You are in Vietnam, and after a few days of busy sightseeing in Hanoi, you wish to visit the remote mountain town of Mai Chau.

Getting from Hanoi to Mai Chau is easy. Follow our lead and ignore anyone who tells you otherwise.

 

 

 We took our two kids to Mai Chau. We stayed in a stilt house and had a ball.

But.  There were a few things I wish someone writing a Vietnam travel blog had told me about, especially about what to expect when you get the local bus!

If you need to know how to get to Mai Chau from Hanoi and are wondering (as we were) about the things to do in Mai Chau once you get there, then this is the post for you.

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Things to do in Hanoi

 

You will adore Hanoi. It has to be one of the most vibrant, colourful, delicious cities I have ever visited.

When we first arrived, we did a small group tour to familiarize ourselves with the place; I HIGHLY recommend you do this affordable food; it was incredible value and so much fun!

 

 

Guided Food Tour with Train Street Visit

Taste some of the favorite daily food of the locals on a Hanoi walking tour. Grab a coffee along a railway track as you watch a train pass by, stroll through the streets, and spot hidden street art!

 

Check out the guided street and food tour HERE

 

 

 

Where is Mai Chau?

 

The distance from Hanoi to Mai Chau is approximately 140 kilometres. But the roads are squiggly so the journey (on the Hanoi to Mai Chau bus) takes around three and a half hours.

It’s too far to go for a day trip from Hanoi to Mai Chau; you’d be spending most of your day on the bus, and you don’t want to do that, trust me. Anyway, there are many things to do in Mai Chau so you don’t want to rush.

At the end of this post is a video to see just how beautiful Mai Chau is, but you must read what I have to say first. Promise?

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So, Why Do You Want to Go to Mai Chau, Vietnam?

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I’m guessing your reasons for wanting to visit Mai Chau are the same as mine were:

 

• Vietnam is one of the most beautiful countries in the world and Mai Chau is a unique & underrated destination

 

• You want to experience some real Vietnam. (for more on this subject, check out our post on Vietnam scams)

 

•  You have seen images of the countryside, and it looks idyllic.

 

•  Sleeping in a homestay stilt house sounds romantic and authentic.

 

• You want to get away from tourists and crowds.

 

•  You want to get back to nature.

 

•  You want to experience home-cooked Vietnamese food. Am I on the right track? Are you and I on the same page? Good.

 

The great news is that all of these things are true, and you will get what you want when you visit this sleepy little town in Northern Vietnam. But. There is something else you need to know about Mai Chau.

Something significant. I’ll tell you about it later in this blog post.

We are travelling around the world for a year with our two teenagers. I was desperate to experience all of the above with them, so we decided that to go to Mai Chau for four days would be perfect.

 

 

How To Get To Mai Chau From Hanoi 2024

 

If you are travelling throughout Vietnam and you are on a budget, then I suggest you use the same booking agent that we used.

You can find 12GoAsia here. They are the most efficient and reliable company that we found in Vietnam. Unfortunately, they don’t supply tickets to Mai Chau (Yet. Keep checking in with them, though; they expand their routes very often.)

So.

As there is no train or plane going to Mai Chau, you have the following choices.

 

Tour: Take a 2-Day Tour To Mai Chau From Hanoi

 

If you have the funds, taking a tour has got to be one of the easiest ways to see the sleepy village of Mai Chau.

If you want to relax and let someone else take the stress out of the planning  then take one of these fabulous tours.

We have used this company many, many times in the past and they are the most reputable company out there for guided tours.

 

From Hanoi: Mai Chau Valley & Hill Tribes 2-Day Trek Tour

 

 

This trip to the northwest highlands of Mai Chau (they pick you up from Hanoi) offers a balance of cultural interest and physical activity, set amongst some of northern Vietnam’s most stunning scenery.

Trek for 1.5 days through villages in Mai Chau and observe the local daily life.

Highlights include:

• Enjoy some of northern Vietnam’s most stunning scenery
• Overnight in a traditional White Thai village
• Meet the local villagers and enjoy their hospitality

 

Check out the full details of this Mai Chau tour HERE

 

 

 

A Private Taxi

Get a taxi from one of the many tour operators in the old town of Hanoi. If there is a group of you, and you can split the cost, this would be your option. Cost 900,000 VND for the car and driver. Duration from Hanoi to Mai Chau 3.5hrs

 

 

Ha Noi to Mai Chau Full-Day Guided Trip with Lunch

 

Get picked up from Hanoi and experience the lush green valleys, stilt houses, and friendly locals on this guided day trip to Mai Chau. Travel through peaceful villages, see the Thung Khe Pass, and enjoy lunch along the way!

Highlights include:

• Take a scenic mountainous drive
• Visit some of Vietnam’s 60 ethnic groups
• Pedal to minority villages
• Witness and learn about the rustic life of the indigenous mountain people
• Enjoy local food and rice wine with a local family

 

Check out the full details of this Mai Chau tour HERE

 

 

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Bus transfer from Hanoi to Mai Chau

 

 Pick you up from your hotel and drop you off at your destination in Mai Chau. If you don’t want to travel on the local bus, this is a great option!

 

Book tickets HERE

 

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• Budget: Go to The Local Bus Station In Hanoi

  Go to window 7. Ask for a ticket from Hanoi to Mai Chau over the counter. You will be directed to the correct bus bay and told to board your bus. Our bus went from stand 56.

  It is right at the back of the station and is clearly marked. The experience won’t be the most comfortable, but it is the cheapest by far. 70,000 VND per person. Duration from Hanoi to Mai Chau 4.5 hrs

 

 

PIN THIS HERE! 

 

 

 

Bus Schedule From Hanoi to Mai Chau.

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Hanoi Mai Chau Bus. Buses depart from the main Bus station in Hanoi My Dinh bus station. 06.00, 07.30, 14.00, 14.30

If you miss one of these, there are buses to Hoa Binh that leave Hanoi every 15 minutes between 06:00 and 18:00 (about  50,000 VND) and from Hoa Binh bus station there are regular buses to Mai Chau.

Because there isn’t a bus station in Mai Chau, you will get off the bus at the side of the road in the centre of the village. From Mai Chau town it’s a short walk (takes no more than fifteen minutes) or, if you prefer, 20,000 VND on a motorbike taxi to the villages with the stilt house accommodation.

So you now have your ticket from Hanoi to Mai Chau. Let’s say you choose the budget option like us. I’m guessing that if you are going to Mai Chau you are a traveller and travellers like us are always looking for ways to save money.

 

Taking The Bus From Hanoi To Mai Chau. What You Can Expect.

 

It’s not rocket science. Don’t worry, it is actually very easy to get the bus to Mai Chau but, like everything, it’s always nice to be pre-warned about a few things beforehand.

The bus is more like an oversized car that seats 28 people.

There are two seats on the left, a corridor and a single seat on the right. All seems reasonable until more people clamber aboard with big bags, and you start to worry that they will be sitting on your knee. Not to worry.

A little fold-out seat goes into the aisle between each row of seats. You have all been squashed like sardines into rows and the one in the middle has no headrest. No matter you think. Just smile and try and remember how much money you have saved.

The trunk of the bus is filled with boxes of chickens (yes, really) and what looks like a few UPS boxes. This bus apparently doubles as the local mail van.

The boy who works on the bus alongside the driver will kindly try and ram your bags on top of the chickens. When it is quite obvious they are not going to fit he will insist that the passengers budge over and he will throw them on the back parcel shelf. Obscuring all rear view for the driver.

It’s cheap. Get on board.

The bus will stop once after about half an hour.

You can get some snacks and go to the bathroom. I suggest bringing snacks with you.

Don’t ask me where you are going to put them, just bring them, especially f you are inclined to get hungry and bored. They will rip you off at the service stop. My son was charged 100,000 VND for three packets of crisps and a small bag of oranges. That’s more than the ticket!

 Bring your own snacks.

This one is an important tip – so listen. The conductor – who is usually a teenage boy – will come around the bus asking for more money for the bags. He will say that they are oversized and that you need to pay more. Firmly say no.

After quickly googling on my phone at the back of the bus I learned that this is apparently a scam that the Vietnamese will try on often. We have just spent six weeks in India. I am quite aware of scams. When I flatly refused to pay any more, he just shrugged his shoulders and went away. Don’t pay any more.

There is no bus station on Mai Chau.

Instead, the bus will drop you off at the side of the road. Don’t worry. There is only one way to all of the homesteads. You cant get lost. Show the address of your homestay to the driver’s helper, and he will point you in the right direction.

And That’s it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I almost stopped writing this post right now. I have given you the information you need to get from Hanoi to Mai Chau; I could quite easily have gone to bed and left you to discover what I found out by yourself.

But I’m kind.

And I wanted you to know what to expect once you got to Mai Chau.

 

 

Places To Stay In Mai Chau

 

If you are looking for places to stay in Mai Chau then you can use the handy map below to compare prices!

 

 

 

Booking.com

 

 

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What You Can Expect From Mai Chau (And What The Vietnam Travel Blogs Don’t Warn You About )

 

We knew nothing about Mai Chau before we travelled here.

I hadn’t read any blogs nor watched any vlogs. I expected it to be a sleepy little Vietnamese village with a few cows and lots of roosters. Somewhere where I could spend a few days unwinding after being in Hanoi.

And it is. Don’t get me wrong, it is beautiful.

 

Stilt Houses In Mai Chau

 

 If you are staying in a homestay, then you will no doubt be staying in a stilt house in Lac Village. They are lovely and authentic. They have mosquito nets and thin futon beds to sleep on. 

Almost every single stilt house in the villages surrounding Mai Chau have tourist shops attached to them. These shops sell anything from the usual elephant printed trousers that I’ve seen since Sri Lanka, to weapons. Yes, weapons.

If, like my 16-year-old son, you are a weapon fanatic or if you are just always on the lookout for authentic gifts, then you are going to love Mai Chau. There are some lovely artworks on sale and of course, the famous traditional style textiles. Nobody hassles you to buy anything. It’s all very low key ad really friendly.

 

 

But.

 

Cost Of Things In Mai Chau

 

Things aren’t cheap. Just be warned.

We paid way over the top for three small cups of Chinese tea. A bunch of grapes set us back nearly $10 (yes, honestly.)

Meals at the homestays seem to be the same all over the village. 100,000 VND per person.  For that, you get a mixture of small homecooked dishes.

We stayed at a traditional homestay. The food was lovely and tasty and you could help yourself to beer from the fridge. (15,000 VND).

If you want to stay in the same homestay as us (the one in the photo above) then you can book it here. It was absolutely lovely and the owners were kind and excellent cooks.

They helped us with everything we needed to know. Just make sure you bring enough cash. USD or VND the folks of Mai Chau will take either.

 

Is There An ATM In Mai Chau?

 

There is an ATM, but annoyingly, like a lot of ATMs in Vietnam, it will only give you a maximum of two million VND.

Get your money from the Shinhan Bank ATM in Le Thai To Street in Hanoi before you leave. (It’s opposite the Ho Hoan Kien Lake). You can get three million out, and the service charge is the lowest we’ve seen in Vietnam.

 

Cock Fighting In Mai Chau, Vietnam

 

There are lots and lots and lots of cockerels. I love them, and I love the noise they make. Even very early in the morning.

What I don’t love is cockfighting. Be warned that this sport is practised in Mai Chau. I didn’t know and was a bit shocked.

 

Mai Chau With Kids

 

Mai Chau is a beautiful, sleepy, and quiet Vietnamese town surrounded by even more somnolent villages. It is the perfect place to explore by foot, bike or moped.

There aren’t masses of things to do in Mai Chau for kids, but in saying that my two loved exploring with their bikes and wandering around the markets.

The food isn’t great, certainly not the best I’ve tasted in Vietnam but it is authentic.

 

Explore Mai Chau By Bike (like us!)

 

If you are feeling energetic and would like to explore Mai Chau by bike then you could always book a guided tour.

This tour lasts for two days and in my opinion, is fantastic value as at $70 per person includes the transport from Hanoi to Mai Chau, a nights accommodation (in a stilt house) and a day touring Mai Chau by bike.

You can check availability for this tour here.

 

Watch Our Video Of Life In Mai Chau!

 

 

 

 

Now Then. What The Vietnam Travel Blogs Won’t Tell You. (But I will because I’m kind like that.)

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Mai Chau at the weekends is full of Vietnamese teenagers.

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Youth groups, high schools, music club, whatever. Just lots and lots of teenagers. And they are ROWDY. And they LOVE karaoke.

If you are going to visit Mai Chau and you don’t want to have your eardrums blown out or be unable to hold a conversation over a glass of beer between the hours of 5 pm and 11 pm, then I suggest you don’t come at the weekend.

Friday and Saturday nights are awful. Honestly, really bad.

 

Some related posts you will enjoy:

 

Vietnam scams. A few to watch out for.

Staying in a stilt house in Mai Chau. What it looks like.

How do people on a regular wage afford to travel the world?

8 travel tips you can safely ignore because they are crap!

The cost to travel to four countries in four months

Best toothbrush for travel 2020

 

You have two options if you do decide to travel from Hanoi to Mai Chau at the weekend. Get some extremely good travel earplugs or else get very drunk and join in. If you choose the second option, I suggest you print off the lyrics to the Birdie Song.

You’re going to need them.

Have you travelled from Hanoi to Mai Chau? What was your experience? Leave me a message below and PLEASE! Don’t forget to share this post if you enjoyed it!