If you’re looking for a small and charming retreat with incredible views in Sapa,
this might be the place for you. Take a tour with me, coming up.
When it comes to mountain towns, Da Lat is where most Vietnamese hearts are, but Sapa wins for the
setting any day of the week. But it’s not necessarily a piece of cake to get here.
Let’s take a look. Skip ahead to the time below to start the tour.
I was feeling brave today so I drew the very approximate border of Vietnam just to illustrate
how far north and removed Sapa truly is. In order to get there, you’ll surely start out in Hanoi as
Sapa doesn’t have it’s own airport. You can take a five hour bus or sprinter following the Red River
north or the slow overnight train to Lao Cai station, which is an hour’s drive from Sapa- which
I don’t recommend. Sapa is an idyllic Vietnamese mountain town in every sense of the word,
but the Sapa Clay House is a bit outside. Around a 15 minute taxi ride.
The Clay House is a small property in Lao Chai Village
and the reception area- like the retreat itself- is an eclectic
mix of everything and anything related to the design characteristics of the region.
Also serving as the lounge and restaurant, there’s a lot going on in here for sure.
Not to worry though, built in 2016,
the property only has a handful of rooms and bungalows so it’s never going to be crowded.
No matter where you are, the views just don’t quit
and their lounge area and infinity pool are well placed to take it all in.
For the price, I think the Clay House does pretty well on it’s own-
but specifically if you’re looking for a property with a pool view just like Topas
for a third of the price, this can’t be beat.
This is the primary building with the majority of the rooms, presumably the Clay House itself.
But I much prefer my bungalow, where there were only two of- though hotels in this area
seem to multiply like rabbits so by the time I publish this review, they could have 10 more.
The bungalow is basic as you’d expect but does actually have air conditioning
which is not that common up here. For sure there is no TV, but you will find plenty of
bottled water and some coffee sachets. The bungalow is filled with fabrics and patterns
typical of the Hmong minority group which is prevalent in this part of Lao Cai province.
Out back is the open air bathroom. For cooler months- remembering that there are occasional
frosts up here- there are heaters and plastic drapes to trap in the heat.
The bungalow has all of the basic necessities that you need, but that’s not why you’re here.
You’re here for the view and it has that for days. Two distinct times are best for
visiting. Around April for the driest weather but without a visible harvest- or during late summer
when it does rain a bit more, but the landscape will be lush and green.
Above the pool the retreat does have a small spa area and I will give credit where it’s due,
my dinner was almost out of this world fantastic.
A local style rice salad for starters and a wild boar dish served on crispy sticky rice.
As the sun starts to set the fog starts to hang lower in the valley
and everything begins to glow a bit.
To finish up this quick tour was a basic, but tasty breakfast.
For the Flip Flop Score, it’s positive impressions all around. The room was exactly as expected
and I enjoyed it immensely, just wish a bit more thought was put into the bathroom area.
Service was incredibly personalized since during my stay the staff outnumbered the guests. The
common area and ground were well maintained and natural but full of color and life and cleanliness
was top notch. As for F&B Venues, well- it had what you needed and for the price, that’s just
fine especially when the food is fantastic. Rounding out the score are the amenities and
beautiful pool which brought the overall score to 88 out of 100. A beautiful location is the
strength here and I would have no hesitation to return for a couple of nights. I hope you enjoyed
this short throw back review and also liked the video and subscribed for two new flight
or resort reviews every week. And don’t forget, it’s free for you and keeps the content flowing.