Four days on the Ha Giang loop, and why three is a shame
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The Ha Giang loop is about 350 km of mountain road in Vietnam's far north, and it is the best riding in the country by a distance. Four days is the right length. Three is what most people book, and the difference between them is the day everybody remembers.
Why four days rather than three?
Because three turns the third day into transit. The circuit divides naturally into four stages of three to five riding hours, which leaves time to stop — and stopping is the entire point of a road like this.
Four days also absorbs weather. Mountain cloud closes views and wet limestone closes roads, and a schedule with no spare day turns a bad morning into a missed pass.
If four is impossible, three still works. Just know which day you are compressing.
The route, day by day
Four stages, clockwise from Ha Giang city, about 350 km in total and roughly four hours of riding a day with stops.
Day one: Ha Giang to Yen Minh, via Quan Ba. The loop starts climbing immediately. The Heaven's Gate viewpoint above Quan Ba is the first stop and the first sense of the scale. Around four hours of riding with stops.
Day two: Yen Minh to Dong Van. Through the Dong Van karst plateau, a UNESCO geopark of bare grey limestone that looks like nowhere else in Vietnam. The Hmong King's palace at Sa Phin sits on this stage.
Day three: Dong Van to Meo Vac, over Ma Pi Leng. The short day and the great one. The Ma Pi Leng pass runs above the Nho Que river gorge on a road cut into the cliff, and the boat trip on the river below is worth the detour. Two to three riding hours and a whole day if you let it be.
Day four: Meo Vac to Ha Giang, through Du Gia. The longest stage and the quietest, through villages and river valleys rather than passes. Five hours or so, back in the city by evening.
| Day | Stage | Riding | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ha Giang to Yen Minh | ~4 hours | The climb, and Quan Ba |
| 2 | Yen Minh to Dong Van | ~4 hours | The karst plateau |
| 3 | Dong Van to Meo Vac | ~2-3 hours | Ma Pi Leng and the gorge |
| 4 | Meo Vac to Ha Giang | ~5 hours | Du Gia, villages, the way back |
The permit, which is new
Since 1 June 2026, foreign visitors need a Border Area Entry Permit for the districts the loop crosses: Quan Ba, Yen Minh, Dong Van and Du Gia. It catches riders passing through, not only those staying the night.
The permit costs about 250,000 dong and a tour operator will normally arrange it as part of the booking. Arranging it independently is possible and slower. The Ha Giang guide has the detail.
Ride it or sit behind someone?
Sit behind someone, unless you have genuine experience on mountain roads. An easy rider — a local driver you ride pillion with — costs more than a rental and removes both the risk and the licence problem.
The licence part is not a technicality. An International Driving Permit issued under the 1949 Geneva Convention, which includes every permit from the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, is not valid in Vietnam, and insurers deny claims for unlicensed riding. The riding guide sets out what actually applies.
A plain experiential argument sits alongside the legal one. A rider concentrating on a wet hairpin sees less of Ma Pi Leng than a passenger does.
How do you get there, and when?
By overnight sleeper bus from Hanoi, around 6 to 7 hours, arriving in the morning in time to start. Daylight limousine vans cost more. There is no railway to Ha Giang and no airport, which is a large part of why the loop stayed quiet for so long.
Go in September to November or March to May. Those windows sit either side of the summer rain and ahead of the winter cloud, and late September adds the rice harvest turning the terraces gold — the same fortnight that suits walking in the north.
How does it fit a longer trip?
Add it to a northern week rather than to a national route. Ha Giang costs two travel nights on top of its four days, so a fortnight in Vietnam that includes the loop is a fortnight mostly in the north.
A loop-and-north fortnight is a good trip. It is simply a different trip from the north-to-south one, and the northern week is where the choice between them is set out.
FAQ
How many days do you need for the Ha Giang loop?
Four. Three is the shortest most operators sell and it works, but it turns the third day into a transit stage. Four gives the Ma Pi Leng pass and the Du Gia road the time they deserve and leaves room for weather, which in these mountains is not optional.
Do you need a permit for the Ha Giang loop?
Yes, since 1 June 2026. Foreign visitors need a Border Area Entry Permit for the districts the loop runs through — Quan Ba, Yen Minh, Dong Van and Du Gia — and it applies to anyone passing through, not only those staying. It costs about 250,000 dong and operators usually arrange it.
Should you ride the loop yourself?
Only with real experience on mountain roads. Most first-timers ride pillion behind an easy rider, which removes the licence problem and the risk and lets you look at the country instead of the road surface. An IDP from the USA, Canada, Australia or New Zealand is not valid in Vietnam.
How do you get to Ha Giang from Hanoi?
An overnight sleeper bus, about 6 to 7 hours, is the standard route and lands you in Ha Giang city in the morning ready to start. Limousine vans run in daylight for more money. There is no railway and no airport, which is part of why the loop stayed quiet as long as it did.
When is the best time to ride the Ha Giang loop?
September to November and March to May. Those windows avoid the summer rain, which makes mountain roads genuinely dangerous rather than merely wet, and the winter cloud that can sit on the passes for days. Late September adds the gold of the rice harvest.