Accommodation.
There’s plenty of accommodation to go round in Da Lat. Booking is optional; you’ll be really unlucky not to just walk into a place off of the street. Most bus companies have an “affiliation” with a hotel so will end their journey there. If you have made a reservation already, then let your driver know where you want to go.
Most offer hot water and some provide a kettle and an umbrella – let that tell you something about the climate! Breakfast is standard and a lot of the hotels have Wi-Fi and internet access. Do check the rooms for damp before handing over your passport and signing for the room.
Binh Yen
Address: 7 Hai Thuong street
Prices from: Double/Twin $10, Family room $20
Includes: En-suite, fan Wi-Fi, fridge, kettle, hair-dryer, breakfast
Tel: +84 633 823 631 Email: hotelbinhyen@gmail.com
Web: www.binhyenhotel.com
Well organised and good quality rooms. There are cheaper options in the area, but the few dollars that you would save yourself and well spent on this accommodation. The daily tourist bus from Mui Ne terminates here. They also house a local motorbike tour company.
Pink House Villa Hotel
Address: 7 D Hai Thuong
Prices from: Single $9, Double/Twin $15, Triple $20
Includes: Wi-Fi
Tel: 063 381 5667 Email: aHomeAwayFromHome_Dalat@yahoo.com
Friendly and well run but be careful of the curfew if the owner decides to lock up whilst you're out!
The Hotel Phuong Hanh
Address: 80-82 D 3 Thang 2
Prices from: Single $, Double/Twin $, Family
Includes: Wi-Fi
Tel: +84 63 383 8839 Email: Web:
More information to follow.
Eating and Drinking
As mentioned, Da Lat is a tourist destination for both Vietnamese and international travellers. Subsequently you have a wide range of choices. The market area in the evening is a fantastic place to head for snacks (do try the crispy pancakes).
Nhat Ly
Address: 88 D Phan Dinh Phung
Local Vietnamese food with steaming bowls of noodles which are always welcome if you’ve had bad weather that day.
The Hang Out
Address: 71 D Truong Cong Dinh
Housed beneath the family home, they have a free pool table (expect to get beaten by the owner) DVD’s playing and good cold beer! A very friendly place for a beer and a popular “hang out” for all types of
international travellers.
The Peace Café
Address: 64 Truong Cong Dinh
Offering backpacker fare at backpacker prices. This is also a popular place to stay.
Saigon Nite
Address: 11a D Hai Ba Trung
A little bit away from the other bars and restaurants, this was once a popular place with travellers. Alas now it seems the heating, lights & music are only turned on when someone walks through the door. A friendly enough place but I doubt there’ll be a rush at the bar.
Travel
Bus Prices and information
Onward buses are available south to Ho Chi Minh several times a day from the main bus station, as well as services to the rest of the country. In addition Generally the hotels charge +$1 per person over the cost of the ticket but they do organise transport to the bus station as well, so it’s well worth it. Travelling over to Mui Ne is by minibus that will collect you from your hotel.
Guided Tour
Easy Rider Day Tour
Address: 66 Truong Cong Dinh
Web: www.easyrider-tours.com
Without a doubt the best way to get the most out of a visit to Da Lat is with someone from Da Lat. There are Easy Rider operations all over the country now, following the success of the original outfit (whoever and wherever they started it all!?!?!). Prices have risen in recent years – in 2010 we were offered a half-day trip from De Nang to Hoi An for $6 whereas now they want more like $30+ per person. Ask to meet your guide before hand – though it will generally be the person that is trying to sell you the tour. Gauge how knowledgeable they are and how good their English is. The best way is to pop along to their shop, sit down and have a beer and get them to help plan your day. They are a motorbike tour company, but that said they can organise other options mixing bikes and people-carrier is another option. For more read our blog from our visit. The following were all taken as part of this tour.
Truc Lam Pagoda
Admission: Free
This busy temple is a destination for large numbers of Vietnamese tourists. With Tuyem Lam Lake to its rear, it is very tranquil in parts affording many the chance to meditate. Schedule yourself at least one hour to walk around the site. Dalat's cable car is also a nice way to see the town and its surrounding countryside while visiting the relatively recently built Truc Lam Pagoda. [
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Chicken Village
Admission: Free
A local village, named after the giant chicken sculpture that greets you from the main road. It’s that large that there is actually an trap-door that the local kids climb up into it from! The village is still pretty much a working village, and the bike tours like to take you here to promote local businesses as well as to give you a chance to see rural life close up. The local school backs up against fields full of working parents. You’ll no doubt get the chance to engage with the young children of the village who are always eager to see foreigners with their cameras. If you’re thinking about taking sweets along on your tour to give to children, consider picking up fruit from the market in Da Lat instead. Although this is a rural area, the crops are usually salad and they are generally ear-marked for sale already. So a punnet of strawberries will get a fantastic response!
Rice Wine Production
Admission: Free
There are many small winery’s in the area. The rice is fermented in traditional methods still and the left-over husks and mash are generally fed to their pigs. Is this why pork tastes so good in Vietnam? If you’re part of a guided tour or not, it is polite to offer a small amount of dong to pay for any samples you and your group try.
Mushroom Farm
Admission: Free
I was surprised at how little I knew about mushrooms and the process of growing them. These open farms can be visited without a guide.
Silkworm Farm
Admission: Free
Every spare piece of land was being used for feeding the worms; in trays and across the farmhouse floor.
Silk Factory
Admission: Free
Amazingly most of the process is still done by traditional methods. The silkworm chrysalis is put into hot water and from here the local women make the thread. There are also machines here working to traditional pattern-plates (punched card) that were considered the first means of computer language!
Elephant Falls
Admission: 10,000d
The falls can be viewed from the top, just a short walk from the roadside, but you’ll get much better views from the bottom. There are steps but it is slippery and the steps are uneven. The further you get down the harder it gets but it is well worth the effort. To the side of the falls at the bottom you can stand and feel the force of nature as the power of the water thundering down blasts moist air out to the sides.
Linh An Pagoda
Admission: Free
At first glance this pagoda seems quite plain, apart from the two side Buddha’s with many arms in the main hall. The true treasure though is the enormous white Buddha statue around the right side of the pagoda, which sports a massive cheeky grin. It isn’t somewhere I’d make a specific journey to visit, but you can walk to here from the Elephant falls in a matter of minutes.
Sites
These are all within easy walking distance of the centre of Da Lat.
Cam ly waterfalls
Admission: 10,000d
Quite a few of the travel guides now omit these waterfalls from their writing. And if you visited you’d start to understand why. These falls are geared up more for the Vietnamese tourist trade with the obligatory cowboy and horse, giant statues of animals and tat stalls selling reminders of your visit. The falls themselves aren’t really much to see, so if you’re considering a guided tour to one of the other falls, don’t waste your time or effort.
Du Sinh Church
Admission: Free
A little way out from Da Lat, this church really stands out on its own. The entrance is actually at the back of the church, not at the main gates to the front. Follow the fence around and you’ll get there. The churches construction is clearly influenced by Europe and Asia.
Linh Son Pagoda
Admission: Free
A short walk out of the centre of Da Lat brings you to this very charming pagoda. As with other pagodas in Vietnam, it is still a working place of worship. Some beautiful budha statues in the front gardens and a water-feature at the back depicting the story of Tripitaka from the novel ”A journey to the West”. [
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Bao Dai’s Summer House
Admission: 8,000d
More interesting than the palace are the Vietnamese tourists who take photographs of each other in various poses around the house, making it look as though they are actually at home. Sitting the in chairs or leaning in a windowsill, much the same as Bao Dai may have done. Built in 1933 it really has retained its features giving you a “step back in time” experience.
