Central Highlands of Vietnam: coffee, elephants and waterfalls in 2026

The Central Highlands (Tây Nguyên) are the opposite of coastal Vietnam. No beaches, no resort bustle. People come here for the cool air, coffee, nature and the culture of the mountain peoples. The region rarely makes the standard guidebooks, though it sits a few hours from Nha Trang and an hour's flight from Ho Chi Minh City.

Prices are current as of May 2026. Rate: ~26,000 VND = $1.

• World Coffee Museum (Bảo tàng Thế giới Cà phê): Museum of coffee culture — Entry 60,000 VND (~$2.30)
• Dray Sap Falls (Thác Đray Sáp): 100 m wide — Entry 80,000 VND (~$3.10)
• Dray Nur Falls (Thác Đray Nur): 250 m wide — Largest falls in the region
• Elephant Falls (Thác Voi): Near Da Lat, easy access — Entry 20,000 VND (~$0.80)
• Pongour Falls (Thác Pongour): 7 tiers, 50 km from Da Lat — Entry 30,000 VND (~$1.15)
• Yok Don National Park (Vườn quốc gia Yok Đôn): 115,500 ha, wild elephants — Elephant-friendly tours from ~$50
• Lak Lake (Hồ Lắk): Vietnam's 2nd-largest natural lake — M'nong villages
• Da Lat (Đà Lạt): City of eternal spring, 1,500 m — Arabica and weasel coffee

Five provinces above the clouds

Historically, the Central Highlands were five provinces: Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, Kon Tum and Lam Dong. The terrain is plateau, extinct volcanoes and basalt soils. More than 40 ethnic groups live here — the Ede, M'nong, Bana and Jarai — each with its own language and architecture.

At 500–1,000 m the daytime temperature holds at 22–28 °C year-round. In Da Lat, at 1,500 m, it can drop to 15 °C — a jacket helps. Two seasons: dry (November–April) and wet (May–October). The waterfalls run stronger in the wet, the plantations are greener — and the roads are muddier.

Tourists are a rarity here. On an ordinary day in Buon Ma Thuot you might spot a dozen foreigners in the whole town. That is both a plus (lower prices, more authenticity) and a minus (less infrastructure, English is patchy).

Coffee capital of Vietnam

Buon Ma Thuot and robusta

Vietnam is the world's second-largest coffee exporter after Brazil. 90% of the beans are grown in the Central Highlands, and the epicentre is Dak Lak province and its capital Buôn Ma Thuột. Robusta ripens in the shade of rubber trees and pepper vines on volcanic red earth — that soil is exactly what gives the bean its punchy strength.

Buon Ma Thuot's coffee festival runs every two years. The ninth festival (March 2025) drew thousands: tastings, barista competitions, exhibitions.

Cafés are on every corner in town. A cup of Vietnamese coffee is 15,000–25,000 VND (~$0.60–1). Try cà phê sữa đá (coffee with condensed milk over ice) — the local classic.

Coffee culture is rich in Vietnam, but in the Tây Nguyên (Western Highlands) it’s on another scale. These days, almost all villages have coffee shops with espresso machines using locally grown beans…guide author, Vietnam Coracle, 2019

World Coffee Museum

Right in Buon Ma Thuot. The exhibits cover coffee cultures around the world, the history of Vietnamese coffee and a tasting hall. Entry is 60,000 VND (~$2.30). On the grounds: coffee trees, a roasting area and a shop selling beans from local farmers.

Da Lat and arabica

Da Lat is the other pole of the coffee highlands. At 1,500 m the crop is arabica — softer and pricier than robusta. The coffee farms run tours with tastings: from 100,000 VND (~$4) for a guided visit. We have a separate deep-dive on Da Lat's farms, wine and tastings — here we'll keep it to the essentials.

This is also where they produce weasel coffee — the beans that have passed through the digestive tract of a civet. Genuine weasel coffee (not the farmed kind) runs from 3,000,000 VND (~$115) a kilo. On the farms you can taste it for 50,000–100,000 VND a cup.

More on Vietnamese coffee in our coffee guide.

Elephants of Buon Don

Dak Lak province is the land of the M'nong people, who for centuries caught and tamed wild elephants. The village of Buôn Đôn was the centre of that tradition; from here elephants were sold across Southeast Asia.

Today things are different. Buon Don is moving away from elephant riding. Instead there is elephant-friendly tourism: you watch the elephants in their natural setting, feed them bananas and cane, and bathe them in the river. No saddles, no hooks.

Yok Don National Park

Vườn quốc gia Yok Đôn is one of the largest national parks in Vietnam: 115,500 hectares of dry tropical forest. It shelters one of the few remaining wild elephant populations in Vietnam (the exact number is not disclosed), along with gaur, bears and dozens of bird species.

Elephant-watching tours run from ~$50 for a half-day. The park also offers trekking, overnight stays in M'nong community houses and cycling routes — more in our guide to Vietnam's national parks.

Lak Lake

Vietnam's second-largest natural lake after Ba Be, 55 km from Buon Ma Thuot. On its shores are M'nong villages with their traditional stilted longhouses. The morning mist over the lake is one of the most photogenic scenes in the highlands.

…the misconception that Dalat is the gateway to Lake Lak, rather than Buon Ma Thuot. The former is a 3-4 hour drive from the lake, whereas the latter is under an hour away by road.guide author, Vietnam Coracle, 2020

A boat trip is 50,000–100,000 VND (~$2–4). A night in a longhouse is from 200,000 VND (~$8).

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Waterfalls of the highlands

The rivers of the Central Highlands drop off basalt plateaus, producing waterfalls that in the rainy season roar loud enough to hear a kilometre off.

Dray Nur and Dray Sap sit on the Krông Ana river, near the old Dak Lak–Dak Nong border. Check tickets and the route between them at the ticket office.

…one of the pedestrian suspension bridges linking Ðray Sáp waterfall with Ðray Nur waterfall was washed away during last November’s floods… However, at the moment, during the dry season, it’s possible to walk across a causeway of stepping stones.Jonathan Turner, Vietnam Coracle, 2026

Dray Sap and neighbouring Gia Long fall inside the Đắk Nông UNESCO Global Geopark (since the 2025 reform it lies in Lam Dong province) — a volcanic plateau with some 50 lava caves, the largest such system in Southeast Asia. If you're staying overnight, the caves and extinct craters are a good reason to linger a day or two.

Best time: May–October (the rainy season). The falls run full and hit harder. In the dry season (November–April) Dray Nur shrinks to a modest stream — not worth the trip.

Prices are current as of May 2026.

Ethnic villages and gong culture

In the Central Highlands the mountain peoples have kept much of their traditional way of life. Ede longhouses hold several generations of a family. The M'nong are matriarchal: the house belongs to the woman, and the husband moves in with his wife.

Akô Dhông village sits right by Buon Ma Thuot. Traditional Ede houses, weaving workshops, rice wine from clay jars. Entry is free, but a small donation is customary.

The villages by Lak Lake are M'nong longhouses where you can stay overnight. In the evening there are ritual dances and gongs.

The gong culture of the Central Highlands is on the UNESCO heritage list. Bronze gongs feature in rituals: birth, marriage, funeral, harvest. In the beliefs of the mountain peoples, the sound of the gong links the living to the spirits of their ancestors.

Getting there and around

By air

Schedules and fares change, so check direct flights on the airline websites before you book.

By bus

• Ho Chi Minh City → Buon Ma Thuot: 6–7 hours, from 250,000 VND (~$10)
• Nha Trang → Da Lat: 3–4 hours, from 120,000 VND (~$4.60)
• Da Lat → Buon Ma Thuot: 4–5 hours, from 180,000 VND (~$7)

Around the region

The motorbike is the main way to get around. Rental is 150,000–200,000 VND a day (~$6–8). The roads between towns are good and the mountain passes are scenic, but they take some experience. Grab works in Buon Ma Thuot and Da Lat; out of town it's a motorbike or a private driver.

Weather, money, language and what a day costs

Weather: 5–10 degrees cooler than the coast. Da Lat can hit 15 °C in the evening — bring a light jacket. The rains (May–October) come as short downpours, usually after lunch.

Money: ATMs are in Buon Ma Thuot and Da Lat. In the villages and national parks it is cash only. Cards are taken at hotels and larger cafés.

Language: English is understood less than on the coast. Google Translate with Vietnamese is a lifesaver. In the villages, communication is gestures and smiles.

Safety: the region is calm. The main risk is the mountain roads on a motorbike, especially in the rain.

The highlands suit anyone into nature, coffee and ethnography. If you're after a beach and nightlife, this is not your place — there is none of that here at all.

Frequently asked questions