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The central highland overviews:
The Central Highlands encompasses beautiful natural features such as relatively untouched forests, waterfalls and spectacular scenery. These do contrast with some sites in the area that exhibit some savage scars of the War. The Central Highlands's population comprises a large number of ethnic minority groups who still live in their traditional lifestyles. These tribes can be visited around Kontum, Pleiku, Buon ma thuot, and Da lat.
During the monsoon season, the highland region becomes a torrent of water as this area is the subject of some of the heaviest rain fall in all of Vietnam.
During the summer season, Dalat becomes a popular destination because of the fact that high altitude offers a slightly cooler temperature than the almost unbearable humid heat of the southern plains. This cool weather factor combined with its proximity to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) has made Dalat the epicenter of domestic tourism during that time of the year..
The Central Highlands is a good place to go for those who enjoy getting off the beaten track. It is quite easy to include this region as part of a circuit by way of leaving the coast leaving and returning through either Qui Nhon or Nha Trang. You can take a separate excursion to reach Dalat from either Phan Rang or Ho chi Minh City. You will need to allow enough time for traveling across the narrow and bumpy roads, especially between Buon Ma Thuot and Nha Trang If you want to fully visit all of the region and really get to know it and explore its significant historical meaning, it will take you two weeks. On the other hand, one week will allow you to familiarize yourself with the bare essentials of the region.
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Kontum
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Kontum is a small town siting in the middle or in proximity of several ethnic villages. This town was also the site of some major battles during the conflict with the Americans. Even today, decaying weapons and shells abound. One of he places that you should visit is Pleiku. It has a large friendly indigenous population and can be visited on foot from Kontum. Because of the necessity to access this village on foot, as a result they have had limited exposure to tourism and they are still happy to see foreigners. On the road you will get a be able to see some of the traditional houses built on stilts. There are also some waterfalls further out of the town that can be visited by motorbike.
The highland area was only opened up to tourism in mid 1994 and the police here can still be a bit touchy. If you are going to wander around the surrounding areas, better to do it with a guide as they will ensure that the police are aware and agree to your excursion. Another danger in walking in the countryside, away from a town, is that there is still a large amount of left over ordnance from the War. So be careful!
Walking tours of the area
The best thing to do if you should be in Kontum is to go for a walk or hike around the surrounding area. You can easily keep yourself busy for a day or two thoroughly enjoying the sights. There are still many traditional hill tribe villages in and around Kontum, and the best way to visit these is with a guide. Kontum is still a fairly small town and is not too popular on the tourist trail.
Seminary
One site worth seeing in Kontum is the seminary. The seminary was built over 80 years ago and is still looked after by a small group of priests. The building is still in quite good condition and has a grove of cherry blossoms in the front yard.
Churches
On Nguyen Hue street, there is a large church which is over 120 years old and is in the process of being renovated. This church has beautiful stained glass windows. Beside the large church is the Montaguard church, called a Rong House. This church is over 100 years old. It is easy to recognize by its extremely steep thatched roof, and is set about 2 m above the ground. The Montaguard church is entered by the tribe people only once a year. Also in town is a French Cathedral that is worth a visit. It is white in color but is streaked with black as if it had survived a fire.
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Pleiku
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Pleiku is a town with a large ethnic population. It sits at the junction of roads leading to Kontum, Buon Ma Thuot and Qui Nhon. This town was almost totally destroyed during the Vietnam war as it was the home of an American base. If you expect to be here during the monsoon season, you should know that Pleiku boasts the highest rainfall in the Central Highlands.
Jarai and Bahnar Tribes.
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One thing worth seeing in Pleiku, are the Jarai and Bahnar tribes that live close by. The Jarai built houses on stilts with an additional small hut at the front to store the much needed rice. The Bahnar also built their houses on stilts and have added large balconies to work on while at home. They have a community building called a Rong House where the elders meet for ceremonies and festivals. Inside the Rong House one can find gongs, wine, drums and all the precious ceremonial artifacts. Shaman also use this large building for spiritual rituals such as the 'prayer for rain'. The Rong House can only be entered by men.
The tombs of these tribes are also very interesting. By tradition little thatch wooden huts are set over the tomb in which the possessions of the deceased are placed. Around the tomb there are four wooden pillars. On top are wooden carvings of men or monkeys that stand guard in order to protect the body of the deceased. The burial ceremony is very expensive. If the family of the deceased cannot afford it at the time of the passing away, the funeral party can be postponed up to three years later.
When there is a burial ceremony, the entire village population spends three days at the burial site and a water buffalo is ceremonially sacrificed and subsequently used to feed the village population. The head of the water buffalo is cut off and hung on the tomb, and the four hooves are cut off and placed on the four corners of the grave
Yaly Waterfall
There is a waterfall that you can visit 15 km north of Peiku on the road to Kontum. You will come across a major intersection on the road where you make a left turn and continue to the end of the road.
Former Battlegrounds
There are number of former battlegrounds which can be visited from Pleiku including Ham Rong Mount, Plei Me post and the former 1st Cavalry Division base at Hon Chong (in An Khe district).
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Buon me Thuot Map
Battle of Ban Me Thuot
The Battle of Buon Me Thuot was part of North Vietnam's Campaign 275 to capture the Central Highlands following the victory at Phuoc Long on January 6, 1975.
Buon Me Thuot was selected as the first objective during the Central Military Party Committee session on January 9. In order to achieve their objectives, General Vo Nguyen Giap put emphasis on secrecy and surprise to force the South Vietnamese army to defend the northern areas of the Central Highlands, as major North Vietnamese units would launch diversionery attacks elsewhere.
Campaign 275
To keep all upcoming military operations secret, radio signals were kept silent and the only radio broadcasts made were misleading messages intended to suggest that General Van Tien Dung would attack Pleiku. The beginning of Campaign 275 was signalled by North Vietnamese attacks in Binh Dinh and Pleiku Provinces on March 4. In Binh Dinh the ARVN 47th Regiment struggled against the ever growing strength of North Vietnamese artillery and rocket strikes, the artillery positions supporting the 47th Regiment were overrun and destroyed. ARVN Fire Support Bases 93 and 94 were heavily bombaraded before the 4th Ranger Group and the 2nd Armoured Cavalry Brigade were able to conduct clearing operations along Route 19.
On March 8 the 9th Regiment of the VPA 320th Division battled with the ARVN 45th Regiment at Thuan Man, resulting in the permanent blockage of Route 14 by the VPA 320th Division. On the next day another North Vietnamese attack was launched in Quang Duc Province, where the ARVN 53rd Infantry Regiment was overrun. The diversionary attacks in Quang Duc convinced Major General Pham Van Phu that the main battle would take place in Dac Lac Province, so the 72nd and the 96th Ranger Battalions as well as the 21st Ranger Group were sent to Ban Don.
The Battle
Finally at 1:55AM on March 10, the Vietnam People's Army launched a violent artillery barrage on the city of Buon Me Thuot and Phung Duc airfield.
By morning the 320th VPA Division had penetrated the city and the ARVN managed to throw back Communist assaults on Hill-559 and Phung Duc airfield. At around mid-day North Vietnamese infantry supported by armour had moved into the southern sector of Buon Me Thuot, where heavy fighting took place resulting in the loss of five North Vietnamese tanks. General Phu's attempt to reinforce Buon Me Thuot with two Regional Force Battalions from Ban Don failed under heavy enemy fire. Fighting at the airfield destroyed twelve aircraft belonging to the 2nd and 6th Air Divisions, and only three helicopters were managed to be piloted out.
The 23rd ARVN Division continued their resistance around Buon Me Thuot along with the 2nd Company, 4th Company, 8th Armoured Cavalry, 1st Battalion, 53rd Infantry, 243rd and 242nd Regional Forces. On March 11, the North Vietnamese consolidated their control over the city. On March 12 the worn down ARVN soldiers and their families were evacuated.
Major General Pham Van Phu were ordered to Cam Ranh on March 14 to meet President Nguyen Van Thieu. During the meeting President Thieu revealed and outlined his plans to retake Buon Me Thuot, under this plan Phu would make use of what is left of his units from Kontum and Pleiku Province, and the 22nd Division from Binh Dinh Province. However, due to the deteriorating stength of the South Vietnamese military, Buon Me Thuot was never retaken as the Communists continued their push south.
Aftermath
The Central Highlands consists of Dac Lac, Gia Lai, Kontum and Lam Dong Provinces has always been an important strategic military staging area and whoever control the Central Highlands will have the advantage. For that reason, the South Vietnamese military had always maintained a heavy military presence there. After the fall of Buon Me Thuot, South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu ordered the northern provinces to be abandoned to 'lighten the top and keep the bottom'. The South Vietnamese army went into panic as soldiers and their families flooded the main roads in a mass exodus towards the coast. There was total collapse of South Vietnamese morale.
Vietnam airlines timetable to Buon Me Thuot - click here
Tây Nguyên, translated as Western Highlands, is one of the regions of Vietnam. It contains the provinces of Đắk Lắk, Đắk Nông, Gia Lai, Kon Tum, Lâm Đồng. It has a large population of ethnic minorities such as as the people of Malayo-Polynesian languages (Jarai and Ede) and the people of Mon-Khmer languages (Bahnar and K'hor). Therefore, the Degar organized the FULRO (1964-1992) and the Montagnard Foundation (1990-), and are continuing the Montagnard Independence Movement from Vietnam. Tay nguyen is the home to most prominent and also most endangered species of VietNam and Southeast asia: the indochinese tiger, the huge gaur, the wild buffalo, the banteng and the asian elephant.
Asian Elephant
The Asian or Asiatic Elephant (Elephas maximus), sometimes known by the name of its nominate subspecies (the Indian Elephant), is one of the three living species of elephant, and the only living species of the genus Elephas. The species is found primarily in large parts of India, Sri Lanka, Indochina and parts of Indonesia. It is considered endangered, with between 25,600 and 32,750 left in the wild[3].
It is smaller than its African relatives, and the easiest way to distinguish the two are the smaller ears of the  Asian Elephant. The Asian Elephant tends to grow to around two to four meters (7–12 feet) in height and 3,000–5,000 kilograms (6,500–11,000 pounds) in weight.
The Asian Elephant has other differences from its African relatives, including a more arched back than the African, one semi-prehensile "finger" at the tip of its trunk as opposed to two, 4 nails on each hind foot instead of three, and 19 pairs of ribs instead of 21. Also, unlike with the African elephant, the female Asian Elephant usually lacks tusks; if tusks--in that case called "tushes"--are present, they are barely visible and only seen when the female opens its mouth. Some males may also lack tusks; these individuals are called "makhnas" and especially common among the Sri Lankan elephant population. Furthermore, the forehead has two hemispherical bulges unlike the flat front of the African elephant.
This animal is widely domesticated, and has been used in forestry in South and Southeast Asia for centuries and also in ceremonial purposes. Historical sources point out that they were sometimes used during the harvest season primarily for milling. Wild elephants attract tourist money to the areas where they can most readily be seen, but damage crops and may enter villages to raid gardens.
Dalat is in the south of the central highlands of Vietnam. The area is well suited for vietnam tours, with waterfalls, hill tribes, nice scenery, etcetera. Dalat itself is just a base to start tours from.
Just south of the middle of Vietnam is where the central highlands begin. Several hill tribes live here, although the ethnic Vietnamese are gaining ground here as well, since the government is trying to create new locations for the overcrowded coastal area. The roads through the highlands are not very good, which is the reason for us only to visit Dalat. Because of its vicinity to Saigon, this city is popular both with local and foreign tourists.
The bus ride
We appear to have the same bus and bus driver as we had on our way from Hoi an to Nha Trang. This time, however, the bus is full and the roads are a bit better. It seems as if the driver is taking it slower this time, but that might be our imagination.  On the way to Dalat, we stop at the site of a few Cham towers. These are better preserved than the ones at My Son, and are well worth the climb to the top of the hill.
At noon we arrive at Dalat. At first sight, this is just another big city, and we are a bit disappointed. This feeling gets worse when we check in at a hotel, and search for a bank and a restaurant. Later that afternoon we settle down along the shore of the artificial Xuan Huong lake in the center of Dalat. At least here it’s a bit quiet.
We realize that the popularity of Dalat does not come from the city itself. But around the city are lakes, waterfalls, hill tribes, temples, and other things drawing people to this region. So we need to book a tour for the coming days to bring us there. Luckily, there is an alternative to the numerous motor bike drivers offering their tours, and we book a jeep tour for the next day.
Jeep Tour
The first stop on our tour is at the Truc Lam meditation center. It is a temple with several gardens around it, and a view over the Tuyen Lam lake. We are a bit more introduced to Buddhism, and marvel at the dragon-shaped hedges in the gardens.
Next, we move on to Lien Kuong, a volcanic waterfall. Because of the dry season we can walk over the molten lava, very close to the waterfall. The falling water always gets to us, especially in a nice scenery.
Chicken Village
Then, our jeeps moves ahead to Chicken Village. It is the village of a hill tribe, featuring an enormous concrete Chicken. There are different stories why the government placed the chicken here 30 years ago.  It was probably a tribute to the chicken farmers, who returned to their village after fighting in the American war. The chicken seems useless, but we guess attracts tourists, end thus some income.
In the village, where the hill tribe doesn’t dress in their traditional clothes, people earn a living by growing different crops. We get to see flowers, mushrooms, coffee, etcetera. Still, the people are poor, and the kids dress in dirty clothes. In the local school, the dentist is just paying a visit. But as we pass by, we draw all the children’s attention. We conclude from their begging for money that more tourists come here.
Around the village we visit a mushroom farm and a silk farm. The silk caterpillars are imported from China. Here they are fed until they make a cocoon. Then, they are exported back to China. Strange, but it seems that the animals are reproducing better in China, but grow better in Vietnam.
Just before noon we arrive at Prenn waterfall. This one is commercialized, there are bridges and even a cable car. There are also gardens around, and animals in cages. It is unclear to us whether they are recovering from injuries here, or just for display to the tourists. Either way, the conditions in which they are kept aren’t very good. Apart from that, and from the fact that the waterfall doesn’t seem like a natural one anymore, it is a nicely built park.
Crazy house and crazy monk
 After lunch we are visiting the Crazy House. It is a hotel, built in the Alice in Wonderland style. The buildings are like hollow trees, and there are numerous statues of animals in and around the rooms. It all looks like being in a fairy tail, and that’s the intention of the owner.
Next stop is the pagoda of the Crazy Monk Vien Thuc. This Buddhist monk is actually an artist, and his gallery (more like a barn) is full of his paintings and sculptures. Many self portraits (“Me”), and portraits of Vincent van Gogh (“Me in the past”). Buddhists believe in reincarnation, but we don’t know if he’s serious. Anyway, it’s an excentric guy, and it’s fun to wander around in his gallery and gardens.
Trekking
 The following morning we wake up early for a trek through the mountains. We are dropped with 5 tourists (2 australian girls, a Scottish guy, and us) and 2 guides 13 kilometers away from Dalat, from where we start our walk. Through the pine trees we walk down, where we arrive an hour later at the Tiger cave waterfalls. Here we take a swim, and although the water is very cold we have a lot of fun with the natural slide over the rocks. After warming up in the sun, we move on.
Further downhill, we pass streams and coffee plantations and reach Langbian river. We walk alongside it for a while, until a point where we have to cross it via an enormous suspension bridge. A number of the wooden steps are broken, so we have to have faith in just the iron wire at some points. But we make it across safe, and move on to the next bridge, where we have to do the same again.
Chil hill tribe
Next part of the trek is a steep ascend. One by one we reach the top gasping and puffing, where we enjoy a nice view and lunch. Then we move on to Liengtro, a tiny little village of the Chil tribe. These people live completely isolated on the top of a mountain. We give some candy to the shy children. Few tourists come here, and therefore the children haven’t learned to beg for money.  The tribes lives from a small coffee plantation, and the vegetables they grow themselves. Every day they descend to get water and other supplies, and climb up again. We stay for a little while and then move on.
We pass a few vegetable fields and a few Chil people on our way back down. We also pass numerous streams and some small waterfalls while we walk and climb through the mountains and woods. On several places fires are burning, created by foresters, thereby trying to prevent larger bushfires. Finally, after 6 hours of walking, we reach the minivan that brings us back to Dalat.
Back in Dalat we know the places where to relax. Yet, we do not understand why this city is called “Honeymoon city” by the Vietnamese. Unless a honeymoon here consists of one large tour through the surroundings…
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