Good news if you are heading to Mu Cang Chai for this year's golden rice season: the road linking the IC14 junction on the Noi Bai – Lao Cai expressway with Nghia Lo is now 100% complete and open, with full signage, warnings and slope protection, so low-clearance cars get through fine, and although it is not shorter than the older routes, it is a much more relaxed drive: fewer passes and bends, and more expressway. The Mebayluon team recently drove the whole stretch – here is what you need to know before you set off. 👉 Once you are there, where do you fly and what does it cost? See our guide to paragliding in Mu Cang Chai.
🛣️ Current state of the route
Update, November 2026: the section from the IC14 junction (Mau A) through Mo Vang and An Luong to Nghia Lo is now 100% complete and open to every type of vehicle – motorbikes, cars and coaches alike. It is a two-lane road with a wide carriageway, full road signs, warnings, lane markings and reinforced slopes. It is an easy drive with far fewer steep passes than the older routes. The one caveat: because the road is new, the ground is still soft in a few places, so small landslides onto the road still happen at some spots, especially after heavy rain; the contractor keeps crews on hand and clears the road straight away when it happens. Apart from those spots, the road is excellent and trouble-free. The road is part of the Northern Mountainous Provinces Transport Connectivity Project, funded by an ADB loan and Australian government aid, with Project Management Unit 2 (Ministry of Construction) as the investor. The full route runs about 53km, starting at the IC14 junction and ending where it meets National Highway 32.
⚖️ Compared with the older routes
Until now, travellers heading from Hanoi to Nghia Lo usually took one of two routes: exiting at IC13 onto National Highway 37, or exiting at IC12 (Yen Bai) and going through Nga Ba Mi. Both involve long stretches of steep mountain passes with one hairpin bend after another, tiring for anyone unused to mountain roads. To be accurate, the IC14 route is not shorter: measured from Hanoi it is about 17km longer than going via IC12. In exchange you get about 36km more expressway and far less pass driving: once you leave the expressway there is only the 53km new two-lane link road to National Highway 32, and in practice our drive from IC14 to Lien Son took around 1 hour 20 minutes. The IC14 – An Luong route has far fewer passes and sharp bends, so it is a much more relaxed drive. For passengers prone to car sickness, or families travelling with small children and older relatives, that difference matters a great deal.
🗺️ The recommended route from Hanoi
- Hanoi → Noi Bai – Lao Cai expressway, drive to around Km150
- Exit at the IC14 junction (Mau A) – watch the signs, do not exit at IC12 or IC13 by mistake
- IC14 → National Highway 32: about 53km via An Luong on the new two-lane road with few mountain passes (Google Maps estimates 1 hour 45 minutes); the link road joins National Highway 32 about 7.5km past Nghia Lo centre toward Tu Le, without going through the centre of Nghia Lo
- National Highway 32 junction → Tu Le: about 42km (about 95km in total from IC14 to Tu Le)
- Tu Le → Khau Pha Pass → Mu Cang Chai: about 46km (the paragliding take-off near the top of the pass is about 14km from Tu Le)
Measured from My Dinh in Hanoi, the IC14 route is about 267km to Tu Le, 280km to the Khau Pha take-off and 313km to Mu Cang Chai town (measured along the roads on OpenStreetMap). The IC12 route is about 17km shorter (250 / 264 / 296km), but IC14 is a much more relaxed and safer drive, especially for families travelling by car. The expressway is getting easier too: as of October 2026, the IC12 – IC15 stretch of the Noi Bai – Lao Cai expressway is being widened to two lanes each way with a limit of up to 100 km/h (it was one lane each way at 80 km/h).
Travelling without your own car? We have a separate guide to every way of getting to Mu Cang Chai via Khau Pha Pass – sleeper coaches, limousine vans, self-drive rentals and motorbikes – with indicative fares and departure times.
⚠️ A few things to watch on the new route
- Watch for slip-prone spots: because the road is new, the ground is still soft in a few places and earth can slide onto the road after heavy rain. The contractor keeps crews on hand to clear it straight away, but slow down below high cut slopes
- Check the weather before you go: in the rainy season, mountain roads always carry a risk of localised landslides
- Travel in daylight if you can: the road now has full signage, warnings and markings, but mountain roads are still harder to read at night
- Fill up before exiting at IC14 – petrol stations along the An Luong stretch are sparser than on the main highways
🚧 The Gia Hoi – IC15 road: on the ground in October 2026, not ready yet
We drove the whole link road from National Highway 32 at Gia Hoi commune to the IC15 junction (Dong Cuong) on the Noi Bai – Lao Cai expressway (on 20 October 2026). It still needs a lot of work: at the current pace it may take another 6–12 months. Low-clearance cars should not take it – many sections are still unpaved and under construction, and after rain they get very rough, muddy and hard to drive.
- The IC15 junction (Dong Cuong) is not open: its connection to the expressway is still under construction, so vehicles cannot get on or off the Noi Bai – Lao Cai expressway at IC15. Coming from Hanoi you still have to exit at IC14.
- Gia Hoi → Phong Du Thuong: the first part has only just been opened through; some of it is paved but not 100% finished. In between there are many unpaved sections: drains and retaining walls being built, excavators working on the road itself, and rockfall along the cuttings.
- Phong Du Thuong → IC15: still the old road, not widened; it has been resurfaced, with new retaining walls and culverts, so it is nicer to drive than before.
👉 Our advice: from Hanoi to Tu Le, the Khau Pha flying site and Mu Cang Chai, leave the expressway at the IC14 junction (Mau A) and drive via Mo Vang up to Nghia Lo, as described above.
Once the Gia Hoi – IC15 road (about 48km) and the IC15 junction are finished, the drive from the Noi Bai – Lao Cai expressway to Tu Le will be only around 73km, against 95km from IC14. Counting the extra expressway distance, it is about 6km less overall from Hanoi (261km to Tu Le, 275km to the Khau Pha take-off, 307km to Mu Cang Chai town). We will update this article as soon as the route officially opens.
🪂 What this means for your flight
Until now many of our guests had to choose between driving through the night to make a morning flight, or losing a whole day to travel. With the new IC14 route you can leave Hanoi early in the morning, reach Khau Pha the same day, rest in Tu Le and fly during the golden window the next morning. A two-day, one-night itinerary is now far more comfortable. The golden rice season is approaching – if you are planning a paragliding flight over the terraced fields of Mu Cang Chai, now is a good time to book.