As the largest city in Dak Lak, Buon Ma Thuot has the typical beauty of the Central Highlands, convenient transportation and many unique tourist attractions, the land of coffee attracts tourists to explore.
What season is beautiful in Buon Ma Thuot?
The best time to visit Buon Ma Thuot is from late December to April, when the air is still a bit chilly, the plateau is gentle and quiet. Visitors will admire the white coffee flower gardens, as long as the soft arms of a young girl, or when the po lang flowers bloom red all over the sky.
The mountainous climate is quite cold in the morning, so you should bring warm clothes. You should enjoy the fresh air in the early morning by walking. If you travel to Buon Ma Thuot from May to October, you need to prepare rain gear, warm clothes, mosquito repellent and especially sturdy walking shoes because some destinations have red dirt roads that are slippery
How to Get to Buon Ma Thuat
You can travel by plane, car, bus or motorbike to Buon Ma Thuot city depending on your starting point. The road between the attractions is not too difficult. Motorbikes are the most flexible means of transport, with the cost of renting a manual motorbike from 100,000 VND, and a scooter from 120,000 VND per day. Many roads have livestock grazing freely, so you should observe from a distance and limit your speed.
Accommodation
The central area of Buon Ma Thuot includes Nguyen Tat Thanh, Le Duan, Hung Vuong, Phan Chu Trinh streets..., tourists should find hotels nearby for convenient travel. Hotels and motels in the center cost from 300,000 VND per night, rooms are about 25m2 for two people. In addition, if you want to experience the lifestyle of the local people here, you can stay in tourist villages, in collective houses in long houses from 70,000 VND per person, stilt houses 200,000 VND per night, or lakeside resorts from about 1,500,000 VND per night.
Where to play
The most typical place of the Central Highlands is probably Buon Ma Thuot, the main city of Dak Lak . Buon Ma Thuot is considered the cradle of the Central Highlands gong cultural space, which has been recognized by UNESCO as an oral masterpiece and an intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
Buon Ma Thuot Victory Monument
Ban Me Six-Way Junction is where the Victory Monument is located. The monument is considered a symbol of the city, likened to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. The highlight here is the steel tank number 980 - the vehicle that opened the historic battle of the Vietnamese army into the city.
To get to almost every street in the city, you have to go through this intersection. The intersection is also where many important works of the city are concentrated, such as the Cathedral, Dak Lak Museum, the provincial cultural house... Nguyen Tat Thanh or Le Duan street runs straight to the monument, very wide, airy, with large sidewalks, suitable for walking and relaxing. In the afternoon, the monument area is not too crowded, so you don't have to wait long to take souvenir photos like in the evening.
Dak Lak Museum
Dak Lak Museum , located on Y Ngong Street in the center of Buon Ma Thuot City, is where visitors can learn about the land of elephants and coffee in the Central Highlands. The building is designed based on the typical long house architecture of the Ede community, the most populous ethnic group in Dak Lak. Inside the museum, about 1,000 artifacts are preserved and displayed introducing the history, natural geography and culture of indigenous ethnic communities such as Ede, Mnong, Gia-rai, Xo-dang, Gie Trieng, Ma...
In addition, the museum is also a large green space no less than a park with many ancient trees and long grass - a place where many people choose to rest, enjoy the cool air and exercise every day. Connected to the museum is Bao Dai Palace, the residence of the last king of the Nguyen Dynasty in Buon Ma Thuot.
Bao Dai Palace
The palace is now part of the Dak Lak Museum, located in a 7-hectare area surrounded by many ancient trees over 100 years old. With over 80 years of existence, the palace bears the bold appearance of the Central Highlands mountain and forest architecture. Currently, it preserves many artifacts and images of historical value from the war against the French and Americans. This is an interesting place for tourists who love to learn about history.
Don't forget to take a photo "check-in" with the most famous camphor tree in the mountain town. The camphor tree in the villa is recognized as a heritage tree of Vietnam with a height of 30 m, many large branches, and an age of nearly 100 years.
World Coffee Museum
Nearly 3 km from Dak Lak Museum, the World Coffee Museum is a must-see attraction when coming to Buon Ma Thuot because of its unique architecture, which many tourists consider as "Western heaven" in the middle of the mountain town. The impressive exhibition space tells the story of coffee around the world. With a ticket price of 70,000 VND, the coffee museum not only brings you a lot of useful information but is also a place for young people to create countless photos in the style of contemporary art.
Trung Nguyen Coffee Village
This is not only a famous place to buy coffee but also designed as a miniature park. You may not need to buy any products, do not need to drink water in the shop but can still visit this complex for free. The miniature landscapes are beautifully designed, magnificent such as large waterfalls, bridges, streams, ponds, stilt houses... with tourists coming and going bustlingly. This area does not sell tickets so you can freely go in and out to take pictures and have fun.
If you have time, you can also stop by Mehyco Cafe Paradise which is similar but on a slightly smaller scale.
Ea Ka Lake
Ea Kao Lake is located on the outskirts of the city, bringing the peaceful beauty of a large body of water. In the afternoon, many young people often walk around the lake, chatting, eating and quietly watching the sunset.
The lake is located 12 km from the center of Buon Ma Thuot city, in Ea Kao commune. There is an irrigation project here that has been in operation since 1983, but the space is still pristine. Under the lake is a diverse ecosystem with many species of fish and freshwater shrimp. Surrounding the lake are rolling hills and mountains with rich flora.
No matter what time of year you go, Ea Kao is an ideal destination for locals and tourists to visit and relax.
The local specialty that is passed down by word of mouth is fried bananas at the beginning of Y Wang Street. When you get to the lake, order a glass of sugarcane juice, take a bite of fried bananas and enjoy the sunset in the middle of the lake to feel the peace.
Khai Doan Pagoda
This is the largest pagoda in Buon Ma Thuot city. With the skillful hands of the Hue ancient capital's clay workers, the pagoda has an ancient beauty with Hue's traditional house architecture that will make visitors feel like they are returning to ancient architecture.
Buon Ma Thuot Cathedral
Sacred Heart Church is located at 2 Phan Chu Trinh Street, Tan Loi Ward. This is the cathedral of Buon Ma Thuot Diocese. Since the 1930s, this place has been a thatched-roof and mud-walled chapel. The current construction was completed in 1959.
Buon Ma Thuot Prison
Buon Ma Thuot Prison was established and built by the French colonialists to exile and detain cadres and party members who were arrested and sentenced to heavy sentences in the Central provinces. The project covers an area of 2 hectares, with many items such as: detention house, management house, medical house, kitchen - dining room, education house, torture area, workshop, chapel, office area... These projects were built and operated in 2 stages: 1931-1945 during the French colonial period and 1954-1975 during the resistance war against the US.
Ako Dhong Village
Ako Dhong village, also known as Co Thon village of Ma Rin village of the Ede people, is more than 2 km from Buon Ma Thuot city center. In the Ede language, "Ako" means source, "Dhong" means valley. Ako Dhong village has 27 traditional long houses of the Ede people, dozens of households have taken advantage of available things to do business and tourism. Come to the village near Tet to experience the traditional lifestyle and vibrant gong nights.
10/3 Square
The square is located in the center of Buon Ma Thuot city, spacious and less encroached by surrounding shops. Children often come here to play, fly kites, ride tandem bicycles, rent cyclos, roller skate... in the cool afternoons. In the evening, this area is really crowded. Food and beverage shops are bustling and bustling. Many people also bring newspapers and mats to spread out in the square and rest, eat and drink...
Around the 10/3 square area, there are many beer bars designed as quite lively beer clubs. The space is comfortable, friendly, very suitable for sitting and enjoying the breeze.
Lee's Hillside Picnic Area
With many miniatures depicting Mongolia, Bali, Dubai... the outdoor photo area is currently an attractive check-in spot for young people. Visitors can rent from traditional Vietnamese costumes or other countries, to modern costumes for 100,000 - 150,000 VND per set to take photos in many different styles. However, the available costumes are mainly for women.
The entrance fee to visit and take pictures of the whole area is 70,000 VND per person, plus 50,000 VND if taking pictures with camels. The picnic area is located at No. 37, Village 8, Cu Ebur Commune, about 10 km from the center of Buon Ma Thuot City, open from 8am to 5pm daily.
What to Eat in Buon Ma Thuat: Local Cuisine Guide
Enjoy famous dishes of Buon Ma Thuot such as chicken with fire, chicken cooked with giang leaves, sour soup with catfish , specialties of the Serepork river, bamboo rice, bitter eggplant salad ... In addition, there are some "snack" dishes such as grilled meat rice paper, grilled spring rolls, fish noodle soup, red vermicelli , beef dipped in tamarind, grilled durian .
When it comes to grilled pork rolls, you should not miss the famous restaurant on Tran Nhat Duat Street, which opens from 2pm every day. The rolls are served with pickles, green mango, grilled meat and pork roll. Each piece of rolls is quickly flipped by the seller onto a plate and quickly brought to the table. You can eat this dish forever without getting tired of it because it comes with green mango and pickles.
An interesting specialty is bun chia, made from the large piece of meat behind the pig's leg. Without being fussy about the ingredients, the large piece of "chia" meat is the most delicious and impressive part of the bowl of bun. You can enjoy this dish at 222 Nguyen Tat Thanh for 65,000 VND per bowl.
Coffee
Buon Ma Thuot is known as a coffee paradise , the bitter taste here seems to be impossible to repeat anywhere. Coming to Buon Ma Thuot without enjoying coffee is a real shortcoming. You have countless choices between famous coffee shops such as Azzan, Soul Roastery, StoneVillage or Trung Nguyen village...
ARUL Coffee is a shop with a strong Central Highlands character. The shop is not located in a prime location in the city center, but in Ako Dhong village, one of the richest villages in the Central Highlands. The space depicts the characteristics of traditional Ede culture.
According to coffee connoisseurs, Soul Roastery is a suitable place for young people with a spacious industrial-style space and a variety of beverage products. Each drink costs about 30,000 - 70,000 VND, the same price as coffee in big cities, but you will find it worth the money.
