Located about 280km from Hanoi, Mu Cang Chai is a well-known place for its most breathtaking rice terraces. With the improvement of the road network, it is today easy to reach Mu Cang Chai by adventure motorbike or private car passing windy road and high pass to catch spectacular views of mountain landscapes. From Hanoi, this trip will take you about 7-hour drive to reach Mu Cang Chai.
There is more than 500 ha of terraced fields in three communes including La Pan Tan, Che Cu Nha, and De Xu Phinh. A visit to Mu Cang Chai is so great not only to admire the impressive landscapes of terraced rice fields but also to get great insights of local ethnic cultures.
The best time to visit Mu Cang Chai is during the rice harvest, from mid-September to mid-October when the endless terraced rice fields change from green color to yellow one and the weather is nice and convenient to visit this place. From afar, these rice fields look like golden silk scarves flying over in the wind above green mountain slopes, making the mountainous landscape astonishingly beautiful. For photographers who want to take the best photos of rice terraces in Mu Cang Chai, this period is also the right moment. 
In May and June, this is the time of watering when the first summer rains start pouring down the mountain. The water flows from the mountains to the terraces. Water spills into the fields making the arid soil softer and hatched so that the rice can be transplanted. This is also the time when the local people start plowing for a new crop. The surface of terraced fields shines like a mirror reflecting the contrast of the reddish brown of soil, the deep blue of the sky and the green of surrounding forests creating a picture of natural beauty.
Coming to Mu Cang Chai, you will also have a chance to understand more about the local life of ethnic people and enjoy typical dishes of ethnic groups as Hmong, Thai... such as five-color sticky rice, black Banh Chung, Pa Pinh Top grilled fish, grilled chicken with leaves of Mac Mat, dried buffalo meat…These are all traditional dishes of local ethnic minorities.
