The peaceful beauty of Muong Da Bia village, Hoa Binh
When visiting community tourism (CTT) in Da Bac district, visitors should remember to visit Da Bia (now in Duc Phong hamlet, Tien Phong commune). This is one of the few places where the Muong Ao Ta community lives. The people still preserve many unique cultural features of their ethnic group.
Tourists experience a unique form of selling at a self-service shop at Da Bia tourist destination, Tien Phong commune (Da Bac)
To get to Da Bia, you can take the road from Hoa Binh city through Da Bac town, then explore a long way through many villages. Many people choose the second way, which is to go from Thung Nai wharf (Cao Phong). Although it takes the same amount of time, visitors will have a more interesting experience when taking a boat, admiring the beautiful scenery of Hoa Binh lake before going ashore and starting the journey to visit the village.
Life in the village is very peaceful. The houses of the families are all traditional Muong stilt houses, with a view overlooking the lake, very airy and cool. In recent years, realizing the potential of community-based tourism, in order to promote the goal of building a model to improve livelihoods, the project implemented by the Australian NGO (AOP) has provided financial support and guidance, helping people in the village to do community-based tourism. The renovation of the houses of the households still retains the stilt house architecture with many amenities. From here, homestays were formed in the village to meet the needs of eating, sleeping, resting, and at the same time connecting and providing many experiential services to tourists.
Among the many customs and practices that the people of Da Bia preserve, “self-conscious shops” are a unique cultural feature of the Muong Ao Ta people. With a unique form of selling, without a seller, it has aroused curiosity and left a strong impression on tourists. The people here said that this type of business has existed for a long time, becoming a source of pride and proof of self-consciousness and community cohesion. “Self-conscious shops” often sell agricultural products such as sticky corn, bananas, sweet potatoes, bamboo shoots, wood ear mushrooms, wild vegetables, etc. Each basket of goods has a listed price so that anyone passing by who wants to take something home can voluntarily put money in the basket.
With more than 40 households, the life of the Muong Ao Ta community in Da Bia has changed a lot since the construction of the community tourism area. In 2019, the community tourism area of Da Bia was honored to receive the ASEAN Community Tourism Award, thereby affirming the quality, professionalism and attraction of the tourist area. At the same time, it helps promote and introduce the image, people and indigenous culture to domestic and international friends.
Da Bia has welcomed many foreign and domestic tourists, most of whom are groups of friends and families. Along with the landscape of mountains, rivers, fresh environment and climate, the beautiful customs and habits, friendly and civilized attitudes of the people in the village are appreciated by tourists. Coming here, besides the feeling of conquering nature, visitors can experience the cultural space and daily life of the local people. Enjoy the cuisine of the Muong Ao Ta people, mainly from self-sufficient sources such as free-range chicken, free-range pig, Da River fish, wild vegetables… processed with unique, strange and rich flavors. Staying at community guesthouses, walking or cycling to visit the village, learning about the traditions of the Muong people in the lake area, participating in fishing activities and experiencing activities such as wrapping snail cakes, rowing boats, kayaking… will be very attractive to visitors./.
Source: National Tourism Administration
