Mai Chau

The sleepy valley of Mai Chau was one of the lesser-known regions of Vietnam that we came across during our 5-week trip through the country. There were only a handful of tourists and we were able to fully recharge our batteries and soak up the beautiful nature. Read along to see what you can do here and how to best experience Vietnam’s beautiful countryside!

Things to do

Cycle around the rice fields

Similar to Ninh Binh, Mai Chau has incredible landscapes of rice fields and surrounding mountains, but the town is much more spread out and has a much more relaxed rural feel to it.

The best way to explore the area is by renting bikes; most accommodations have some for rental, sometimes even for free. The roads between the fields are well-marked on Google Maps, so you won’t have to worry about getting lost.

We cycled around for a while and discovered an area called Lac Village, with many restaurants and shops.

We ended up grabbing a coffee by the fields around here and watched locals tend to the young rice shoots. People practise wet rice farming in the region, which means that there are two harvests per year. You can plan your visit accordingly – fields are lush green during February and August, and they turn gold in May and October, ready for the harvest. If you sit down for a moment and watch the wind blowing through the paddies, you really feel like you are in a Ghibli movie.

Mai Chau - 3 Days Through Vietnam's Rice Fields

Explore Chiều Cave

If you’re up for a little hike, grab your bikes again and head to town to hike up to the Chiều Cave (location). The stairs are quite challenging, especially in hot weather. Make sure to bring enough water and sun protection. Luckily, there is a small shop at the entrance selling water and food, in case you forgot them.

It takes around half an hour to reach the top, and you will be greeted by refreshingly cool temperatures inside the cave. You can also bring your lunch and a couple of drinks if you like, and have a nice time escaping the heat! Bear in mind, there are no rubbish bins or any kinds of facilities up there.

Experience local traditions

Interestingly, most locals in Mai Chau come from Northern Thai heritage. There is an old tradition of weaving, and you will find a handful of shops, where locals sell clothing, rugs and their handicrafts. Beware, though, we also found some items in shops that did not seem to be so self-made, so it’s worth taking a second look…

Make sure to stop by at the Weaving and Cultural Dancing Centre (location). The ladies will be very happy to show their traditions and invite visitors for a dance while playing traditional music! Apparently, locals also organise events like painting workshops and weaving workshops too, but sadly, these didn’t seem to take place during our visit. You can ask your accommodation, nevertheless.

Relax and Recharge

There is something about the rice fields and the mountains that is truly relaxing. We managed to fully recharge here before continuing our journey to busy Hanoi…

Connect with locals

The locals were super friendly in Mai Chau! We met a guy at our homestay who told us that two locals approached him and invited him to a local bar for a drink. He ended up spending the whole night with them, drinking until the early hours of the morning, even though they could barely understand each other. These are just the kind of experiences that are hard to find in the other more touristy areas of Vietnam people typically visit.

Day trip to Go Lao Waterfall

If you can ride a scooter or a motorbike, you can rent one in the village and head up north to the Go Lao Waterfall, located at the southern tip of the Hoa Binh Lake. According to fellow travellers at our homestay, the views are amazing and the ride takes just around 30 minutes.

How to get to Mai Chau

Mai Chau is located approximately 3.5 hours from Hanoi. You can book a van-style transport on 12go.asia for around €15/$17.

We arrived from Ninh Binh by van, which is a similar distance compared to Hanoi. In general, most tourist routes in the country are well-established when it comes to transportation. We always booked our tickets on 12go.asia, and didn’t really have any problems, apart from the occasional delay due to traffic.

There are no train connections to Mai Chau.

Best season to visit & How many days to spend in Mai Chau

As mentioned previously, you can plan your visit according to the rice farming cycle. There are two cycles every year: fields are lush green during February and August, and they turn gold in May and October.

We spent 4 nights there and left Mai Chau fully recharged and relaxed. There is not too much to do, so if you are an active person or are short on time, 1 or 2 nights might be enough time to take in the beauty of the region.

Some people visit Mai Chau as a day trip from Hanoi. We think that it’s definitely too short and you will need at least 2-3 days to fully embrace what the little village has to offer.

Where to stay

The stilted wooden houses you will see in the villages are actually part of the traditional architecture of the region. There are a number of accommodations in these kinds of buildings, and we recommend spending at least one night in one of them!

We’ve researched a couple of nice accommodations worth considering:

• Nha Tan – Mai Chau Homestay & Tours ($): This is where we stayed and had a fantastic time. Breakfast and dinner was included for only €7.60 per person per night, and the home-cooked food was absolutely delicious. Sitting together at the table in the evening felt like being part of the family, and we met many interesting travellers there. There was also an adorable kitten that kept us company!
• Mai Chau Lodge ($): a popular budget hotel that also has a pool to relax.
• Mai Chau Ecolodge ($$): A very popular ecolodge with modern amenities.
• Mai Chau Mountain View Resort ($$): Huge swimming pool! People especially praise the great location.
• Avana Retreat ($$$): The highest-rated luxury option in the village with great fitness facilities and many beautifully decorated rooms to choose from.

Where to eat

Though we were well-fed in our homestay, we can recommend three great spots you should check out!

• Bánh Xèo: A random find in the town centre along the main road. We were a bit hesitant at first, but ended up having the most delicious Bánh Xèo here! Location
• The Meadow Restaurant: it lies in the village and has a limited but super delicious menu of Vietnamese classics – and spectacular views! Location
• Valley Coffee: if you want a nice cup of coffee or one of Vietnam’s creative drinks, head to this café along the main road. Location