The highland region becomes a torrent of water in the monsoon season attaining some of the heaviest rain falls in all of Vietnam. During the summer season, Dalat becomes a popular destination as its high altitude offers a slightly cooler temperature than the almost unbearable humid heat of the southern plains. This combined with its proximity to Ho chi Minh City has made of the epicentre of bizarre domestic tourism.

This section follows a route for those who enjoy getting off the beaten tracks. It is quite easy to include this detour as a circuit from the coast leaving and returning from either Qui Nhon and Nha Trang, with a separate excursion required to reach Dalat from Phan Rang or Ho chi Minh City. You will need to allow enough time for the roads that ca be quite a work-out on the kidneys, especially from Buon Ma Thuot to Nha Trang. The hilly landscape is also an open invitation for the local buses to break down. Two weeks would allow ample time to explore this historically significant are of Vietnam, whilst one week will present you with the bare essentials of the region.

The highlands area was only completely opened up to tourism in mid 1994 and the police here can still be a bit touchy. If you are going to wander the surrounding areas, better to do it with a guide as they can then organise the police side of the excursion. Another danger of walking out of town is that there is still a large amounts of left over ordnance from the war, so be careful. Who wants to get blown up on their holidays?

Walking tours of the area

The best thing to do in Kontum is to go for a wander around the surrounding area. You can easily keep yourself busy for a day or two thoroughly seeing the region. There are still many traditional hill tribe villages in and around Kontum, and the best way to visit these is with a guide. Kontum is still a fairly small town and is not too popular on the tourist trail.

Seminary

One sight worth seeing in Kontum is the seminary. The seminary was built over 80 years ago and is still looked after by a small group of priests. The building is still in quite good condition and has a grove of cherry blossoms in the front yard.

Churches

On Nguyen Hue street, there is a large church which is over 120 years old and is now being renovated. This church has beautiful stained glass windows. Beside it is the Montaguards church, called a Rong House, which is over 100 years old. This is recognisable by an extremely steep thatched roof, and is set about 2 m above the ground. The Montaguard church is entered by the tribes people only once a year. Also in town is a French Cathedral that is worth a visit. It is white but is streaked with black as if it has survived a fire.

Pleiku is a town with a large ethnic minority. Pleiku marks the junction of roads leading to Kontum, Buon Ma Thuot and Qui Nhon. This town was almost totally destroyed during the Vietnam war as it was home to an American base. If you intend being here during the monsoon season, you should know that Pleiku boasts the highest rainfall in the Central Highlands.

Jarai and Bahnar Tribes.

The one thing worth seeing in Pleiku is the Jarai and Bahnar tribes that live close by. The Jarai guild houses on stilts with a small hut out the front to keep their rice. The Bahnar also build their houses off the ground on stilts and have large balconies to work on. They have a community building called a Rong House where the elders meet for ceremonies and festivals. Inside they keep gongs, wine, drums and all the precious ceremonial artefacts. Shaman also use this large building for spiritual rituals such as the ‘prayer for rain’. The Rong House can only be entered by men.

The tombs of the tribes are also very interesting. They set up little thatch wooden huts over the tomb upon which they put the possessions of the deceased. Around the tomb there are four wooden pillars. On top are wooden carvings of men or monkeys that are guards to protect the body of the dead. The ceremony is very expensive so if the family of the deceased cannot afford it, the funeral party is held up to three years later.

The entire village population spends three days at the burial sight where a water buffalo is ceremonially sacrificed and subsequently used to feed the village. The head of the water buffalo is cut off and hung on the tomb, and the four hooves are cut off and placed on the four corners of the grave.

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Yaly Waterfall

There is a waterfall that you can visit 15 km north of Peiku towards Kontum. You will come across a large junction in the road where you make a left turn and continue to the end of the road.

Former Battlegrounds

There are number of former battlegrounds which can be visited from Pleiku including Ham Rong Mount, Plei Me post and the former 1^st Cavalry Division base at Hon Chong (in An Khe district).

Like Kontum and Pleiku, the main attraction of Buon Ma Thuot is not in the town itself but in the surrounding area. There are numerous ethnic minority villages and also some spectacular waterfalls, all of which are within day trip distances.

Although on the Central Highlands, Buon Ma Thuot is at a lower altitude than Dalat at 451 m, so does not necessarily offer the same escape from the hot weather.

Ede Minority Hilltribe

The Ede tribe (or Rhode) make the trip to Buon ma Thuot worthwhile. The tribe is primarily matriarchal. The women own the property and after marriage the man must move in with the woman’s family whose house is extended to accommodate them. The houses of the Ede tribes are long (up to 30 m) and thin (4 m). Each time there is a wedding in the family, the houses is extended like carriages of a train. Each section can be closed off and has its own door and kitchen. The houses are also on stilts and under the house they store wood, food and even livestock.

The Ede tribe have a different ceremony for their dead from the Bahnar at Pleiku. They bury the deceased just below the surface of the ground so that the spirit can fly to the heavens. Around the grave they keep wooden carvings of elephant tusks and on four pillars built around the grave they have four birds to protect the dead. The Ede tribe practice animistic beliefs.

Hill tribe museum

There is a very interesting Hill Tribe museum at 1 Doc Lap street. It shows some of the local equipment the Ede tribe use to hunt elephants. The museum also gives valuable information about the culture of the tribe.

Lak lake

Lak Lake is situated 50 km south of Buon Ma Thuot. To see the lake you must get a permit that costs USD 20 for a group of people. It is also possible to sleep in the Ede houses there. In this village, you can take an elephant ride for about three hours around the area.

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At one time Dalat was an ideal holiday retreat, set amongst the low hills of the Central Highlands. It was originally founded in 1897 by Alexander Yersin and Dalat city was established in 1912. The city served as a hill station for the French trying to escape the heat of the plains and delta. The city enjoys a year round spring like climate and this lovely setting and ideal climate have made the city a hit with domestic and foreign tourists alike.

Dalat has a charming French district behind the Rap 3-4 cinema, which is well worth exploring. This is also where a number of the hotels are situated. In the centre of town there is a large fresh produce market which sells some of the nicest strawberries (when in season) that you can ever hope to taste!

Dalat is also the centre of kitsch in Vietnam. Keep an eye out for the Dalat Cowboys, who ride around the town on horseback. You an also take a ride on a swan boat in the lake or buy one of the dozens of tacky trinkets on sale in the market.

Dalat has a lot worth visiting, especially if you are into kitsch. Dalat has the only eighteen hole golf course in Vietnam, and anyone can play a round there! A few hours could quite easily be spent riding bikes around the lake a stopping off at the interesting sights near it. The Botanical gardens also offers a lovely place to hang out.

Bao Dai’s Summer Palace

Set atop the ridge overlooking Dalat, this residence is one of the more bizarre building you can visit. The building is best described as complete art deco, designed perhaps to be in Paris rather than Dalat. Each room has a placard explaining the past events occurring in that room, keep an eye out for the Vietnamese getting into Bao Dai’s bed to have their photo taken! The villa is surrounded by a pine forest with some infrequently maintained gardens. Some of the Dalat Cowboys are also stationed here for Kodak moments. Emperor Bao Dai and his son, Bao Long, used to visit this residence in summer for hunting expeditions for elephants, tigers and other game animals.

Central Market

The thriving and colourful central market is set in the centre of Dalat, below the Rap 3-4 Cinema where Vietnamese and many ethnic minorities sell, buy and trade their wares. Depending on the season, this market carries a fantastic assortment of fresh produce and flowers. In January the strawberries are great. The markets are adorned by the colours of flowers that are in season at the time. Up the stairs from the market towards the cinema there is a small hilltribe market, where they sell a variety of tribal wares, including large embroidered wall hangings.

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Dalat Flower Garden

This flower is situated at the north end of Xuan Huong Lake beside the golf course. Dalat is famous for its flowers and many are exported overseas. This garden has a great selection of these flowers along with the animal hedges, silly rides and even sillier staged photos.

Prenn Waterfall

This waterfall is one of the largest in the area, and is situated 10 km south of Dalat, on the road to Phan Rang. The flow of water depends on the time of year that you visit and you can walk behind the falls along a small path. The falls are set in surrounding rainforest and the ride there is beautiful by bicycle or motorbike.

Chicken village

On the road out to Lien Khuong there is a tiny village worth visiting. This village is known as the Chicken Village. In the centre of town there is a huge concrete statue of a rooster! The village is known as the Chicken village, not because of the statue but because it was once a matriarchal society. In the mid 70s, disillusioned with government policies, the villagers retreated into the hills. Once the government finally encouraged them to return to town they erected the statue, in recognition of the villagers’ efforts. Perhaps the village should now be known as the rooster village, but the old name has stuck.

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Lam Ty Ni pagoda

This small pagoda is inhabited by one eccentric man, who has lived here for over twenty years. He is always very cheerful and spends his time painting. He claims that during his life he has painted over 80,000 paintings, many of which he sells. They are in a wide variety of sizes and if you buy one he will come up with a name such as "Looking at this picture all sorrow dissolves into nothing" before handing it to you . he has also cultivated all the gardens and made much of the furniture. He speaks English, French, Thai and Vietnamese.