f travellers are headed anywhere north of Hanoi in Vietnam, it’s likely to be Lao Cai province and the hilltribe town of Sapa. The province is geographically diverse, bordered to the east by Hoang Lien Son mountain range, part of which is Hoang Lien national park, which includes Mount Fansipan (Phanxipan), Vietnam’s highest peak, at 3,143 metres above sea level.