GIA LAI – Chu Dang Ya and Bien Ho, once home to an active volcano millions of years ago, have now become a popular tourist destinations in Gia Lai.
The volcanic ruins in Gia Lai are the natural wonders that are consecutively at the top of the most beautiful natural landscapes of Vietnam and the world. Along with the research of geological scientists, combined with the tourism industry, the tour to discover the volcanic wonders on the Gia Lai plateau is a unique product, attracting tourists to come.
Ancient “Land of the Craters” Gia Lai is considered by scientists as the ancient “land of craters”, with more than 30 craters existing in the form of ancient yin and ancient yang discovered during the survey. Volcanic ruins are treasures of geological heritage. No need to go to volcanic countries like Japan or Indonesia, coming to Gia Lai, visitors also have the opportunity to experience and observe all types of volcanoes, and at the same time learn about the tectonic history of the earth’s crust. soil imprinted through the oldest craters in the highlands. The two most typical yin and yang volcanic formations are Chu Dang Ya and Bien Ho.
If Bien Ho is in the top 5 most romantic natural lakes in Vietnam, then Chu Dang Ya volcano is continuously in the top voted by travel websites. In particular, this landscape is listed by the British travel magazine (Dailymail) as one of the most spectacular and impressive volcanoes in the world. Out of 16 mountains voted by this magazine, only Chu Dang Ya volcano in Vietnam is cultivated by humans after millions of years of cooling down. In 2020, the image of Chu Dang Ya volcano by Artist Photographer Hoa Carol (real name Nguyen Ngoc Hoa, Gia Lai) entered the top 50 most beautiful landscape photos in the world-Landscape 2020. Results shared by application users Famous photo Agora voted from 14,739 landscape photos in the world.
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| Chu Dang Ya volcano (Chu Pah district). Photo: Phan Nguyen |
During the survey of the volcanic system in the Gia Lai area for geological research, two scientists Luong Thi Tuat (Vietnam Museum of Nature) and Dr. La The Phuc, former director of the Vietnam Geological Museum, said that with its scientific and historical values in the fields of geology and archaeology, Chu Dang Ya volcano is also a potential object for research. Currently of great interest to the scientific community are ecology and landscape ecology.
Volcano tourism Since Chu Dang Ya volcano is promoted as an attractive tourist destination of the province, tourists often choose the time from November onwards to enjoy the beautiful scenery. That is the time when wild sunflowers bloom, show off their colors and put on the mountain a colorful flower shirt. However, the volcano will no longer be a “seasonal” destination but will become an attractive destination in any season of the year when the locality has a strategy to build and exploit the volcano tour in a sustainable way. steady.
Having the idea of planting a field of butterflies and sunflowers at the foot of Chu Dang Ya volcano so that tourists can have a place to visit in spring and check-in during this Tet holiday, Mr. Le Quoc Vu (Nam Yang commune, Dak Doa district) ) shared: “I have cherished this plan for a long time to attract tourists to Chu Dang Ya even if there is no festival or wild sunflower season. But after renting the land and planning it properly, it was too late, the flowers did not bloom in time for Tet, so I had to “save” this idea for next year. According to Mr. Vu, the landscape around Chu Dang Ya volcano is very beautiful, but it is necessary to create more highlights to attract tourists in any season. “I think my idea is also the idea of many people, which is to rent land to plant large flower fields at the foot of the mountain.
This is a way to create more “satellite” landscapes to increase the attraction of the volcano, besides other satellites are Ho Bau ancient church, Ia Nam lake, streams hidden under the surrounding mountains. It is necessary to create a habit for tourists that coming here in any season is full of flowers and plants, and there is also a certain interest,” said Mr. Vu.
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| Chu Dang Ya “volcanic bomb” is a remnant of volcanic geological activity millions of years ago. Photo: Hoang Ngoc |
In the process of studying volcanoes and learning experiences in exploiting geological heritages of other countries, expert geologist Luong Thi Tuat has suggestions for Gia Lai tourism industry: “I have studied many volcanoes in Gia Lai province. In the Central Highlands, the landscape in Chu Dang Ya makes a strong impression by its rich beauty. This natural heritage has many advantages for development, especially the ability to exploit tourism. In countries with volcanic resources in the world, they often make a panoramic photo of a volcano or craters, but on the photo there is always a spot for tourists to “put” themselves inside and take pictures. , giving the impression that they are admiring the volcano from a certain position. Visitors will be delighted to share photos taken with the volcano on social networks, so there will be a stronger spread in terms of promotion. Exploiting natural heritage with special geological values to develop tourism is inseparable from the culture and people of that land.
Therefore, expert Luong Thi Tuat said that the local government should strengthen propaganda to raise public awareness about the value of volcanic heritage and conservation tasks, and at the same time promote the Chu Dang Ya volcano a widely. Mr. Nguyen Minh Duc – Head of Culture and Information Office of Chu Pah district – said: “In addition to policies to attract and call for investment in infrastructure and services in the Chu Dang Ya volcanic area, we have plans to train and guide people to do tourism to increase income and improve living standards. However, with the long-standing labor and cultural practices of local people, in order to help them do tourism, it is necessary to have specific and appropriate methods, ways, and skills to serve tourists. . In this respect, we hope to receive more support from specialized units of the province.”