In December 2023, the People's Committee of Da Lat city organized the Week of activities to celebrate "Da Lat 130 years of establishment and development" ; so Da Lat - a young city in the Central Highlands ; by 2023 has turned 130 years old . Through the time with many ups and downs, historical events, the blend of natural scenery, unique architecture and the multi-ethnical community have created a typical Da Lat "city in the forest, forest in the city". As a tourist city famous for its cool climate all year round, beautiful natural landscape, fresh ecological environment, gentle, elegant and hospitable people, Da Lat has become a very familiar place to all Vietnamese and international tourists.
Da Lat was established in 1893 when doctor Alexandre Yersin set foot on Lam Vien plateau and since then he had a very convincing opinion when Paul Doumer - Governor General of Indochina requires finding a highland location to build a resort. Since then, Da Lat city has gradually formed and has undergone many historical changes. Da Lat's tectonic time is not long compared to many other cities in the country, but with that time series plus the creative accumulation of people over the periods, it has created a city with special characteristics; Da Lat has been self-reliant, promoting its comparative advantage to proactively integrate into the world.
Da Lat city was recorded in 1893, when Doctor Alexandre Yersin first set foot on Lam Vien plateau. Although before the arrival of Doctor Alexandre Yersin, there were a number of explorers who had visited the Langbian plateau, but they only stopped at discoverring that this land was the inhabitants of the Co Ho Lach people, the land wasn’t well researched and introduced to the public. Dr. Alexandre Yersin then came to the Langbiang plateau, he studied and proved convincingly that the uniqueness of this legendary Langbiang land was different from the previous ones, those scientific reports left a mark in history. In 1897, Governor-General Paul Doumer decided to find a place to build a holiday station for French civil servants and soldiers in Indochina. Receiving a private letter from Paul Doumer, Alexandre Yersin suggested choosing the Lam Vien plateau, which has a Europe - similar climate. At the end of March 1899, Governor-General Paul Doumer and Doctor Yersin personally went to Lam Vien plateau to survey and decide to implement the original plan.
The project to build the city was interrupted in 1902 when Governor-General Paul Doumer returned to France . It was more than 10 years later, when the First World War broke out, many French people could not return to Europe on vacations, that Da Lat was remembered again. From the mid-1910s, the real construction of the city began and the boundary of Da Lat was also legally determined when the Council of Regents of Hue Court announced the decree establishing the town of Da Lat on 20 April 1916. In 1939 Da Lat had only 11,500 inhabitants. Within 30 years, thanks to the plans of architects Ernest Hébrard and Jacques Lagisquet, a beautiful city with villas, offices, schools, hotels... was formed. In 1945, Da Lat became a city with beautiful landscape and architectures, with more than 25,000 inhabitants, playing the role of an important educational center and an attractive resort city. During the early stages of the Vietnam War , Da Lat was ruled by Ngo Dinh Diem government (1955-1963). The development plan was relatively large, many schools, cultural centers and architectural works continue to appear. But since 1964, when the political situation in South Vietnam was unstable and the war was getting fiercer, Da Lat also suffered many fluctuations and no longer developed as in the previous period.
After 1975, like many other cities in the early post-war period, Da Lat entered a difficult period . But since the late 1980s, along with the development of Vietnam's economy, Da Lat city also gradually revived, urban infrastructure continued to be built and upgraded. In 2009, Da Lat was recognized by the Prime Minister as a grade I city, continuing to play the role of an important city in the Central Highlands. Until now Da Lat turned to be a tourist center, are completing application for its recognition as global creative city.
Through periods of time, the harmony between natural landscapes, unique architectures, creativity of Da Lat people has created Da Lat a unique city. By empirical researches, we proundly introduce 3 periods of time: The Past, The Present and The Future of Da Lat.
Da Lat city in the past (1893-1975)
In the past, Da Lat was a wild mountainous area; 100% of the population was ethnic minority people from the Central Highlands, mainly Co Ho Lach people; Doctor Yersin was the one who discovered the land, its uniqueness and factors that determined Da Lat as the best resort center in Indochina since 1893; That was the premise for the process of formation and development of Da Lat until today. On the basis of science and practice, we determined in the past that Da Lat had the following 10 basic characteristics:
+ Da Lat was formed by the request of the French to relax in Indochina; Da Lat has become a resort of Indochina and international stature since the 30s of the 20th century;
+ Although Doctor Yersin was not the first person to come to this land, but Doctor Yersin was the one who discovered the core and unique natural values of this land since 1893, researched and proposed Da Lat. is the best resort center in Indochina since 1899 recognized by the authorities as a premise in the formation and development of Da Lat until today;
+ In the past, it was the period of implementation of urban development planning according to the consultation of French architects;
+ This was the period when Da Lat city owned the most villas of Indochina scale; in which Da Lat College is the only architectural work in Vietnam recognized in the top 1000 most unique constructions in the 20th century in the world;
+ The cultivation and husbandry are completely based on traditional farming; although Da Lat has been the center of vegetable and flower production in Indochina since the 40s;
+ The environment is still wild, almost natural, with little impact of people ; there is less leveling of land for agriculture, but agricultural production is only cultivated in areas with low-lying and flatter terrain;
+ The planning of urban roads is different from other urban areas that do not follow the principle of a checkerboard shape but the design mainly follows the nested line and is remainned untill today. In the past, Da Lat had no traffic lights;
+ This is the peak time of immigration of many populations to Da Lat. For foreigners: France, Japan, China...For domestic people including people from the North, Central region ..;
+ In times of war, people live in an unstable way; people left Da Lat and returned to this city of thousands of flowers due to the influence of the first world war, the second world war and the spring campaign of 1975;
+ In the past, the traffic of Da Lat city was very difficult, the way to Da Lat was only National Highway 20 and National Highway 27 and Thap Cham - Da Lat railway; Da Lat is considered a dead end, the population density is not high , therefore the trade in Da Lat faced a lot of difficulties; regional connectivity is still limited, so Da Lat has not utilize its best potential value about travel and agriculture;
The analysis above shows that in the past, Da Lat had many ups and downs due to historical factors. Da Lat was discovered very early in 1893 by Doctor Yersin, became the resort center of Southeast Asia, but due to the prolonged war, investment in infrastructure has not been concentrated; The economy is mainly based on agriculture with traditional farming techniques, while tourism has a brand name, but its development has not been commensurate with its potential; The ability to link the region is very limited, the population often fluctuates, so in the past, Da Lat was still a town under Tuyen Duc province, a deserted mountain town that has not been exploited its inherent potential.
10 basic characteristics of Da Lat city in the present (1976-2020)
In the process of formation and development, by 2020 , Da Lat city has many times implemented projects and programs on urban embellishment and urban planning to suit development requirements, is one of the cities with the total number of urban embellishment projects and implementation of planning much higher than other cities in the process of formation and development ( in French governed period, Diem governed period and the rules plan belong to the authorities from 1976-2020 ) Up to now, Da Lat has become a grade I city; the provincial capital of Lam Dong province. On the basis of science and practice, we determine that Da Lat currently has the following 10 basic characteristics:
+ Da Lat is a young city, but in the process of formation and development, it is one of the cities with the most city planning projects : up to now, there are 13 urban renovation plans, , adjust rules plan .. This shows the city of Da Lat there is constant variation , from the reality need, it is necessary to have appropriate plans for sustainable city development in the process of population change, adaptation to climate change and international integration;
+ Da Lat is one of the cities with the highest altitude in Southeast Asia , with an altitude of 1,500 - 1,600 m above Therefore , even though tourists have never been to Da Lat before, it is known that in Southeast Asia there is a city at such an altitude, they will know that this place has a cool climate all year round and a pleasant ecosistem environment;
+ Da Lat in the past was a town of Tuyen Duc province, but after the day the South was completely liberated and reunified the country, due to the socio-economic development requirements, Da Lat city became urban city of grade I, the provincial capital of Lam Dong province;
+ Da Lat is one of the cities with a high proportion of forest area. However, this is one of the extremely important criteria for planning and developing sustainable cities, green cities, city in the forest, forest in the city;
+ Da Lat is a young city, so it has not missed the opportunity to attract investment, receive technology that is outdated compared to the times, natural resources are abundant, the environment has not been polluted. This is the scientific and practical basis to develop the city according to the model of green city, eco-urban, smart city;
+ Da Lat was approved by the Prime Minister to pilot the model: the first " green urban village " in the country;
+ Da Lat not only continues to promote its advantages in tourism development in the region too past and presently in which in the present has created a breakthrough in the development of high-tech agriculture, smart agriculture and organic agriculture at national and regional level; is the leading locality in the country in developing agricultural tourism that has not appeared in the past type travel picture _ this ;
+ In the present time, the railway from Thap Cham - Da Lat has many differences in technology that cannot be maintained and exploited as in the past ; but newly invested in National Highway 27C connecting Da Lat city and Nha Trang city and expanding and upgrading Highway 20;
+ In the process of urban development of Da Lat in the past to the present, Da Lat is one of the very few cities in the world that do not have traffic lights, this is also a unique feature of Da Lat city;
+ In order to promote the advantages of resort tourism Da Lat is one of the cities that are planned as key tourist areas of the country and of the province on a large scale. The Prime Minister has planned Tuyen Lam Lake tourist area to be the first national tourist area in Vietnam ( 2,944 ha ); Dankia - Suoi Vang (4000 ha) has a large area, creating uniqueness and natural landscape and landscape architecture for Da Lat city with tourist areas of modern scale and stature compared to other cities in Vietnam. Vietnam and around the world.
The development process of Da Lat has been and will attract investment to form high-class commercial centers, develop science and technology projects, education and training; central heart shallow Karma application use labor high technology. With practical requirements for both urban development and preservation of architectural heritage, it is a very demanding requirement in the process of urban development in Da Lat. Together with the urban center, linking green urban villages with their own roles and functions will support and share the pressure on urban development of the city and create new linkages in the planning area.
On the basis of the size of the area, value of forest resources, high biodiversity, low population density, good management and protection of environmental resources, promotion of architectural landscape, modernization of information technology, etc. we can believe that it is a favorable condition for Da Lat city to have the opportunity to develop into a smart city, creative city , heritage city , landscape city and low carbon city of the future.
10 specials point muscle copy city Da Lat in future ( from about 2021 _ later )
In the development process, in order to meet the requirements of international integration in the future, Da Lat needs urban embellishment; to attract strategic investment projects with solutions to exploit the potential of Da Lat's own comparative advantage; in time past time _ Da Lat city drastically implement QH 704/QD TTg on the basis of synchronous and scientific solutions; at the same time, the State Government approved the decision No. 257/QD- TTg March 17, 2023 on the task of adjusting the general planning of Da Lat city and its vicinity until 2045. The adjustment from the point of view of the spatial relationship between the southern key economic region, the South Central Coast and the Central Highlands. On the basis of science and practice, we determine in the future Da Lat has the following 10 basic characteristics:
+ The area will be expanded many times comparred to the current one; Da Lat is one of the cities with a large area of national and international scale: 1st in Vietnam and 17th in the world. Da Lat has an area of 3,359.3 km², ( Hanoi city has an area of 3,358.9 km² ); before eye nest position show declare the content follow _ owner Truong of the Provincial Editorial Board commission direction sentence wax import district Lost Positive into Danang city Lat before 2025 ;
+ The ability to connect the region will be better in the future with a breakthrough, because of the investment in highways connecting Da Lat with the Eastern provinces and Ho Chi Minh City; Lien Khuong - Buon Ma Thuot expressway; Da Lat - Nha Trang expressway; East Truong Son Street ; upgrading Lien Khuong airport into an international airport; to reactivate Thap Cham - Da Lat railway line, which currently has no conditions to restore recoverable ;
+ In the future Da Lat will be busier, because many investors are interested in real estate projects; developing new urban areas, residential areas, urban embellishment projects and national tourist projects: National tourist area of Tuyen Lam lake - Da Lat; Dan Kia national tourist area - Da Lat; Prenn - Phi Nom urban area project; Prenn Lake amusement park project; Saigon – Dai Ninh tourist area project; Urban embellishment project in Ward 7, Da Lat;
+ Reorganize agricultural production towards decreasing and non-greenhouse production in central wards wall city , to grow plants that are not in a greenhouse but still have high efficiency; at the same time, plant additional landscape trees to return green areas; real presently correction of urban landscape, implement the revolution of plant regeneration industry, to arrange suitable agricultural land fund to ensure urban landscape standard; smart eco-city;
+ In the future, there will appear new creative industries such as entertainment industry, architecture, music industry, fashion industry, film industry, handicrafts, food industry...; building Da Lat into a creative city joining the global creative city chain.
+ In the past, Da Lat is one of the very few cities in the world without traffic lights; however, due to the requirements of tourism development, there will be an increasing number of tourists coming to Dalat; at the same time implement the project to build Da Lat city into a smart city by 2025; In 2021, the People's Committee of Lam Dong province assigned the Department of Transport to lead with the People's Committee of Da Lat city to survey the intersections, on that basis, the People's Committee of Da Lat city has installed traffic lights; simultaneously develop renewable energy: wind power, solar power on a large scale that in the past and present have not appeared in Da Lat city;
+ Da Lat city in the future will become a multi-functional city following the trend of the times that is rare in any city in the world such as: smart city, creative city, heritage city, city low carbon landscapes and cities;
+ Strongly organize urban embellishment by attracting investment projects; at the same time, in the future, Da Lat will have many opportunities to connect with good regions in the South-Central Coast, Central Highlands and Southeast Asia; therefore Da Lat will be selected as representative offices of international organizations and multinational corporations;
+ Da Lat will become a center for human resource training in high-tech agriculture, smart agriculture, organic agriculture and agro-tourism of national and international level;
+ In the future, Da Lat will continue to promote as the administrative - political, economic - cultural, scientific - technical center of Lam Dong province. Center for ecotourism, luxury resort and cultural heritage tourism at national, regional and international level. National and international high-tech agricultural production research center. National center for multidisciplinary scientific research, education - training and technology transfer. National Center for Landscape Forest Conservation and Biodiversity. Trade and service center, trade fairs and exhibitions. The center of culture - art, physical training - sport and entertainment at regional level, has an important position in terms of national defense and security for the Central Highlands region and the whole country.
Through the above analysis, in the process of forming and developing over the last 130 years, Da Lat has had many great changes in terms of facilities, urban infrastructure; strongly developed economic sectors with comparative advantages: tourism and high-tech agriculture; especially the population spiked from 11,500 people (in 1939), to 237,565 people (in 2022), estimated 20.6 times after 84 years. From a primitive town, until now, Da Lat has become a type I urban area belongs to Lam Dong province, is a famous national and international tourist city that is interested by domestic and international tourists.
Thus, in the future Da Lat city will be a city with a large area of international stature; with the nature of many breakthrough developments compared to the past and present, it has become a livable city; Because Da Lat is one of the very few cities in the world that is less vulnerable to climate change. In the future, Da Lat will become a multi-functional city such as: smart city, creative city, heritage city, landscape city and low carbon city following the trend of the times. the world has.
Dr. Pham S Vice Chairman of Lam Dong Provincial People's Committee
