What to Buy in Da Lat: Local Souvenirs and Specialties to Take Home

Food specialties: the classic Da Lat gifts

• Mứt (candied and dried fruit) — Da Lat is famous for it: strawberries, plums, sweet potatoes, ginger, mulberries and many more. Most shops let you taste before you buy.
• Dried persimmons (hồng treo gió / hồng sấy) — persimmons slowly dried in the cool mountain air until soft and chewy. The fresh fruit season is usually in the second half of the year, and the dried ones are sold all year.
• Strawberry jam and dried strawberries — from the farms around the city; see our guide to strawberry farms in Da Lat if you want to pick your own.
• Macadamia nuts — grown in Lam Dong province and sold roasted, in the shell or shelled.
• Fresh avocados and vegetables — wonderful to eat during your stay, but fragile for a flight. Take them only if you travel by bus or car.

Tea, coffee and drinks

• Artichoke tea (trà atiso) — the best-known Da Lat herbal tea, sold as tea bags, dried slices or concentrated extract.
• Coffee — arabica from the Cau Dat area east of the city has a mild, fruity taste. Buy whole beans or ground coffee in sealed bags, and a small phin filter if you want to brew it the Vietnamese way at home.
• Tea from Lam Dong — green and oolong teas are grown in the province, especially around Bao Loc and Cau Dat.
• Da Lat wine and fruit liqueurs — a popular gift. Pack bottles in checked luggage, and of course never drink and ride.

Non-food souvenirs

• Dried and everlasting flowers — small bunches and framed arrangements, light and easy to pack.
• Knitted wool — hats, scarves and sweaters are sold everywhere because of the cool climate, especially around the market in the evening.
• Brocade (thổ cẩm) — woven fabric, bags and scarves with patterns from the K'Ho and other highland communities.
• Small handicrafts — wooden items, postcards and drawings of the city's French villas and pine hills.

Where to shop

• Da Lat Market (Chợ Đà Lạt) — the easiest place to see everything at once: dried fruit, tea, coffee, nuts and wool clothes. Prices are not always marked, so compare a few stalls.
• The night market — in the evening around the market and its steps; good for wool clothes, snacks and small gifts. Our night market guide explains how it works.
• Specialty shops — the streets around the market and the centre have many shops selling packed specialties (đặc sản) with fixed, marked prices. Convenient if you don't like bargaining.
• Farms and gardens — strawberry farms, coffee farms and artichoke gardens outside the centre often sell their own products.

Tips for buying and packing

• Taste first and check the date on the package, especially for dried fruit.
• At the market, bargain politely and with a smile; in shops with marked prices, the price is usually fixed.
• Ask for vacuum-packed or sealed bags (hút chân không) for dried fruit and coffee — they travel much better.
• Check your airline's and your home country's rules for food, liquids and plants before you buy a lot.
• Buy on your last day or evening, so fragile items don't spend your whole trip in a backpack.

Shopping by scooter

With your own bike you can visit the market in the morning, a farm in the afternoon and the night market after dinner. Our scooters have space under the seat for small bags, and you can park in an attended lot (gửi xe) right next to the market. Van Phu Da Lat rents the Honda Vision, the Honda Air Blade and electric scooters for 150,000 VND per day, with a free helmet, a phone holder and no cash deposit — you leave your passport or ID card. No alcohol or beer when riding, and strictly follow Vietnamese traffic law. Message us and we'll help you plan a shopping day.

Written by Ngô Văn Phú (Phu) – owner of Van Phu Dalat, local travel services in Da Lat since 2018: motorbike rental, homestay and villa booking. About me →