With isolation becoming an attractive feature in pandemic times, five resorts amidst green forests in northern Vietnam are especially alluring as weekend getaways. 

Surrounded by the jungle in Hoang Lien National Park, the Topas Riverside Ecolodge stands deep in Nam Cam Valley. The lodge has the added attraction of being located in the popular highlands town of Sa Pa in Lao Cai Province. The resort has been designed in a way that combines Scandinavian styles combined with the traditional folk beauty of the northwest region.

Winding roads and paddy fields usher visitors to this secluded beauty. 

The homestay facility offers visitors the opportunity to connect directly with the daily lives of Red Dao ethnic minority group. 

The resort has 14 rooms, a natural swimming pool and a traditional herbal bath of the Red Dao people. Prices begin at VND1.8 million ($79.25) a night. 

At more than 600 meters above sea level, the Melia Ba Vì Mountain Retreat is a haven of pleasant climate, fresh air and peaceful scenery. 

Just a short ride from the Ba Vi National Park, a famous weekend spot in Hanoi, the resort stands away from crowded residential areas, making it ideal for an enjoyable weekend holiday.

The resort’s architecture is a combination of French colonial and ancient Vietnamese architecture. It has eight rooms and 3-5 bedroom villas with views of the Ba Vi mountains and green gardens. Guests can hike through the forest in Ba Vi National Park, cycle or go camping on the mountains. Interacting with the Muong and Dao ethnic groups is a special bonus. Prices start at VND3.6 million a night. 

The Avana Retreat nestles deep in the lush forests of Panh Hamlet in Mai Chau Town, Hoa Binh Province. Also set amidst the ethnic communities of H’mong, Thai and Dao, the resort taps into the inseparable connection between nature and people.

From above, the resort looks like a small village. There are six types of rooms and villas offering breathtaking views of small valleys and terraced rice fields on which H’mong families can be seen working. The Thai women in the area wear beautiful scarves woven on a traditional wooden loom. 

An added attraction is a museum in a 1970 Thai stilt house that preserves and promotes Mai Chau's history and daily life with its exhibits. 

Rooms cost VND5 to 20 million ($216.71-866.84) a night.

The Pu Luong Retreat in the eponymous nature reserve of Thanh Hoa Province is 160km from Hanoi. The resort mingles with magnificent mountain ranges, rice terrace fields, scenic rivers and waterfalls, mountain passes and remote traditional villages. 

It has nine bungalows, one traditional stilt house, an open air restaurant, an infinity pool, a spa area and a rock garden.

The bungalows highlight local ethnic styles with fishing basket lighting, wooden tables and chairs, and bamboo and rattan decorations. 

Prices range from VND640,000 to VND2.1 million a night. 

Less than 100km from downtown Hanoi, the Bai Dinh Garden Resort in Gia Vien District of Ninh Binh Province overlooks and is named after the world record holding Bai Dinh Pagoda. It has 22 hotel rooms and two bungalows featuring wooden furniture and eco-friendly materials. 

The resort has a restaurant, spa, swimming pool and gym. Guests can rent a bike to cycle through small ancient villages and green paddy fields. 

The Bai Dinh pagoda complex covering 1,700 hectares and boasting Asia's largest gold-plated bronze Buddha statue and longest Arhat corridor, is a must visit destination. 

Prices start at VND800,000 per person on weekdays.

Photos courtesy of the resorts