Driving up National Road 32 (QL32) from Nghĩa Lộ towards Mù Cang Chải, the Tú Lệ valley opens up just round a bend. This sticky-rice valley sits between three mountains – Khau Phạ, Khau Thán and Khau Song – and is famous for its sticky rice (xôi) and Tú Lệ cốm (young green sticky-rice flakes). It is also the gateway before the road climbs Khau Phạ Pass. Right at the head of the valley, in Nước Nóng village, three things are worth a stop: the Le Champ Tú Lệ resort, the village hot spring pool and the zipline at neighbouring Aeris Hill.
On Mebayluon's Tú Lệ – Khau Phạ – Mù Cang Chải check-in map, the Le Champ gate is stop no. 1 and serves as Km 0: every kilometre figure for the other stops is measured from here. The village mineral pool is stop no. 2, 0.3 km away.
Where are Tú Lệ and Nước Nóng village?
Nước Nóng village belongs to Tú Lệ commune and sits right beside QL32 at about 630–650 m, at the Nghĩa Lộ end of the valley. Until July 2025 the commune was part of Văn Chấn district, Yên Bái province; it now belongs to Lào Cai province.
From the resort gate to Tú Lệ market is just over 1 km. Another 4.6 km brings you to the turn-off for Lìm Thái village, and at Km 15.2 is the Khau Phạ Pass paragliding take-off. Mù Cang Chải town is at Km 47.7.
Le Champ Tú Lệ
Its full name is Le Champ Tú Lệ Resort Hot Spring & Spa. According to a feature in Tuổi Trẻ News, the resort has nearly 100 rooms to 4-star standard, some bungalows with their own hot tub, an infinity pool, a restaurant, and mineral baths with medicinal leaves of the Dao people; most of the staff come from Tú Lệ. There is also a high-ropes course, and the zipline is right next door (see below).
Mebayluon does not run Le Champ and does not take bookings for it. We put it on the map because it is the easiest landmark to spot at the entrance to Tú Lệ, and because it offers a serviced place to soak for anyone not used to bathing at the village spring.
Hot spring bathing in Tú Lệ
In Tú Lệ, soaking in hot mineral water is not a new service opened for visitors but a long-standing part of daily life for the Thái (Thai ethnic group, not people from Thailand). In Nước Nóng village there are two ways to bathe, so don't mix them up: the village's shared pool, where locals come to soak every afternoon after working in the fields; and the mineral pools inside the Le Champ resort, run as a service for guests. According to the Lào Cai newspaper, the mineral water at the springs around here is about 35–45°C.
The village's shared pool
The hot spring rises in Nước Nóng village, Tú Lệ commune, about 1 km from Tú Lệ market towards Nghĩa Lộ. On the map it is at Km 0.3: from the Le Champ gate, head towards the market for about 200 m, turn off QL32, and it is just over 100 m further in. At about 630 m, it is the lowest of the map's 18 stops.
A note on the location: our pin is the Google Maps pin named "Suối khoáng nóng Xuân Vận", cross-checked against press articles that place the spring in Nước Nóng village. There are also a few bathing spots opened by local households nearby, so when you arrive, just ask villagers the way to the spring.
The newspaper Pháp luật Việt Nam describes the village pool as a built basin about 4 m wide and 6 m long, waist-deep at its deepest, with a bottom of big and small stones: big ones to sit on, small ones to scrub with. Right next to the hot spring runs a cold stream. Even the village elders cannot remember when communal bathing by the stream began; for them, a hot soak after work eases tired limbs and brings a good night's sleep.
According to the Lào Cai newspaper, in the first nine months of 2025 the hot spring sites of the three communes of Tú Lệ, Văn Chấn and Hạnh Phúc welcomed more than 62,000 visits – the spring is no longer as quiet as it was a decade ago.
Etiquette at the shared pool
- This is where villagers go about their daily lives, not an amusement park. Dress modestly and keep your voice down.
- Do not photograph or film people bathing. If you want a picture of the spring, ask first.
- The bathing spots around it are opened by local households and charge a fee; ask the price before using them.
- No litter, and no soap or shampoo in the shared water.
- If you want a private soak and a changing room, consider the resort's service right next door.
Le Champ's mineral pools
The resort pipes water from the same Nước Nóng spring into open-air soaking pools under thatched roofs, looking out over the rice fields and the Tú Lệ mountains. This is the option for anyone who wants a private soak and a changing room. Non-residents wanting a day soak should call ahead; we do not list prices because we have no reliable price source.
The Aeris Hill zipline, next to Le Champ
Right next to Le Champ is the Aeris Hill adventure park, with a zipline about 1.2 km long strung across the valley, open since around January 2021. Le Champ bills it as the longest zipline in Vietnam and has included a ride in some of its stay packages. Each ride lasts about 1–2 minutes; besides the long line there is a shorter one through the pine hill for beginners and children. Prices and opening hours vary over time, so contact Le Champ before you go.
When to go
Hot spring bathing is best on cool days, from autumn through spring; the Lào Cai newspaper also notes that autumn, winter and spring are peak season for the area's hot springs. To combine it with the rice, the Tú Lệ sticky-rice fields turn golden from about mid-September to early October, which is also cốm season; in May–June the rice terraces around the area are flooded for the water-pouring season.
At the village pool, late afternoon is when villagers come down to the spring and also the most pleasant time: the air softens and steam rises off the water. On cold days from late autumn to early spring, a soak is all the more worthwhile.
Practical tips
- This is a private resort. Non-residents wanting a day soak should call ahead; we do not list prices because we have no reliable price source.
- The resort sits right on the main road; cars and coaches can drive straight in, with no side road to take.
- On golden-season weekends, rooms in Tú Lệ and Mù Cang Chải fill up early. Book your room first, then fix your travel dates.
- To eat out, restaurants cluster around Tú Lệ market, just over 1 km away; Tú Lệ sticky rice and cốm are the two things to try.
Distances and pairing with a paragliding flight
The Le Champ gate is just over 1 km from Tú Lệ market, about 6 km (around 10 minutes' drive) from the Mebayluon Clubhouse beside the paragliding landing field, and about 15 km of mountain road from the take-off on the pass – roughly half an hour by car.
An easy itinerary: fly in the morning at Khau Phạ Pass while the air is still clear, land in the Cao Phạ valley, have Tú Lệ sticky rice for lunch, then come back in the afternoon for a soak to loosen your legs – or ride the zipline before moving on or heading back to Hanoi. Before driving up the pass, you can check the take-off webcam to see the day's clouds and wind.
FAQ
What is the difference between the village's shared pool and Le Champ's mineral pools?
The shared pool is part of daily life for the Thái villagers: a simple built basin by the hot spring, used communally, so dress modestly and be discreet. Le Champ's pools are inside the resort, with service, changing rooms and private soaking tubs. Both use water from the Nước Nóng spring.
Can I use the hot springs without staying at Le Champ?
Yes. Around the shared pool there are a few bathing spots opened by local households that charge a fee; ask the price before using them. To use Le Champ's pools without staying there, call the resort first.
What are the zipline's opening hours and prices?
Prices and opening hours vary over time; contact Le Champ before you go.
How far is it from Tú Lệ to the Khau Phạ paragliding site?
About 15 km of mountain road, roughly half an hour by car. The landing field and the Mebayluon Clubhouse in Lìm Thái village are only about 6 km from Le Champ.
Next stop on the route
- Next stop: Lùng Cúng peak, turn-off at Km 1.4.
- The whole route: 18 stops, distances, best seasons and a dedicated post for each stop in Mù Cang Chải travel map: 18 stops from Tú Lệ to Khau Phạ.
