Khau Pha Paragliding Festival offers spectacular scenery from a bird-eye view

The Khau Pha Paragliding Festival- "Khau Pha Paragliding Festival- Flying over the golden paddies" will take place until October 2022, promising to bring unforgettable experiences for visitors to the place.

In autumn, the terraced fields of Mu Cang Chai district of Yen Bai province are most photogenic. Fascinated by the fields built on the hillside by local farmers, tourists and photographers have endless photo opportunities during the rice ripening season.

The magnificent Mu Cang Chai terraced field from the bird-eye view. Photo: Mebayluon Paragliding

According to Mu Cang Chai District People's Committee, the paragliding festival is held twice a year during the water-pouring season in late May- early June and the rice ripening season in late September- early October in Khau Pha Pass in the locality.

Spreading over 30km at an altitude of up to 1200m above sea level, the pass is considered one of the most beautiful paragliding destinations in Vietnam and the world.

According to adventurous pilots, there's nothing like riding a paraglide above the golden yellow terraces and treacherous mountain pass, which eventually sends you to some of the most dramatic mountain capes you can see in your world journey.

September and October in the northwest are also called “the gold-gilded” season, as it is time for the harvest. The weather is a little chilly being late autumn but golden sunshine bathes the rice fields. Panoramic views are around almost every corner for the keen photographer. Yellow fields cover the entire area, with rice fields adorning the mountainsides.

The Mu Cang Chai terraced fields in the rice ripening season. Photo: Mebayluon Paragliding

Vice Chairwoman of Mu Cang Chai District People's Committee Luong Thi Xuyen said 100 international and local pilots would join the Paragliding festival this season.

“The Khau Pha Paragliding Festival with the theme of ‘Flying over the golden paddies’ is a good start for the autumn-winter tourism season 2022 of Yen Bai province, contributing to the project to develop Mu Cang Chai District into a tourist locality,” she said.

In addition, the Northern Helicopter Company also offers flights for festival goers.

Paragliding is quite a new sport in Vietnam that requires money, time, and technical skills. According to experts, Vietnam has much potential to develop and promote paragliding since it has very supportive weather, topographic diversity, and magnificent scenery from north to south.

Mu Cang Chai is seen as the best place for paragliding in Vietnam. The district features 500 hectares of rice terraces cultivated by the H'Mong ethnic people for centuries. Its rice terraces are among the 2,500 hectares recognized as national heritage sites in 2007 by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Khau Pha Paragliding Festival is among various activities to celebrate UNESCO's inscription of the art of the Xoe dance in the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity and the annual Muong Lo Culture and Tourism Festival.

A ceremony to receive the UNESCO certificate of recognition of the Xoe dance was held on September 24 in Nghia Lo Town, Yên Bai Province, with the participation of Vietnam Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.

As described by UNESCO, Xoe is a form of Vietnamese dancing with movements that symbolize human activities in ritual, culture, life, and work. It is usually performed by Thai ethnic people who live in mountainous areas in the northeast region of Vietnam.