War it was strategically located on the border of North Vietnam and South Vietnam. The tunnels were built to shelter people from the intense bombing of Son Trung and Son Ha communes in Vinh Linh county of Quang Tri Province in the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone. The American forces believed the villagers of Vinh Moc were supplying food and armaments to the North Vietnemese garrison on the island of Con Co which was in turn hindering the American bombers on their way to bomb Hanoi. The idea was to force the villagers of Vinh Moc to leave the area but as is typical in Vietnam there was nowhere else to go. The villagers initially dug the tunnels to move their village 10 metres underground but the American forces designed bombs that burrowed down 10 metres. Eventually against these odds, the villagers moved the village to a depth of 30 metres. It was constructed in several stages beginning in 1966 and used until early 1972. The complex grew to include wells, kitchens, rooms for each family and spaces for healthcare. Around 60 families lived in the tunnels; as many as 17 children were born inside the tunnels

Day 6: Hue – Hoi An: 160Km.

After breakfast, we have chance to discover the famous citadel of Hue and some other attractions before getting on the bikes and continue this great Vietnam motorcycle tour to Da Nang, we will get out of of busy center of Hue after 20 minutes ride and then we will enjoy a an easy backroad and offroad motorbike tour through some fishing villages nearby the coastal roads down to Da Nang, After lunch, we will head up the Hai Van Pass (Cloudy Pass) before getting to the World Heritage site of Hoi An, a major trading centre in SE Asia in the 16th and 17th centuries. The ride today is short but it offers amazing view of coastal roads.

Dinner and overnight in Hoi An – Hotel

Day 7: Relaxing in Hoi An.

Hoi An, also known as Faifo in western countries, is a city of Vietnam, on the coast of the South China Sea in the South Central Coast of Vietnam. It is located in Quang Nam province and is home to approximately 120,000 inhabitants. It is recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Hoi An Ancient Town is an exceptionally well-preserved example of a South-East Asian trading port dating from the 15th to the 19th century. Its buildings and its street plan reflect the influences, both indigenous and foreign, that have combined to produce this unique heritage site. A full day to walk around the ancient town of Hoi An or do a motorbike ride around countryside Hoi An would be great. After some long day ride, a relaxing day in Hoi An is necessary to make this Vietnam motorbike tour more interesting.

The city possessed the largest harbour in Southeast Asia in the 1st century and was known as Lâm Ấp Phố (Champa City). Between the seventh and 10th centuries, the Cham people controlled the strategic spice trade and with this came tremendous wealth. The former harbour town of the Cham at the estuary of the Thu Bồn River was an important Vietnamese trading centre in the 16th and 17th centuries, where Chinese from various provinces as well as Japanese, Dutch and Indians settled. During this period of the China trade, the town was called Hai Pho (Town on Seaside) in Vietnamese. Originally, Hai Pho was a divided town with the Japanese settlement across the “Japanese Bridge” (16th-17th century). The bridge (Chùa cầu) is a unique covered structure built by the Japanese, the only known covered bridge with a Buddhist pagoda attached to one side

Or we can take it easier by spending time on Cua Dai beach – the quiet beach with white sand and bright green water or get free time in town for some shopping or massage…

Diner and overnight in town – Hotel

Day 8: Hoi An – Kon Tum (Central Highland) :  290 Km

Say good bye to the lovely town to get back to the nature. We will rejoin the Ho Chi Minh Trail at Phuoc Son (also known as Kham Duc). From there we head up the towering Lo So Pass, passing through remote areas thinly populated by peoples of the Ba Na ethnicity. Edging close to the border with Laos, where a number of Trail arteries crossed over in Laos, we continue on to Kon Tum. It’s a quite long ride but it must be another highlight of this Ho Chi Minh trail motorbike tour because the scenery is beautiful and different from the things we saw on the days before and the stories about local culture of ethnic people here is interesting.

Dinner and overnight in Kon Tum – Hotel

Day 9: Kon Tum – Buon Ma Thuot – 240 Km

In the morning, we head south through the Central Highlands, passing Pleiku and the Ia Drang valley battlefield, before continuing this Vietnam motorcycle tour to Buon Ma Thuot (also known as Buon Me Thuot), the city where northern forces launched their final assault on the then Saigon. Buon Ma Thuot produces most and best coffee products in Vietnam and we can have a fun offroad motorcycle tour through some large coffee farm today which offers a lot of visits to the local coffee farms to learn how to make cafe and you’ll chance to taste the real and best coffee in Vietnam.

Overnight in Buon Ma Thuot – Home stay

Day 10: Buon Ma Thuot –  Nha Trang -190 Km

Today is another great highlight of this Ho Chi Minh trail Motorbike Tour Vietnam, The ride is a mixture on and offroad and some coastlines. We take an easy drive back down off the Tay Son highlands towards the coast, arriving at Highway 1 some 30 km north of Nha Trang. Taking motorbike ride on this scenic coastal stretch past turquoise waters and scarlet fishing boats, we arrive in the bright lights of Nha Trang and its relaxing holiday options. Arrive Nha Trang at around 4:00 pm. Leave the bikes in the hotel and it’s time to enjoy one of the best beaches in Vietnam.

Overnight in Nha Trang – Hotel

Day 11: Relaxing in Nha Trang

Today could be the most enjoyable day if this 15 day Vietnam motorbike tour, we will have full free day in this amazing city. One day is not enough to do all the things in Nha Trang but so we can choose to swim at the beach or gathering for a seafood feast or you can also take a island tour to some beautiful islands with some quiet beaches. The guide team of Vietnam Motorbike Tours Expert will be always with you all the day to do everything you want but we think the best is taking it easy at the beach or see around the city to save energy for the rest of this Ho Chi Minh trail motorbike tour.

Day 12: Nha Trang  –  Da Lat – 170 Km

This motorbike tour from Nha Trang offers you some footages of the famous 2008 BBC’s Top Gear Vietnam Special show. This motorcycle ride is one of the best motorbike tour on the mountain area of this Central Highland Vietnam, It offer some beautiful ride on the coastlines. We can also do some fun offroad motorcycle rides near Da Lat. It’s another highlight of this Vietnam motorcycle tour.
Overnight in Da Lat – Hotel

Day 13: Short Motorbike Touring around Da Lat – 50 km. 

Da Lat is known as “The City of Love” and is a favorite holiday resort for Vietnamese. This cool and romantic land is found by the French during the Indochina wartime. With evergreen forests, waterfalls, beautiful lakes, the country’s best flower gardens, and delicious fresh produce, Da Lat has always provided a welcome respite from the heat of the lowlands. We can spend the day visiting the highlights of Da Lat – its gardens, cathedral, waterfalls, market, Valley of Love, convent, university, train station and key pagodas. Or we can take a motorbike ride  to the quiet and remote areas nearby Da Lat town, there are plenty of scenic off the beaten tracks around Da Lat to some villages of the hill tribe, to the green farms of the local or through palm forest so it must be a great offroad motorbike tour to discover the hidden beauty of this area.

Overnight in Da Lat for the second night.

Day 14: Da Lat – Cat Tien National Park : 190 Km

Hit the road No 20, we will have great motorcycle trip to Cat Tien National Park. This forest area used to be the head quarter of Vietnamese army during the war. The park suffered historically during the Vietnam War when it was extensively sprayed with herbicides like the defoliant Agent Orange. In some region nowadays trees/plantations have not yet grown back.

Stay in Cat Tien National Park – Guest house

Day 15: Cat Tien  –  Saigon : 160 Km

This motorbike ride to Sai Gon is short but could be a big day as traffic is very busy when we enter Saigon ( or Ho Chi Minh City). We ride straight to the train station where we end the Grand Ho Chi Minh Trail Motorbike Tour. Say good bye to the local guides of Vietnam Motorbike Tour Expert and then take your time to have rest in in the city.