Name: Days of the Dragon
Item: Days of the Dragon
Author: Alex Sheal

Date(s) February 1- 11, 2025

Skill Level

Cost $ 4,158

Duration 11 Days

Instructor(s) Photographer Tung Phan will lead our 2025 Days of the Dragon tour. Tung Phan is a Hanoi-based photographer with a Master’s degree in International Journalism from Sussex University in the UK. With a solid foundation in journalism and broadcasting, in particular with Vietnam Television (VTV), he brings a unique perspective to his work, capturing the essence and stories of Vietnam through the lens of his camera.

Group Size Limit 5 participants

The beginning of the lunar year brings many exhilarating festivals to northern Vietnam. For travelers, this means a unique opportunity to experience the rich and vibrant cultures of the hill tribes of Sapa and Bac Ha. For photographers, it offers incredible images, and a chance to document the authentic celebrations and rituals of Vietnam’s ethnic minorities.

Highlights include the colorful Gao Tau festival, Dzao fire dancing and an up close experience of lunar new year festivities with the Dzao and Tay people. Our local friends help us to understand the traditions and significance of these Northern Vietnam festivals, and give us unique access to the people and their cultures. Along the way, we develop a photographic story on the diverse festivals and traditions of northern Vietnam. It all makes for an unforgettable journey at an incredibly photogenic time of year.

This is a premium photographic adventure, and we’ll enjoy the best accommodation available in the region, from stylish bamboo eco-lodges to mountain resorts and restored H’mong forts. We’ll also taste the most delicious cuisine in a part of the world already renowned for its culinary excellence.

Our close connection to the people of Vietnam, local friendships and many years of experience give us unparalleled access to the authentic life of the locals and the area’s most stunning vistas. As working photographers, with many years of teaching experience, we provide you unique insights and knowledge about Vietnam and photographic storytelling.

Expectations
Discover the colorful cultures of the hill tribes of Sapa for the Northern Vietnam festival season. The new lunar year brings families and communities together as the ethnic minorities converge on the hill slopes of Sapa and Bac Ha. Surrounded by vibrant color and festivity, we’ll be in the thick of it, capturing the emotions of tribal people as they celebrate through performances and traditional games, passed down through the generations.
In the green hills around Sapa, we’ll photograph Hmong revelers as they celebrate the ancient Gau Tao festival. The mountain landscape makes for a spectacular backdrop as the locals play tug o’war, tightrope walking on a bamboo pole, and other games in their intricately-patterned traditional attire. Come evening, we’ll capture images of Dzao fire walking, sparks flying into the night above Bac Ha town.

Each day, our local Hmong guides will introduce us to the authentic lives of the local minority people at this exciting time of year. We’ll visit local villages and be welcomed into stilt houses, giving us an unforgettable encounter with the hill tribes of the area. It also offers plenty of opportunities for portraits and images of montagnard life. We’ll especially look at capturing atmospheric shots of people using natural light sources.

At Bac Ha Sunday market, it’s all about making visual order from the sensory chaos. Flower Hmong people descend on the town to barter and trade, as well as catch up with old friends over a bottle of corn wine. Cameras in hand, we’ll explore all areas of this bustling market, including the dizzying textile stalls and fascinating buffalo trading corner. We’ll approach our images here in a variety of ways, searching for symmetry and co-ordination to tell our stories.

We’ll attend several local festivals during the trip, each presenting the rites, stories and rituals of different tribal groups. We’ll experiment with various shutter speeds and other settings, plus work in both Black and White and color to reveal different aspects of these events. The weather can change quickly, bringing fog to the mountains and villages, which itself provides fascinating opportunities for unique images of local life.

Sapa is justly famous for its natural beauty, and we’ll enjoy several short treks into stunning areas like Y Ty, capturing landscapes as the winter mist rolls through the hills. Traveling by longboat, we’ll also have a chance to photograph riverside village life and practice long exposure shots of a stunning waterfall deep in a rocky valley.

Throughout the trip, we’ll enjoy typically warm local hospitality and Vietnamese culinary excellence, the base for an unforgettable photographic adventure at a spectacular time of year.

We take an initial holding deposit of $500 per person, which is non-refundable, unless Vietnam in Focus calls off the trip.

The remainder is due at least 3 months in advance of the departure date. This is also our latest date to confirm tour departure, and guests can go ahead and book flights.

In the event that we have our minimum number of guests booked in for the tour earlier than 3 months before departure, we will confirm the tour, and guests are free to book their flights.

Your initial $500 reservation deposit is non-refundable, except in the event that Vietnam in Focus cancels the trip. The deposit can however be put towards a future trip with Vietnam in Focus.

If you cancel your booking with us, our cancellation policy includes the following fees and cut-off periods:

If canceling 90 to 61 days before departure, the guest is liable for 25% of the trip cost.

60 to 46 days before departure is 50% of the trip cost.

45-0 days prior to departure is 100% of the trip cost.

Vietnam in Focus run acclaimed photo tours throughout north, central and south Vietnam. We research, design and lead tours that help you to experience authentic local life as well as improve your photography. Whether you are a beginner, serious amateur or professional photographer, we can help you to capture incredible shots, and enjoy an unforgettable experience of this fascinating region.

Our team boast credits in The New York Times and Vice Magazine, among many other publications, meaning the knowledge we impart is top-level. Meanwhile, our tours have been recommended by Lonely Planet, The Guardian and Le Petit Fute, as well as rating five star at Trip Advisor since 2012. We’ve even led groups from National Geographic and the Travel Channel through Vietnam.

We also love to make a difference. We work with local NGOs like Peace House Shelter and Change Vietnam to raise awareness about social and environmental challenges in Vietnam.

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