4 Best Hotels in The Northwest, Vietnam

The premier hotel in Sapa, the luxurious, French-designed BB Sapa Resort & Spa (formerly named Victoria) sits on a hilltop overlooking the town and caters to the fancy of its guests with heaps of amenities. The spacious, clean, and tastefully decorated rooms include a sofa, writing desk, inviting bathtub, and private terrace, and there's a two-room suite with a balcony. If all of that isn't enough, the hotel also sells a tour package that includes travel from Hanoi. 

The stately French villas of Sapa have nothing on this distinctive—and decidedly incongruous—crenellated mock-château containing one of the town's better hotels. The pretensions of grandeur don't end with the exterior. Inside there are sweeping staircases and verandas along with rich, dark woodwork. These details are bolstered by stunning views of the surrounding hills. Cream-color bed linens and open fireplaces make the deluxe rooms a cozy retreat after a cold day in Sapa. The hotel has a decent in-house restaurant, which serves above-average Vietnamese dishes in a rather austere space.

Within Son La, Muong Thanh Luxury arguably has no competition for sheer quality. The hotel is under the franchise Muong Thanh, a local Vietnamese hotelier powerhouse. Their quality is easily four stars international standard and, more often than not, at very agreeable rates. Their deluxe rooms typically go for $50 per night, but can go as low as $35 during seasonal promotion.