Ambition to become the 'coffee capital' of Da Lat

Lam Vien Square is the venue for the Global Coffee Heritage Festival. Photo: Quynh Danh .

The festival, organized by Lam Dong Provincial People's Committee in collaboration with TNI Corporation (King Coffee) at Lam Vien Square, lasted for more than 2 weeks with a series of cultural, culinary and commercial activities, making coffee a highlight of the experience during the peak tourist season at the end of the year. This is also the first time the locality has hosted a large-scale international coffee event, gathering 34 booths.

According to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Lam Dong province, December is always the peak season for visitors to Da Lat thanks to the typical cold weather. Organizing festivals during this period is expected to add an annual tourism product to the city.

Dr. Pham S said Lam Dong was the first locality in Vietnam to commercialize coffee, and has the largest area and output in the country. The festival is an opportunity to look back on the nearly two-century journey of coffee beans - from the first plantations in the Central Highlands to the filter coffee culture that has become a part of Vietnamese life.

The organizers said the event will put coffee in a cultural context, not just displaying agricultural products but also expanding to stories about lifestyles, aesthetics and careers associated with coffee. At the festival, visitors can explore four coffee cultural spaces of Ethiopia, Brazil, Indonesia and Vietnam - countries with long-standing coffee traditions.

The end of the year is the time when tourists flock to Da Lat to relax and enjoy the typical cold atmosphere, of which, enjoying coffee is an indispensable experience. Photo: Linh Huynh.

Talking to Tri Thuc - Znews , Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Lam Dong province, said that after the recent floods, Lam Dong also suffered a lot of damage. The locality is actively overcoming the damage after the recent floods to stabilize people's lives and ensure safe tourism activities.

According to Dr. Pham S, Da Lat currently has about 2,560 accommodation establishments, of which homestays account for the largest proportion in the country, with a total of more than 46,000 rooms in many segments. This accommodation system and infrastructure are assessed to be sufficient to meet the demand for welcoming guests during the peak season at the end of the year.

Coming to Da Lat at this time, tourists can combine visiting large coffee growing areas around Da Lat, or join farming tours - experience growing flowers, vegetables, tea and coffee, which are typical local products.

According to Ms. Le Hoang Diep Thao, founder and general director of TNI King Coffee, the festival not only honors the Vietnamese coffee heritage but also inspires the younger generation, promotes the coffee industry to develop in a creative direction and opens up new cooperation opportunities. The event is oriented to be held annually, aiming to gradually turn Da Lat into a prominent destination on the world coffee tourism map.

Source: https://znews.vn/tham-vong-thanh-thu-phu-ca-phe-cua-da-lat-post1605903.html