Sa Pa is a misty hill town in Lao Cai Province in the far northwest of Vietnam, perched at 1,500 metres in the Hoang Lien Son mountain range on the edge of a dramatic valley. The surrounding landscape of stepped rice terraces carved into the mountainsides is one of the most photographed in all of Southeast Asia, and the area is home to a rich mosaic of ethnic minority communities — Black Hmong, Red Dao, Tay, and Giay — whose embroidered costumes and weekend markets create a vivid cultural backdrop. Mount Fansipan, at 3,143 metres the highest peak in Indochina and known as the 'Roof of Indochina', rises directly above the town and is accessible by the world's longest three-rope cable car or on a multi-day trekking route. Sa Pa is best reached from Hanoi by overnight train to Lao Cai (8 hours) followed by a 30-minute minibus transfer, or by direct overnight sleeper bus.