A Day at the Market – Bac Ha, Vietnam


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Last Updated on April 22, 2024 by Audrey Scott

Visually, we were blown away by Bac Ha market in northern Vietnam. During our winter visit, the women and their brightly-colored clothing provided the perfect contrast to the muted winter landscape. Most of the women who make the trek to Bac Ha market from their hill villages are from the Flower Hmong ethnic group. As you can see from our photos, they dress in colorful head scarves and beautifully embroidered skirts and tops.

Bac Ha Market, Vietnam
Sugarcane shopping at Bac Ha market in Vietnam.


This Sunday market attracts throngs of villagers from the surrounding hill tribes. Some walk several hours for the weekly opportunity to trade and barter food, animals, clothes and household goods. Most of the locals ignored us (i.e., tourists) and focused on the task at hand: buying, selling, and trading goods, as there's much to accomplish in this once-a-week opportunity.

There was a brisk trade at the market for everything from hand-embroidered skirts to all manner of 4-legged animals, including water buffaloes, pigs, dogs and cows. The “fresh” meat section is not for the faint of heart and might steer more than a few visitors in the direction of strict vegetarianism.

Photo Essay – Bac Ha Sunday Market, Vietnam

Video of the Bac Ha Sunday Market, Vietnam

 

Arranging a Trip to the Bac Ha Sunday Market

How to get to the Bac Ha Market: Hotels in Sapa arrange tours to Bac Ha for around $10 per person, including transport, a guide, and drop off at Lao Cai to catch the train back to Hanoi. Take your motion sickness medicine before the minivan ride from Sapa…it’s a windy road and locals derive great pleasure from descending at breakneck speed.

About Audrey Scott
Audrey Scott is a writer, storyteller, speaker and tourism development consultant. She aims to help turn people's fears into curiosity and connection. She harbors an obsession for artichokes and can bake a devastating pan of brownies. You can keep up with her adventures on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. And you can learn more about her on the About Page and on LinkedIn.

2 thoughts on “A Day at the Market – Bac Ha, Vietnam”

  1. Great post about a truly beautiful area, we were there last year and your pictures have brought it all back for me, they are stunning! I wish I could have spent a bit more time there but we were on a tight schedule unfortunately, I did a picture post about Bac Ha also, I’d love to get your thoughts.

    Cheers
    Aaron from HappytimeBlog

    Reply
  2. It must be a wonderful place! The thing that I like most while travelling, is the opportunity to find places like the one you described in your post where tourist are just visitors, not a business opportunity.

    Reply

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