Lao Cai (VNA) – Among the crowds of visitors in Sa Pa district inthe northern mountainous province of Lao Cai in the early days of 2018, manychose to stay at the homes of local ethnic minority people to experience the uniqueculture first-hand.

Homestay services in Ta Van, Lao Chai and Ta Phin have recently been packedwith domestic and foreign holidaymakers who love to learn about the daily lifeof local residents through eating, living and working with them.

Located in Muong Hoa valley, at the foot of Hoang Lien Son mountain range, TaVan commune impresses tourists at first sight by spectacular natural scenerywith terrace fields, high mountains, and traditional houses.

Patrick O’Regan from New Zealand shared that he knows Sa Pa through his friendswho traveled there and had a lot of compliments on the nature as well as theunique culture of Vietnam.

That was the reason why he and his family chose a homestay tour in a rural areain Sa Pa to explore the local culture and customs, he said.

Dev Dervesh, a tourist from India, said he enjoyed very much the stay at The LittleH’Mong House at Ta Van’s Giang Ta Chai Mong village. He planned to stay longerin Sa Pa during his trip to Vietnam. Bui Thi Oanh, owner of The Little H’Mong House, said hertraditional wood house, which can accommodate 30 guests, was filled during thefirst several days of 2018.

Several companies have invested in facilities after thehomestay model with a modern note. Director of Vietdiscovery Co., Ltd. Do TrongNguyen said the company’s La Dao Spa Ta Van facility offers homestay servicesplus several extra treats such as herbal bath of Dao people and traditionaldishes of Mong and Giay ethnic people.

Le Manh Hao, Vice Chairman of the Sa Pa People’s Committee, said the districtis home to nearly 500 accommodations with 6,000 rooms, including 154 homestayfacilities in Ta Van, Lao Chai, Hau Thao, Nam Sai, Ta Phin, Ban Ho, Thanh Phuand Thanh Kim communes with 2,800 beds.

The district is focusing on community-based tourism development to increaseincomes for locals and preserve traditional cultural values, he added.

Located 350km northwest of Hanoi capital city, Sa Pa is 1,600m high above sealevel, with the average temperature of 15-18°C. The whole town is dominated bythe Hoang Lien Son mountain range which is famous with the Indochina’s highestmountain of Fansipan at a height of 3,142 m above sea level. 

Discovered in 1903 by the French, Sa Pa has many natural scenic sites such asHam Rong Mountain, Thac Bac (Silver Waterfall), Cau May (Rattan Bridge), BambooForest and Ta Phin Cave. The hill town is home to six main ethnic minoritygroups, including Kinh, Hmong, Dao, Tay, Day and Xa Pho with various traditionalfestivals and unique cultural practices, especially the Bac Ha market and Sa Palove market.

🏅 The resort town of Sa Pa was recognised as a national tourism site in December2017.-VNA