Access
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| Ha Noi : | 500 km | 10h | 11h | 12h | - | 45mn | - |
| Son La : | 200 km | 4h | 5h | 6h | - | - | - |
| Lao Cai : | 330 km | 6h30 | 7h | 8h | - | - | - |
| Lai Chau : | 150 km | 2h30 | 3h | 4h | - | - | - |
Geographic location
A few cable-lengths away from Laos, Dien Bien Phu is settled in a 20km long and 5km wide valley, crossed by the Nam Youm River. Surrounded by large wooded hills; the Phu Xam Xan mounts, the city has been the site of a historic battle against the French in 1954 and still bears the scars of it. Today, the ethnic minorities inhabit this province’s capital: they are mostly H’Mong and Thais people.
Must-see and must-do activities
Museums, bunkers, bridges, canons… the entire history of Dien Bien Phu of the famous Indochina war. There, you will be told all about the Vietnamese Major’s exploits as well as the details of military strategies and assaults. Reconstitutions have even been realized based on models or TV reports.
The French troops used to name their strategic positions with female names: in that way you can admire the most famous of them, the Eliane hill, or pay a visit to Beatrice, Claudine or Dominique…
Finally, you can stop at the passes overlooking Dien Bien Phu, on the roads coming or leaving the city and contemplate the landscape: hills and karst rocks, flooded rice fields by the river, scattered villages…I let you imagine the spectacle at sunset.
How long should I stay?
I would advise you to stay one day, one day and a half in Dien Bien Phu, or two whole nights in order to take the time to walk around in the large avenues, to explore museums and historic sites while encountering with ethnic minorities.
Accommodations
Just like Son La, all accommodations are offered in Dien Bien Phu, going from the most basic to the comfortable type, but without any luxury buildings nor any possibilities of sleeping over inhabitant’s houses.
Luân’s opinion
Let’s be honest, one really has to love History in order to appreciate… A lot of people went there by curiosity and came back pretty disappointed… There is not much left of the battle to see…
