Sapa Culture Museum

Sapa museum is located on the hill in Thach Son Street, Sapa downtown, opposite the Stone church, and halfway between Fansipan and Silver waterfall.

The museum was found in 2007 and is the result of cooperation between Lao Cai province and the Aquitaine region of France, an ideal place for anyone to learn about the over-100-year history of this beautiful town, as well as discover the productive labor and religious life, cultural values of ethnic minorities in Sapa.

 If you would love to explore Sapa ethnic tribes, where they live or know how to identify them through their outfits, you should never miss the Sapa museum.

cultural museum

What to see in the Sapa museum

There are more than 200 precious objects and various materials, publications, and models of living standards, beliefs, and customs of ethnic tribes kept here in Sapa Museum. These monuments and items belong to different ethnic minority groups living in Sapa such as Hmong, Gia, Tay, Xa pho, Red Dao, Day, Ha Nhi, and Xa Pho…Coming here, tourists will have the chance to contemplate the panoramic picture of cultural life, religious values, community activities and the unique ancient outfits of different groups of ethnic people here.

Display inside sapa culture museum

The ground floor has a gift shop, a photo exhibition, and several exhibits displaying different handicrafts of Sapa. Coming here, visitors have the opportunity to explore the traditional crafts preserved and preserved in Sapa. The main exhibit on the second floor. Here you can learn about the peoples inhabiting the region, see a map with the location of ethnic villages, and even plan your independent trip on them if you so decide. You are recommended to visit this museum before going hiking to the hidden village or the surrounding area as this museum is like an explanation and guideline for any other visit to Sapa.

Display inside Sapa culture museum

Visiting the museum, watching the movie, reading books in the museum, tourists will have the chance to know more about Sapa history as well as local people's traditional customs. The museum specifically focuses on handicrafts of local people as part of the Sapa Fair Craft project to promote these traditional crafts and help provide new economic opportunities. There are a lot of things you can buy here such as Skirts, Shirts, Bags, Towels… These are lovely products made by the skillful hand of the ethnic artists in Sapa and at a reasonable price. Buying these meaningful gifts is a good way to promote handicrafts and support local people.

Near the Museum is a series of pavilions with Souvenirs, a mini-market, where costumed locals sell Souvenirs made in the surrounding villages.

Souvenirs shop in Sapa culture museum

How to get there

The museum is about 2 km from Sapa center, so getting to the museum is very easy. You can walk, ride a bicycle, or motorbike.

Sapa is a small town. Like any place downtown, the Sapa museum is reached on foot. You are not likely to get lost. Bring a map with you in case you need it.

Another option to get around Sapa town is to rent a motorbike. It may cost only 3 USD, and you can use it for a day to visit other places. Alternatively, you can choose a bicycle. Some hotels in Sapa provide bicycle or motorbike rental, you can hire from receptionists, or ask them the reliable shops to rent.

Ticket price & opening time

Opening hours: 07:30 AM – 11:30 AM & 13:30 PM-17:00 PM. You should visit the museum at 8:00, spend about 1 and half hours there, then head to other places in Sapa center or nearby area. Sapa museum can be busy at weekends and during public holidays, you may need to wait few minutes to get inside the museum.

Entrance fee: Free. But prepare some money for souvenier insde the musuem.

Museums are some of the most popular tourist attractions and usually places many travelers want to visit on their trips. Sapa Culture Museum has no exception, so do not forget to include this museum in the itinerary when planning your trip to Sapa. For further information about this museum, or want to book a Sapa tour to the museum, do not hesitate to contact us.