Travelling with Tribal Tracks is a wonderful experience. They take care of everything and you don't have to worry about anything!
Gordon G
Location
Difficulty
Accommodation and Meals
Village Homestay, Hotel, Lodge
Duration
12 days
Meeting Point
Hanoi
Annual Leave
8 days
Group Size
Up to 20
Seasons
March, April and September to November
Walking Distance
55km
Meet Charlie, a director of, and one of the co-founders of Tribal Tracks.
Trek through a marvellous, unspoilt region, viewing pristine rice paddies and terraces, tropical rainforest and steep green mountains.
Learn about the local communities, their customs and way of life by staying in village homestays.
Discover different elements of the history of the Vietnam War
All the info you need
Trip Details
This is a beautiful (sometimes challenging) trek in Pu Luong where beautiful views are plentiful: tropical rainforests, paddy fields, remote village communities...experiences that will stay with you for a lifetime. The trek phase of this itinerary is fully portered, village-to-village. You will stay in locally owned guesthouses/homestays throughout. This is more than just a trek, though.
Bookending the trek, we'll also explore the bustling cities of Hanoi, Hue and Ho Chi Minh, with a particular focus on sites with military history. In Hanoi we'll visit sites like the Hoa Lo Prison and B-52 Lake. In Ho Chi Minh, we'll visit the Cu Chi tunnels which were used by Viet Cong soldiers as hiding spots during combat in Ho Chi Minh.
Trip Details
You will either meet your leader in the airport in the UK or on arrival in Hanoi. The flight to Vietnam is usually overnight, so you will depart the previous day.
Accommodation and Meals
Overnight flight
A city rich in history, culture and layered heritage.
Explore Hanoi's rich history with a knowledgeable guide. We'll visit a number of sites, from the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Vietnam Military History Museum to Hoa Lo Prison and B-52 Lake (officially Huu Tiep Lake), before experiencing the vibrant atmosphere of the Old Quarter and Hoan Kiem Lake.
Accommodation and Meals
Overnight hotel, full board.
To the mountains!
Today starts with a 4-hour drive from Hanoi to Mai Chau, via Poom Coom village, where we will stop to meet the local Thai community, followed by lunch.
We continue for around an hour to the Pu Luong Nature Reserve where we will begin our trek. It's only 9km today, but we will pass through stunning rice terraces, forest paths and small rural communities. The paths are narrow but the views are magnificent. If you are lucky, you might be treated to a cloud inversion.
Trek distance: 9km / 3 hours +250/-380m
Accommodation and Meals
Overnight hotel, full board.
Trek to the tiny, peaceful village of Hieu Village
Today's trek is made up of hidden trails over rough terrain, lush valleys and cascading rice terraces. We'll cross small streams and larger rivers using bamboo bridges, and for a couple of sections, we'll switch into our flip flops/river shoes and trek along the river. There will be plenty of panoramic views to enjoy, as well as venturing through the serene and peaceful villages. We'll have a picnic lunch halfway through the trek, then continue to Hieu village and its stunning, gently flowing, crystal-clear waterfall.
Trek distance: 12km / 5-6 hours (fairly challenging)
Accommodation and Meals
Overnight homestay/lodge, full board.
Village trekking
After breakfast, we set off along peaceful trails, cool streams and expansive rice paddies. Today's trails are narrow with some tricky terrain to negotiate. Tall bamboo lines many of today's paths, but there will also be long exposed sections. Again, we'll cross sturdy bamboo bridges and weave our way through the luscious paddy fields.
Trek distance: 10-12km / 5-6 hours (fairly challenging) +245/-340m
Accommodation and Meals
Village Homestay, full board.
Heading further into the Pu Luong reserve.
A full day of trekking through dense jungle, ending with sweeping terraced rice paddies. There will be some steep inclines (today has the most ascent), and we will have to navigate large rocks/boulders, tree trunks
Weather permitting, we will enjoy a wonderful sunset over the mountains together and enjoy a home-cooked dinner with our friendly hosts.
Trek distance: 15km / 6-7 hours (challenging) +928/-218
Accommodation and Meals
Overnight village homestay, full board.
A leisurely finish to our trek
We'll only have gentle ascents and descents today - we trek for a couple of hours through lush rice paddies and jungle to Ton village, where we will be met by our friendly driver for a private transfer to the town of Muong Khen for lunch and then on to Hanoi. Our onward train to Hue departs at around 1945, and we will arrive the next morning after a night on the sleeper train.
Trek distance: 7km / 2-3 hours (easy)
Accommodation and Meals
Overnight train, shared cabin with A/C, full board.
Hue is Vietnam's former imperial capital, located along the banks of the Perfume River.
After a tough trek, it is now time to explore at leisure.
Our comfortable ecolodge was inspired by the traditional garden homes of the ancient capital - brick walls, tiled floors and handcrafted wooden bathtubs overlooking the gardens. There's a swimming pool too, if you fancy a dip.
Accommodation and Meals
Ecolodge, breakfast (lunch and dinner under your own arrangements)
A trip back in time to the Vietnam War Era
This morning we drive 110km north to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), a former military buffer between North and South Vietnam which offers us a sobering look at Vietnam War History. We'll visit the small Hien Luong Bridge Museum, the Bến Hải River and the 17th Parallel. We'll discover the underground network of the Vinh Moc Tunnels and have lunch in the city of Dong Ha.
Our tour will continue into the afternoon - we'll visit the Rockpile, the Khe Sanh Combat Base, and the Ta Con Airport relic site, amongst other POIs en route back to your hotel.
Accommodation and Meals
Overnight hotel, full board.
Our trip back in time continues
Today, we fly to southern Vietnam to visit the infamous tunnel systems of the Viet Cong. You will be able to crawl in the tunnels to experience the tight squeezes for yourself and you'll be given a fascinating insight into the guerrillas' strategies and resourcefulness. When we get back to the city, we will visit the harrowing War Remnants Museum.
The rest of your day is at leisure, explore the local neighbourhoods or spend the afternoon relaxing in the hotel pool or spa.
Accommodation and Meals
Overnight hotel, full board.
The Mekong River is Southeast Asia's lifeblood, it sustains over 60 million people and crosses six countries!
We leave our hotel (returning later) at around 8am to drive two hours to My Tho. This is the first town along the main branch of the Mekong River. We cross the Rach Mieu Bridge and continue to Ben Tre where we board a boat for a trip along the Ham Luong River (a 70km tributary of the Mekong River), in the heart of 'Coconut Country'. We have a couple of stops. A coconut husking demonstration, a sedge mat making household and we'll even get to have a go at rowing a wooden sampan through the shaded narrow canals.
Accommodation and Meals
Overnight hotel (the same as yesterday), full board.
The end of our adventure in Vietnam.
Today, you are free to explore until it is time to head to the airport for your flight home. Alternatively, stay on for a few days and experience beautiful Halong Bay, or venture further afield. Talk to us if you want to add an extension.
Accommodation and Meals
Breakfast.
Trip Details
Trip Details
Vietnam's visa entry policy is known to change at short notice.
In a nutshell, almost everything!
This is what you will need to buy/source yourself.
It is important that you read the itinerary carefully, and take account of the rating we have given it.
Although our challenges are not technical, they do require a good degree of physical fitness. The conditions will require stamina and strength, which you should recognise and train for. This will be a much better experience if you are fit and prepared. You should feel comfortable walking 6-8 hours per day.
In setting the maximum size of our groups, we take a number of factors into account.
Altitude, degree of difficulty, the terrain, the climate and time of year, all determine the maximum group size. Sometimes it will be 20, sometimes it will be 8-14, but safety is always our priority.
You will be accompanied by a Tribal Tracks UK Leader, Mountain Leader qualified, as well as supported by our local, in-country guides.
It is a requirement of Tribal Tracks booking terms and conditions that each supporter must hold their own travel insurance, which covers the trip and the activities they are doing. Read more here.
We advise you to put insurance in place as soon as possible, ideally on booking so you are covered immediately. There have been instances where someone has signed up, broken their leg a few weeks later, and been deemed unfit to travel. If travel insurance were in place, the non-refundable deposit could be claimed back from the insurance policy. Without this, your money is lost.
Your insurance must be valid and in date, covering the entire period that you are travelling for, including the return journey home. It must cover medical and personal accident risks, and should include repatriation costs and air ambulance or helicopter rescue services, where appropriate.
We will need to know the travel insurance provider, your policy number and the 24 hour medical/emergency assistance number.
Tribal Tracks has 100% Financial Protection and has a trust account with the Protected Trust Service, member number 5566.
This means that all client monies paid to Tribal Tracks are held in our dedicated trust account, which is supervised by an independent trustee. This means that in the very unlikely event that Tribal Tracks ceases to trade, your money is safe. For more information, please visit this link. Any flights booked for you by Tribal Tracks will be ATOL-protected under our own ATOL certificate.
Tribal Tracks considers the safety of all of its participants and staff to be a top priority, and as such we have thorough safety systems in place.
In the event of an injury, we have an evacuation plan in place for all elements of the trek route. We do ask that you look after yourself during the trek in the following way, as this will help avoid unnecessary problems:
We know that the unexpected can happen.
While you are away, things can happen at home and people may need to get in contact with you. This can be tricky when you are in remote areas. So, shortly before departure, we provide you with an Emergency Procedure document to distribute to your nearest and dearest. This sets out how to contact Tribal Tracks and the steps Tribal Tracks will then take to get in contact with you.
It is really important that you are well prepared for your physical challenge and that you are confident that you will be able to fully participate.
Although our leaders are well trained to deal with different capabilities, if they have any concerns about someone’s ability to safely partake in the trek, or their impact on other people’s enjoyment, we authorise them to take necessary action which, in some circumstances, may involve asking someone to step out of the trek. Although this is a very rare occurrence, by booking this trip you agree to section 11 of our Booking Conditions which clearly states that our leaders have the authority to do this. In these circumstances, we will ensure anyone sitting out is safely provided for and offered alternative options where possible. Refunds will not be provided for activities missed and customers may be liable for additional costs incurred.
At Tribal Tracks, Responsible Travel is enormously important to us, and our commitment to responsible travel is evidenced in every itinerary that we prepare.
Core to our business is the belief that holidays can and should be enjoyable to the traveller but should be conducted in a socially, environmentally and economically responsible manner which brings benefit to local communities. This is implemented through a variety of measures which can be found in our Responsible Travel policy. We encourage you to read this and to play your own part in travelling responsibly.
If you're not happy with something, please talk to the Tribal Tracks Leader. They are there to ensure your experience is as enjoyable as possible. They can only act on what they know, so please don’t be afraid to raise anything that needs addressing with them and certainly don’t wait until the end of the trip. If you’re travelling with a charity, someone from there will be on the trek too, if you’d feel more comfortable liaising through them.
If you are feeling unwell on this trek, tell your leaders and listen to their advice, they are professionals who will know the best course of action for you. If you need to be taken off the trek, or if there is an emergency, our experienced leaders and local guides carry phones and can call for help. No one will be left unaccompanied. If necessary, we hold details of your next of kin and travel insurance and will help organise next steps and onward arrangements.
If your flights are included in the trip price you will automatically be booked on to the same flights as everyone else in the team, unless you let us know before or on booking. If you want to book your own flights, you need to ensure that you coordinate your arrival and departure times with the trip’s itinerary. If your dates/timings don’t align with the itinerary, you will be responsible for costs incurred for additional airport transfers or accommodation arrangements.
Tribal Tracks can book alternative flights for you (for example, from a different departure airport) but this may incur an extra charge. We will liaise with you about costs before booking to ensure you’re happy to proceed.
Please inform us of any dietary requirements or allergies before you travel, and preferably at the time of booking and no later than 4 weeks prior to departure. We can cater to almost any diet, but only if we know about it beforehand.
For up-to-date vaccination information, please visit Travel Health Pro to see the most recent recommendations for your itinerary.
Although we are travel experts, we are not medical specialists, so we cannot explicitly recommend what vaccinations you should or shouldn't have. Always seek the advice of a medical professional if you are unsure. They will likely want to see a copy of your itinerary, and can then best advise whether they think an advised or 'to consider' vaccination is appropriate for you.
Please note that information on vaccinations can change at short notice.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) monitors all overseas destinations and offers advice to British citizens. In order to be fully informed of safety issues, crime rates, political stability and local customs you can view the advice here. We monitor FCDO advice carefully and may, on occasion, be required to cancel trips, reroute itineraries, or make other changes to trips based on the FCDO advice. Any decision will always be made in the interests of your safety and security and will be fully communicated to you.
If travelling with a child and only one parent is present, please be aware that you must have the permission of everyone with parental responsibility before that child can be taken abroad. You automatically have parental responsibility if you’re the child’s mother, but you still need the permission of anyone else with parental responsibility before you take the child abroad. A letter from the person with parental responsibility for the child is usually enough to show you’ve got permission to take them abroad. You might be asked for the letter at a UK or foreign border. The letter should include the other person’s contact details and details about the trip. If you are travelling with a child who has a surname different to your own, for example you are a single parent, you are advised to travel with evidence of your relationship (eg a birth certificate) and a divorce or marriage certificate if applicable. In other scenarios, for example, you are a grandparent taking your grandchild on a trip, or you are taking your child’s friend on a trip, you should be able to provide evidence that you have permission from the child’s parents to do this. You should also check the requirements of the country you are travelling to, as they may have additional specific requirements and the age limit up to which a person is considered a child may vary.
Trip Details
Trip Details
The trek is a challenge. We will be walking for a long time over sometimes challenging terrain with steep ascents and descents.
The best way to build endurance fitness is to start with some gentle walks and gradually build up both the distance and duration over the next few months. In the last 2 months, we would recommend to go out and do long days, ideally in the hills, to build up the strength in your legs. About a week before the trek, limit any training to short walks – you want to have fresh legs at the start!
For the trek you should be comfortable trekking between 6 - 8 hours per day, but remember we have all day to achieve the distances and will not be going at racing snake pace. It may sound obvious, but make sure that you are walking properly, hitting the ground with your heel first, then rolling onto your toe, which pushes you onto the next step (this will help reduce the risk of shin splints and tendon pulls). Walk with your head up, eyes forward and shoulders level.
It is a good idea to develop a level of cardiovascular fitness (exercising and strengthening your heart and lungs). This comes from running, cycling or swimming for between 20 minutes and an hour, and will really help develop your endurance fitness. Three sessions a week is normally advised, increasing time and distance over time.
Replicate conditions in training i.e., use all the kit you will be using and try your walking poles if you want to use them.
It is important to pack so that you know where everything is. Here at Tribal Tracks, we are big fans of separating kit into different packing cubes (compression ones are great), or even just individual plastic bags can really help with this.
You can pack by item (e.g., socks and pants in one cube, tops in another, waterproofs in another etc.) or by day, putting your entire outfit for that day together in one place. We recommend taking an extra bag or cube to separate the dirty kit from your fresh clothes, too.
You will have two bags on the trip - your main bag and your back pack.
You should operate on the basis that you will not have access to your main bag during the day and while you are trekking. This means that it is important to have everything you need in your back pack. Waterproofs should go in the bottom, together with an extra layer, sunscreen and sunglasses, plus hat and gloves (if you are in a colder climate). You should also have your water bottles, and any specific snacks, medicines or first aid items you want to take, such as zinc tape and blister plasters. Baby wipes/toilet roll and nappy sacks are also essential for going to the toilet while you are trekking - we will explain more in the pre-departure briefing!
In the event of an injury, we have an evacuation plan in place for all elements of the trek route. We do ask that you look after yourself during the trek in the following way, as this will help avoid unnecessary problems:
We will brief you in the pre-departure briefing as to the catering specifically for your trip. However, as a guide, each morning you will be provided with a very filling local breakfast, usually accompanied by tea or coffee. Lunch will be during your trek and will be prepared by the team of cooks or we will utilise local restaurants or teahouses. Food will always be ample and tasty. If wild camping, dinner will be in the dining tent and will be traditional, freshly prepared food. If you are staying in a hotel or teahouse, dinner will be served there. Water, tea and coffee will be served and alcohol will usually not be available, although there will be some exceptions. We will provide 4 litres of drinking water per person per day. You will need to fill up 2 litres at breakfast and another 2 litres at lunchtime.
Please ensure that you have notified us before departure if you have any specific dietary requirements or allergies as we can cater for most things as long as we know about them!
Sleeping bags are designed to work by trapping your body heat in the down surrounding you. If you wear lots of layers, your body heat will not escape as effectively, and you will be cold. Wearing a thin thermal layer is ideal. It does sound counterintuitive, but we promise that it works!
Putting your clothes for the next day in the bottom of your sleeping bag will also help with warmth, as it will fill up any spare space around your feet, and it will mean your clothes are nicely warmed up in the morning.
If you find it difficult to sleep without a pillow, we recommend taking a travel pillow and a regular pillowcase with you. Put your pillow in the pillow case, and use your down jacket/layers to fill out the pillowcase. You will end up with a pretty decent pillow!
And as for stuff or roll when it comes to packing your bag away? We are very much in the stuff camp! Read more here.
There will be early morning starts, typically around 0600 - 0700hrs, so that the team can set off on the trek in good time. It is important that you pack up your kit before breakfast and leave your bag outside your tent or accommodation so that the crew can load them onto the jeeps and/or mules. There will be a freshly cooked lunch provided on your trek route. The aim is to get into camp before sunset if possible, when you can enjoy a hot drink and snacks. It is important that you change into your thermals and put layers on when you get into camp as the temperatures can drop sharply and you need to keep warm.
In the morning, the Tribal Tracks leader will wake up the group. When you hear the call, please begin to get ready, and pack all your kit away in your 'main bag' before breakfast. Put this bag outside your tent or accommodation as the crew can then begin to break down the tents/load the luggage. Ensure that you have all that you need in your backpack for the day, as you will not have access to your main bag until the next camp (see 'What do I put in my backpack?).
When you arrive into camp, it is important to get changed into different clothes, usually the ones that you will be wearing the next day. Even if you have had dry weather, you will have been sweating, and your clothes will be damp. As the sun sets and the air cools, you will quickly feel cold. Before this, you will want to freshen up and we recommend the 'baby wipe bath'. As there are no showers while on the trek, having a freshen up with a baby wipe will help keep you clean and will make you feel much better, before you put your clean clothes on. Unpack your sleeping bag and get everything out that you need for nighttime, such as your warm hat, jacket, head torch and book. Sort out your back pack for the next day by removing rubbish and replenishing snacks etc.
Doing this before dinner will mean you can get into your sleeping bag quickly, when it is likely to feel cold.
We recommend that you bring a multi-region adapter plug with you. There will be no facility to recharge electrical items on the trek, so we recommend you bring a power bank to top up the charge. We also recommend putting your phone on Airplane mode during the day to save on power.
Using your mobile overseas can sometimes attract unwelcome, very high tariffs. We recommend that you check with your network provider before you travel, but if in doubt, keep your phone switched to Airplane mode and use it only when there is WiFi. Reception can also be patchy, and unreliable, particularly in remote areas, which is why we carry a satellite phone with us. Please let your nearest and dearest know about this, and warn them that you may not be able to be in regular contact.
We ask that your luggage is kept to the absolute minimum. We will tell you the weights that you should not exceed, but usually (depending on the airline), your main bag should not exceed 23kgs in weight.
It is important that you wear your trekking boots or take them in your hand luggage on the flight, as they are vital for the trek and cannot be replaced if your luggage is lost.
We recommend leaving behind items such as high-value jewelry, watches, etc. Your passport and money should always be kept on your person.
Trip Details
Vietnam is a wonderful country to explore and learn more about its culture, cuisine and history. If you want to extend, we are happy to put together a bespoke package for you - just ask!
Have a question? Get in touch, our small team will be delighted to help.
