Routes
Route Map: Hanoi to Mai Chau by Motorbike
Mai Chau Valley is a scenic area situated southwest of Hanoi. It is very easy to get to on the main highway as it has been a tourist hot spot for many decades. However, once you turn off the main road it gets much more interesting. So, we have added a couple of detours to help you make the most out of your trip.
Route Map: Hanoi to Mai Chau by Motorbike
Hanoi to Mai Chau Valley is about 140km direct. It can be driven by motorbike in around 3.5 – 4hrs going on the highway. There are a few great places to stop off, if you take one or two of the detours so it is worthwhile leaving in plenty of time to do so.
Hanoi – Mai Chau – Direct Route
This route totals around 150km and will take around 4 hrs. You can choose to do this direct if you are in a rush, or take a couple of detours that we show you below.
There is plenty of fuel on the route and also a lot of cafes and restaurants to stop. You may like to make your halfway point Hoa Binh City and the Hoa Binh Dam is a good place to do that.
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Hanoi – Mai Chau (Detours)
Hanoi to Mai Chau is a very easy ride along the highway. You can get there very quickly if you want or you can meander a little and take one or two of these detours to spice up the ride.
Detour 1
This route takes you off the main road and is at first a little muddy and bumpy. Then, it becomes tarmac and is smoother but does have potholes. You will eventually end up running along the Black River on a good sealed road that has minimal traffic.
Detour 2
This route is good sealed tarmac with even less traffic that Detour 1. The reason to do this is so that you can take the ferry and also get on the quieter side of the Black River It will take you straight into either Hoa Binh city or the Dam.
Detour 3
This is a long detour that starts on on good, fast tarmac road and take you to the suspension bridge. After that, the road is smaller as it winds through the villages, but it is sealed and is easy to drive. There are a few small shops in the villages but they are not always open so carry some water.
Detour 4
This route is a long one, about 45km, and will add around 1.5 – 2hrs to your journey time. Make sure you have enough time to get to Mai Chau before dark.
It starts out on the main road which is quite wide and sealed and then, when you turn off at Lung Van Market, it starts to get narrower and more winding. This is the beautiful part that takes you through some small villages.
Detour 5
This is another long detour, about 30km, and will take a good 1.5 to 2 hrs of your time. If you took Be sure you have enough time to get to Mai Chau before dark.
You ride on some flat and quite fast sealed road through small villages to the lake shore and then, from the viewpoint roughly, the road gets a little narrower, steeper and more windy. It is an easy tarmac ride but just wathc out for oncoming traffic. Then, it is a short hop on the highway to Mai Chau.
Where to stay in Mai Chau
In Mai Chau Village, some hotels we like to stay in are:
These are good clean hotels with air con, hot water and en suite bathrooms. They also provide dinner and breakfast.
Some homestays we like to stay in are:
- Mai Chau Sunset Boutique Hotel they also have a homestay
- Ms Tu Homestay
- La Maison De Buoc
- MediFarm Mai Chau
These are good clean homestay with good food and friendly families that run them. They also provide dinner and breakfast.
Where to next
From Mai Chau, you could be heading back to Hanoi directly or taking in Pu Luong on your way.
If you are heading further Northwest, you will be going to Moc Chau and then Son La, or up to Bac Yen and perhaps over to Ta Xua.
If you are following our Black River Loop tour, you will also know that you could go North to cross the Hoa Binh Lake and stay in Da Bia.
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Engineered to handle whatever the road throws at you Book NowWhat type of bike to choose
We would advise you to choose between a manual or a semi automatic bike. These are the best bikes for a long trip like this and also for when you get into the mountains of northern Vietnam. You have more control and they are less prone to overheating or break down.
Honda XR150
The XR150 is a great budget option that will perform well on the road and on the small tracks, if you choose to find them. The bike is lightweight, even if a little underpowered. There is plenty of room to fit a 40l bag on the rear, which should hold more than enough for a trip. The 12l tank and great fuel economy mean that this bike has a huge range of over 300km on a tank.
If you plan to ride two up, it might be a bit of a squeeze and you will have to pack very lightly or risk overloading the bike and making it quite rear weighted.
Honda CB500x
The CB500x is a great bike for the highway. It is big enough and powerful enough to overtake trucks on the highway and carry two people with ease. Using a rear box and side panniers will give you plenty of room for gear. The 17l tank means you will have enough range for a day’s ride with ease.
The only concern would be taking some of the smaller tracks off road as our bikes have road tyres and the bike itself is quite big and heavy. However, there are plenty of small, interesting tracks that have concrete and are wide enough for the CB500x.
Semi Automatic
The Semi Automatic bikes are a much more budget option. We can offer the Honda Wave, Honda Blade or the Honda Future and they are all quite similar. it is really best to ride single on this kind of bike as this will leave room for a backpack and also not overload the bike in the hills. They are very fuel efficient but only have a 4l fuel tank so will need filling more regularly than the manual options.
Hanoi to Mai Chau by Motorbike
The ride from Hanoi over to Mai Chau is a very easy ride and the only real thing to worry about is getting used to the traffic, which is not a big issue. As always, getting out of Hanoi is a bit of a drag. However, once you are on the CTO3 towards Hoa Lac most traffic will be going one way and is easier to handle.
The main route is just highway so we suggest you look at the detours we offer and take at least one of them.