Packaged day tours are easily purchased round town, which will take you to a variety of sites. (An indignity not uncommon in the developing world — visitors from outside Vietnam are often required to pay double what Vietnamese pay for admission to many places when visiting individually.)

Dalat Countryside

Tours typically include a handful of stops like the following:

• The summer home of the colonial-era king of Vietnam which is modestly interesting.
• A striking, not-quite-finished fantasy house designed by the daughter of an independence war hero. Worth a visit if you are interested in architecture, or like Dr. Seuss-style surroundings.
• A set of flower gardens centered around a re-constructed traditional Vietnamese teakwood house.
• A hill-top pagoda coupled with a brief cable car ride over the pine forest.
• A ride in a land rover up to the top of Langbiang mountain, with nice views of Dalat and the surrounding mountains and valleys.

Other sites of interest:

Ho Xuan Huong Lake

• Ho Xuan Huong (Hồ Xuân HÆ°Æ¡ng) aka Xuan Huong lake, center of town. Open daily, all hours. No admission fee but rental fees vary if you want to boat. Approximately 5km in diameter, this lake was made after two dams on the Camly river were destroyed during a storm in the 1930s. Now, Xuan Huong lake is one of the main draws of Da Lat, and you can see honeymooners and locals strolling its banks. Many nice hotels have a view of the lake.
• Da Lat market filled with local specialities: strawberry jam, fruits conserves, avocado, artichoke.
• Da Lat train station: take the steam train through the 17km historical line to Trai Mat, from there you can visit the Linh Phuong pagoda.
• Ho Suoi Vang (Golden Spring lake). Rather unspoiled scenery.
• Monastery, at the top of where the cable car drops you off. The monastery has a magnificent view over the dams below and its gardens are full of landscaped shrubs in animal form – very comic! Extremely peaceful – a great place to relax and soak in the tranquility.
• Lang Biang mountain. The 1,900m peak is reachable by a paved path, ideal for a 3 hours hike. Also visit the minorities village under the mountain foot.

The Valley of Love

• Thung Lung Tinh Yeu (Thung LÅ©ng Tình Yêu) aka Valley of Love, Phu Duong Thien Vong street. Open daily until 5PM. Admission fee under US$1. About 5km outside of town, the Valley of Love is common stop on Dalat tours and is very popular with honeymooners. The Valley of Love is also a great spot for canyoning. See contact info below for canyoning operators.
• Lake of Sorrow or Lake of Sighs, 5km northeast of town on Ho Xuan Huong road. Admission fee under US$1. The Lake of Sorrow is another common destination in Dalat. The Lake of Sorrow is so-named because of a tale of two lovers, one who committed suicide after the other was called up to serve in the army. The exact tale changes depending on the age and gender of the storyteller!
• Tuyen Lam Lake (Hồ Tuyền Lâm), 5km south of town on highway 20. Its clean green waters flow from the beautiful Tia Spring and from the Da Tam River, which flows down from Voi mountain. Its waters stretch over an immense 350 hectares and because of its various sources, Tuyen Lam is known as the lake where rivers, springs and forests meet. The lake was built in the 80s. It is one of the largest and most beautiful lakes in town. The other side of the lake is the Voi mountain which is a good place for hiking.
• Prenn Falls, At the foot of Prenn Pass, about 10km outside of town. Open daily until 5PM. Admission fee under US$1. A very common stop on a typical Dalat tour, Prenn Falls is quite beautiful but is a lot more fun when you’re hiking it than just taking pictures of it.
• Pongour Falls, 30km south of town on highway 20, it’s one of the largest and widest waterfalls in Vietnam and during the wet season is a magnificent sight.

Travelfish

Tags: Dalat, Dalat Attractions, Dalat travel guide, Dalat Vietnam