Buon Ma Thuot is “buried deep in Vietnam’s lush green Central Highlands,” writes Jetstar, “where it serves as the point of entry to the region’s awe-inspiring natural wonders -- its many hidden waterfalls and Yok Don, the country’s largest nature reserve.” Home to more than 40 ethnic minorities, “you'll experience Vietnamese life as it’s lived well off the beaten track … sit street-side while sipping thick, dark coffee made from beans harvested at nearby farms before jumping on a motorbike to explore the surrounding rubber plantations,” then head up into “some of Vietnam’s most beautiful mountain passes.”
Buon Ma Thuot’s coffee is “world renowned for its high quality and distinct taste,” notes Tru Travels. “The fruitful soil produces many useful materials from rubber to clay to minerals, but it is coffee that is the greatest gift from the land.” Introduced by the French in 1915, coffee is now the province’s leading commodity, and “long time producers of the rich black stuff” have had the monopoly on the Vietnamese coffee market for along time -- “and once you have tried it for yourself it is easy to see why.” Vietnam’s global success in coffee, explains Global Coffee Report, followed the government’s move to liberalise the economy in 1986 -- “coffee production has since boomed, with astonishing results.”
There’s even a Coffee Festival at Buon Ma Thuot, writes The Diplomat. Held every two years -- the next ones are in 2019 and 2021 -- the festivities include “performances featuring 150 ethnic gong artists,” not mention “a street parade with elephants, dances and puppet performances,” and of course, “a Coffee Queen competition.”