The northwestern region of Việt Nam is a magical combination of alpine landscapes, ethnic culture, and bracing mountain air. This region draws travellers not only to its scenery and colourful hill tribe residents, but also to its dishes, the most popular of which is "buffalo meat hung up in kitchen" (otherwise known as smoked buffalo meat). In Vietnamese, it is called thịt trâu gác bếp. The closest Western equivalent would be beef jerky.
Located between Ban Gioc waterfall and Nguom Ngao cave in Dam Thuy commune, Trung Khanh district, Cao Bang province, the rock village Khuoi Ky is famous for its stilt houses built from rocks. The name “rock village” and the Rock God worship tradition in this border area have attracted tourists to come to visit.
Tam Thanh commune in Tam Ky city, Quang Nam district boasts a rich art culture and beautiful landscapes. Vietnam’s first mural village has been formed in this commune.
If rice is a staple of Vietnamese daily meals, then giò (Vietnamese sausage) is considered the staple of special occasions, such as Tết (the Lunar New Year), wedding parties and ancestors’ death anniversary.
Hà Nội’s autumn is also the season for cốm or young sticky rice flakes. Cốm can be eaten directly or enjoyed with bananas like a snack. It can also be mixed with other food ingredients to create a variety of tasty dishes, including chả cốm (Vietnamese cốm sausage) and cốm xào (browned green sticky rice).
The five-star Anam resort, located in the Cam Ranh Bay of the central coastal province of Khanh Hoa, was listed among world’s hot new hotels by the travel magazine Conde Nast Traveller India.
The Crazy House or Hang Nga Guesthouse in Da Lat city of Lam Dong province has been listed among the world’s secret marvels “that you never knew existed” by Lonely Planet - the largest travel guide book publisher in the world.
Many people are familiar with grilled pork, but far fewer have ever tasted grilled pork wrapped in grapefruit leaves. The dish is even unfamiliar to many food connoisseurs in Việt Nam, but not for the Mường ethnic group in Hòa Bình Province, the third largest among Việt Nam’s 53 minority groups.
A two-hectare wild-orchid reserve in the Troh Bư Botanic Garden in Đắk Lắk Province has been recognised as the largest of its kinds in the country by the Việt Nam Record Organisation (ViệtKings).
A group of 25 volunteers from Đà Nẵng Technology College and other colleges have begun their efforts to transform a fishing village of Tam Hải Island into an art space for tourism development.