Mai Chau, a small town in the northern mountainous province of Hoa
Binh, was named one of the top ten “fresh” Asian destinations by hotel
booking site Agoda.com.
The annual list was compiled by Agoda.com’s editorial team, who studied
booking patterns, read thousands of customer reviews and spoke with
local experts.
These destinations all had high growth rates and
attracted many foreign travellers as well as increasing amounts of
vacationing locals.
Mai Chau was described as “a semi-isolated
village in Vietnam…surrounded by limestone cliffs and green rice
paddies, populated largely by members of the ethnic White Thai
tribe…Vibrant, verdant green rice
paddies surround the town on all
sides, and dramatic hills rise up on either side of the valley. The town
itself isn’t particularly stunning, but it’s when one gets out into the
countryside or head up into the hills that the breathtaking views get
better around every corner. There are also several interesting markets
to check out, as well as some nearby caves.”
This year’s list
also includes Tana Toraja in Indonesia, Nantou in Chinese Taiwan, Ella
in Sri Lanka, Ipoh in Malaysia, Hakone in Japan, Damyang County in the
Republic of Korea, Phonsavan in Laos, Kep in Cambodia and Khanom in
Thailand.-VNA