Tu Le Wood Bridge, Sapa, Vietnam Editorial Image

Sa Pa is a frontier township and capital of Sa Pa District in Lào Cai Province in north-west Vietnam. It was first inhabited by people we know nothing about. They left in the entire valley hundreds of petroglyphs, mostly composed of lines, which experts think date from the 15th century and represent local cadastres. Then came the highland minorities of the Hmong and Yao. The township is one of the main market ones in the area, where several ethnic minority groups such as Hmong, Dao Yao, Giáy, Pho Lu, and Tày live. These are the four main minority groups still present in Sa Pa district today. The Kinh lowland Vietnamese never originally colonised this highest of Việt Nam’s valleys, which lies in the shadow of Phan-Xi-Pǎng Fansipan, 3143 m, the highest peak in the country. Sa Pa Town is located in Lao Cai Province, north-west Vietnam, and 350 km north-west of Hanoi city, close to the border with China. Sapa Town is famous both for its fine, rugged scenery and for its rich cultural diversity. French used to consider Sapa as Summer Capital of Northern Vietnam in the early decades of the 20th century. Its naturally gifted beauty keeps attracting more and more people to spend their vacation there since then. Particularly, the place is the foremost choice for honeymoon couples!