Do you have the desire to explore Vietnam Central Highlands but don't know how to start? Check out the top 10 best things to do in the Central Highlands Vietnam.

1. About Central Highlands Vietnam

The Central Highlands, also known as the South Central, is an area with plateau topography formed by five provinces of Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong and Lam Dong. Different from the hustle and bustle of Saigon, or the poetry of Hanoi capital, the Central Highlands put on the beauty of grandeur. The Central Highlands adorns itself with its people, the air and the beauty of the land, clouds, and mountains.

Coming to the Central Highlands Vietnam, tourists seem to be lost in the land of the great blue sky, of the stretching mountains, winding steep passes and murmuring waterfalls flowing. There is also an epic that is passed down from generation to generation, a world-recognized traditional cultural space.

The Central Highlands Vietnam has a climate divided into two distinct seasons, the rainy season and the dry season, so this place possesses extremely rich and diverse natural resources and is the destination for many tourists who like the freshness of nature. 

The Central Highlands is the land of thousands of waterfalls, mysterious mountains and forests, and immense coffee and rubber. This is the home of more than 45 ethnic groups with unique customs and habits. In particular, the characteristics of the gong cultural space in the Central Highlands have been recognized by UNESCO as a masterpiece of humanity's intangible culture.

With the unique beauty of nature - culture - people, the Vietnam Central Highlands will be a perfect choice for domestic and foreign tourists. Vietnam Original Travel believes that, when leaving the Central Highlands, visitors will definitely still bring with them the beautiful, majestic but mysterious image of this land.

2. Top 10 things to do in the Vietnam Central Highlands

Coming to Central Highlands, whether tourists choose a short-term itinerary of 3-5 days or a long-term trip of 10 days, do not ignore top 10 things to do in the Central Highlands Vietnam in order to preserve the most unforgettable memories with the sunny and windy Central Highlands.

2.1. Drinking a cup of pure coffee

Dubbed the red basalt area with vast coffee fields and also the supply of coffee agricultural products of Vietnam, a cup of coffee in the Central Highlands is the most valuable experience for visitors when coming here.

Sitting amidst the harmony of the sun and the wind, the fresh air of heaven and earth and the majestic nature, the cup of coffee in the Central Highlands Vietnam is raised to a new height, bringing the taste of original coffee quality from selected coffee beans. 

2.2 Immersing yourself in a Gong session

It would be regrettable and incomplete if you come to the Central Highlands Vietnam without immersing yourself in the Gong cultural festival. The Central Highlands Gong culture has been considered an intangible cultural heritage of the ethnic minorities here. The Gong is a copper alloy musical instrument, sometimes mixed with gold, silver or black bronze. 

It's great to immerse yourself in the vastness of majestic heaven and earth, covered with mountains and forests, intertwined with the sound of waterfalls and melodies of unique musical instruments. This scene demonstrates a Central Highlands with rich culture, long tradition and strong national solidarity.

The Gong performances are held mainly on festive occasions such as the ceremony of leaving the grave, the ceremony of worshiping the water trough and often visitors participating in these festivals will also have the opportunity to enjoy traditional wines. It is also a unique specialty of the vast Central Highlands.

2.3 Enjoying the nature of Ta Dung Lake 

If in Hoi An, there is Hoi An’s Ancient Town, in Hue, there is Hue Ancient Capital, in the Vietnam Central Highlands, there is Ta Dung Lake. Ta Dung Lake was originally a valley on Ta Dung mountain, in Dak Som commune, Dak G'long district, Dak Nong province. Like a striking blue mirror in the middle of the wild mountains of the Central Highlands, this place has captivated many tourists when they arrived. Many people also affectionately nicknamed this place "Ha Long Bay of the Central Highlands". 

When viewed from above, Ta Dung Lake looks like a miniature Ha Long ink painting. The clear blue water is dotted with mountains and small hills covered with green trees. In addition to enjoying the panoramic view of Ta Dung, tourists can go down to the lake to experience Ta Dung Lake by boat, or even camp overnight here.

2.4. Discovering the architecture of the Communal house

The communal house - an invaluable cultural symbol of the ethnic communities in the Central Highlands Vietnam, embodies the material and spiritual values in the lives of the people here. The communal house in the Central Highlands has a very unique building architecture, different from ordinary houses in Vietnam.

The communal house is a typical type of house on stilts, built on columns a certain distance from the ground and using the main material of wood, besides combining with bamboo, rattan, cork, leaves, grass... The communal house is usually the meeting place of the village and receives distinguished guests.

Currently, the Central Highlands has recorded the largest communal house in Kon So Lal village with a width of more than 320 square meters and a height of 20 meters.

2.5 Conquering the Indochina T-junction

Bo Y border gate, also known as Indochina T-junction, is an important national territory milestone because it is the border junction between Vietnam - Laos - Cambodia. People often liken that when standing here, a rooster crows all three countries will be able to hear it. That is also the reason why tourists should not miss this place when visiting the Central Highlands.

More specifically, visitors to Indochina T-junction will conveniently move through the surrounding areas to visit more. You can follow the path of more than 10 km around the hills and climb the stairs to reach the border gate located on the top of the mountain.

2.6 Rowing boat to explore Lak lake

Lak Lake is the majestic symbol of Dak Lak. This is the largest natural lake in the region. Lak Lake has wild beauty and fresh air. The appearance of the M'Nong ethnic village living around the lake is the highlight of the unique culture of Lak Lake.

Most especially, visitors coming to the lake will not only enjoy the scenery but also relax by boating around the lake, watching Gong performances, and swimming. Watching the sunrise and sunset in Lak Lake is the most perfect way for tourists to stay away from the hustle and bustle of Saigon.

2.7 Experiencing the unique Leaf Salad

Tourists who like to experience unique dishes will not be able to ignore Leaf Salad when coming to the Central Highlands Vietnam. If your itinerary includes the northernmost region of the Central Highlands (Kon Tum), then visit the mountainous region to experience the specialty of the Central Highlands leaf salad.

Leaf salad is made from 40 different types of leaves mixed together. There are leaves that will only be found in the mountains and forests of the Central Highlands such as brooch leaves, bamboo leaves, big compassion leaves, red pronged leaves.... 

This dish is usually served with pork belly, roasted shrimp, thinly sliced pork skin mixed with roasted glutinous rice flour. The most impressive feature of Leaf Salad is the dipping sauce of this delicious dish. Leaf salad dipping sauce is not ordinary fish sauce or soy sauce, but fermented glutinous rice.

2.8 Conquering the fierce waterfalls

With the majestic unspoiled nature, the Vietnam Central Highlands possess countless massive waterfalls scattered in provinces and cities including Yaly waterfall in Kon Tum, Thuy Tien waterfall, etc. Near Buon Ma Thuot city, there are also beautiful waterfalls such as Dray Sap, Dray Anour, and Dray H'Linh.

2.9 Enjoying the fresh air of Pleiku Gia Lai tea hill

On the journey to discover the Central Highlands, take some time to enjoy the fresh air of green tea hills, also known as Bien Ho tea in Pleiku. It is known that tea plantations in Pleiku have appeared for a long time, estimated in the years 1919 - 1920, due to the French colonization.

Tourists to Pleiku tea hills will not only be captivated by the aroma of tea but also be immersed in the stunning beauty of the surrounding scenery. Leading into the green tea plantations are two sides covered with coniferous pine trees. The golden sunlight on the tea hill will create a beautiful scene, giving visitors great photos with the Central Highlands.

2.10 Visiting the World Coffee Museum

Whenever tourists come to Buon Me Thuot City, the World Coffee Museum is the destination that must have to be on the list of their itinerary. The World Coffee Museum consists of museum display spaces, exhibitions, light libraries, coffee viewing, seminars, etc…connected with open spaces inside the coffee park. There are currently more than 10,000 coffee artifacts on display at the museum, taken from Jens Burg's coffee museum, Germany.

Tourists who come here will be overwhelmed by the extremely modern architecture but still honor the long-standing cultural values of this place. Specifically, the World Coffee Museum consists of 5 buildings with polymorphic and flexible curves. 

These 5 buildings intersect each other, combined with the typical and familiar longhouse architect of the Central Highlands. All have been integrated and created a very unique miniature Central Highlands space. This is also a favorite place for many young people because of the beautiful check-in places.

The Central Highlands Vietnam has always been an interesting destination for tourists whether domestic or abroad. Take note immediately of the destinations and activities mentioned above so that you can have the most memorable journey to discover the Vietnam Central Highlands.

Or if you want to design your own journey to discover the Central Highlands Vietnam according to your preferences, the customized your own tour service of Vietnam Original Travel is the ideal choice for you!

Vietnam Central Highland Tour