Introduction
Dalat is a city located
on Lang Biang highlands – part of the Central Highlands region of Vietnam.
Because of its history, special architecture, unique climate features and wide range
of beautiful spots, Dalat is known as one of the most popular tourist
destinations of Vietnam.
Indeed, it is also called
by some interesting names such as the city of flowers, the city of love, the
city of spring and the city of mist.
Geography
Da Lat is located in Lam Vien Plateau
where has the altitude of 1,500 meters above sea level, the northern province
of Lam Dong. It is adjacent Lac Duong
district to the north, to the east and southeast with Don Duong district, west
and southwest with two Lam Ha and Duc Trong district. Dalat has an area of over
400 square kilometers, surrounded by successive high peaks and mountain ranges.
History
Da Lat was found in 1983 when Dr.
Alexandre Yersin set foot on Lam Vien plateau and thanks to that, he gave a very
convincing idea when Paul Doumer - the governor general of French Indochina,
looked for a high location to create a resort. Since then, Da Lat city was
gradually formed and also had its ups and downs.
According to some sources, the name
derives from the acronym of the Latin phrase 'Dat Aliis Laetitiam Aliis
Temperiem' ("It Gives Pleasure to Some, Freshness to Others"), which
the French colonial government used in their official emblem of Đà Lạt. In reality, the name Da Lat has
origin from the language of the local ethnic group Lạt and its original meaning is
"Stream of the Lạt".
Population
Throughout hundred years of history, from a central
resort became a major urban, Da Lat’s community changes with its formation and
development process. In 2011, Da Lat has a population of 211,696 people, accounting for 17.4% of the
population of Lam Dong province, the
density of 536 people / km². In the past, Da Lat was residence for many people
who have diverse origins: from Kinh group, Co ho group to the Chinese, the
French. Nowadays, the major inhabitants of city is Kinh group, and the rest is
the Chinese, Co ho group and other minority ethnic such as Tay, Nung, Cham.
Sightseeing
Lang Biang mountain is located in Lac Duong
District, Lam Dong Province; 12km north of center Dalat. With its height of
2,169m above the sea level associated with a privileged view of the city of Da
Lat and the Valley, Lang Biang mountains is known as the roof of Dalat. It is
an ideal place for mountain climbing, paragliding, trekking or studying flora
and rare bird species. Therefore, it has not only been an attractive tourist
site but also kept a legend about a passionate love. The most striking feature
of Lang Biang are statues of the eternal lovers, called Lang and Biang, couple
whose history and legend gives name to the mountains Lang Biang.
Da Lat flower gardens is at the end of Xuan Huong Lake, about 2km from Da Lat next
to the Cu Hill, is vivid. With its cooler mountain climate, Da Lat is perfect
for growing a wide variety of flowers. In addition to various types of
Vietnamese flowers, it also has lots of special types of flower from other
countries such as Dutch tulip, Japanese chrysanthemum, and camellia… It is said
that looking at the flowers in Dalat, visitors will imagine beautiful girls who
are in love. The best time to see the vast charming attractiveness of this
Dalat “speciality” is in winter season, especially in December and January when
the Flower Festival is held.
Da Lat Railway Station is a railway station on
the Da Lat–Thap Cham Railway line in Vietnam, serving the town of Da Lat in Lam
Đong Province. It was designed in 1932 by French architects Moncet and Reveron,
and opened in 1938. The Ministry of Culture and Information certified the Da
Lat railway station as a national historical and cultural site in 2001. And Da
Lat railway station was also considered the nicest ancient railway station in
all Indochina.
Bao Dai palace includes 3 palace:
palace I, palace II and palace III. Among palace III is also known as Bao Dai summer
palace
because it was constructed from 1933 to 1937 as a retreating place for King Bao
Dai and his royal family to escape the summer heat. Today, tourists can find it
on Trieu Viet Vuong street, far from centre of Da Lat 2 kilometers to the
southwest. Visiting this place, you have a chance to discover the living of the
royal family with 25 rooms and 2 floors. Inside the palace, there are many
valuable items still preserved in good condition. They include several
sculptures of royal family, the life-size white bust of Bao Dai himself and a
smaller gold.
Xuan Huong lake is the most beautiful
lake in Da Lat. It is an artificial lake with an area of 25 hectares. This lake
has crescent-moon-shaped stretching 7 km through several other attractions such
as Flower Gardens, Yersin park and Cu hill. The surface of the lake is as
smooth as a mirror reflecting the romantic scenery of Dalat with pine forests,
meadows and gardens. Nowadays, visitors can not only enjoy strolling along the
lakeside but also resting under the conifers, pedal-boating on the lake while
admiring the spectacular architecture of Thuy Ta Pavilion. Moreover, you can
ride a boat to discover the beauty of the lake. As its perfect face, Xuan Huong
lake is also an ideal destination for your honeymoon.
Valley of Love is one of the most
romantic spots in Dalat. It sits around 6km north east of the city centre. In
the beginning, the valley was called Vallée D’amour by the French before being
renamed The Valley of Piece. In 1935, its beauty and captivation persuaded
people to once again name it after the most wonderful thing in the world: Love.
Throughout history, it has been one of the most picturesque and romantic sites
of the city, with many deep valleys and endless pine forests. In 1972, there was
a dam built across the valley forming Da Thien Lake, which much enhances the
seductive beauty here and helps make the valley a common stop for tourists
whenever coming to Dalat. There are also many exciting activities here such as
paddle boats, 15-person canoes, noise-making motorboats, horse riding with
horse rented by cowboy-dressed guides. Valley of Love has long been a favorite
destination for tourists nationwide, especially for honeymooners thanks to its
romantic and dreaming sceneries.
Truc Lam Monastery is located outside the
centre of Da Lat. It sits on Phung Hoang mountain, near Tuyen Lam Lake, around
4 km the centre of Da Lat. The area of this temple is 24 hectars. It is
considered as the largest monastery in the country in terms of both space and
scale gatherings. The statue in the main ceremonial hall is of Gautama Buddha
seated on a lotus, flanked on either side by Văn Thù Sư Lợi and Phổ Hiền bodhisattvas,
respectively known for their wisdom and dedication. Monastery has over 100 monks
focusing from lots of places all over the country.
Gastronomy
Dalat has countless restaurants to
serve all visitors who have different strata including staffs, officers,
business, …Besides they also offer special food from many places of Lam Dong province
as well as central and southern Vietnamese dishes and a fair number of Western
and French inspired eateries, bars and restaurants. That serves every budget
and aspirations. In addition, while visiting Da Lat, you will be surprised to
discover restaurants and street food stalls with dishes representative of all
three regions of Viet Nam. For breakfast in the morning or a quick meal at
night, you can enjoy phở (rice noodle soup) from
the north or bún bò Huế (Hue beef noodle) from
Thua Thien Hue Province in central Viet Nam.
Climate
Located at an altitude of 1,500 meters compared with sea level and is surrounded by forest,
especially pine, so differ from the tropical monsoon climate of central and the
tropical savanna in the southern, Da Lat enjoys a cool climate all year-round.
That leads it to be nicknamed the “City of eternal spring”.
There are two separate seasons in Da
Lat. The rainy season lasts from May to October, and the dry season is from
November to April. The average temperature is 14 °C - 23 °C. The highest
temperature ever in Da Lat was 29.8 °C, and the lowest was 4.3C. There are 161
rainy days per year and the average annual precipitation is 1,770mm. Rain
usually concentrates in July, September and October. In addition, mist covers
the adjoining valleys almost year-round. Though the temperature rises slightly
during the summer months from May to August and drops to a chilly point at
night. Humidity is high, though nothing compared with lowland cities or coastal
provinces. Therefore, the stable weather means that any time can be an
excellent time to visit Dalat and a good duration for agriculture. Indeed, Da
Lat is renowned for its orchids, roses, vegetables, and fruits. There are
nascent wine-making and flower-growing industries in the region.
Get
in
By air
Da Lat is well connected to Hanoi and
Ho Chi Minh City by daily flights operated by Vietnam Airlines. This is the
quickest way to get to Da Lat. Flight time from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Lat is
about 45 minutes and from Hanoi is about 1 hour 40 minutes.
By bus
The cheaper way to visit Dalat is by bus. From Ho Chi Minh City, Mui
Ne or Nha Trang, you can book your bus ticket to Dalat. From Nha Trang, the bus
ride is about 5 hours. From Ho Chi Minh City, the bus ride is about 7 hours (9
hours if there is bad traffic leaving Saigon). If coming from Mui Ne, as the
road is rough most of the way, so it may take longer.
By car or motorbike
From HCMC, taking the inland (Highway
20) route to Dalat via Bao Loc and Di Linh is faster than taking the coastal
route (Highway 1A) via Ngoan Muc Pass.
