Motorbike Loop from Dalat, Vietnam: Best Itinerary

Dalat is a mountain city in southern Vietnam, and it’s one of my favorite places in the country, for many reasons. One of those reasons is that it has beautiful nature surrounding it, which I explored on a one-day motorbike loop from Dalat.

In this post, I’ll be outlining the route I took, as I couldn’t find much info about it online even though it’s a fairly popular motorbike loop among backpackers in Dalat.

I’ll be writing about the stops I took on this loop, although the highlight of this itinerary was definitely just driving a motorbike around and soaking in the scenery. This is the purpose of going the long way around from Tuyen Lam Lake to Linh An Pagoda through Lien Hiep.

Feel free to do this loop whichever direction you’d like, and make sure you have enough time to visit each spot before it gets dark.

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How long is the motorbike loop from Dalat?

The loop is roughly 80 kilometers, which will be around 2 hours of driving time.

How long you spend at each spot on this motorbike loop is entirely dependent on you, but make sure you leave fairly early in the morning so that you make it back to Dalat before sunset.

I spent about 6 hours on the below itinerary, but that may be different for others. You can definitely do it faster if you’re pressed on time, especially if you’re looking for more of a route to go on a motorbike ride rather than to visit each of these places.

Stop 1 of Dalat Motorbike Loop: Horizon Coffee

Start your day off with coffee at this scenic café. Dalat has a TON of cafes, but this one was one of my favorites. (Check out my other favorites in the Dalat section of my Writer’s Travel Guide to Vietnam.)

The views are certainly the best I found in a café, overlooking the verdant hills, and you’ll find lots of nice photo ops in this photogenic coffeeshop.

I highly recommend the coconut coffee, and they also serve food in the morning (not in the afternoon, though) so you can stop here for breakfast.

Stop 2 of Dalat Motorbike Loop: Tuyen Lam Lake

This pretty little lake, just a 20-minute ride from Dalat, is the first attraction of this motorbike loop itinerary.

Definitely stop by the Truc Lam Zen Monastery. It’s free to enter and is a very peaceful place to start your day. Explore the temples, chat to a monk or meditate in this monastery.

From there, you can walk down a hill through the pine forest and reach the lake. There will be signs pointing you to a spot where you can go on a boat ride on the lake.

If you don’t mind super touristy places, drive your scooter around the lake to Clay Tunnel. This is a park with impressive sculptures made of clay. They’re designed for taking pictures with, so it’s an especially cool place to visit if you’re looking for cool pictures for the gram.

Stop 3 of Dalat Motorbike Loop: Lunch

After visiting the lake, you’ll likely be ready for lunch. I accidentally ended up in possibly the fanciest and most expensive restaurant around: La Forêt by Storii.

While it had near US and European prices, it was delicious food, and the place and view were stunning. I was definitely underdressed, but I don’t regret accidentally going here.

Alternatively, for a cheaper lunch, stop at a local restaurant or food stand on the next leg of your journey. It’s the longest drive of this motorbike loop from Dalat, going through Lien Heip, so you’ll have lots of options before arriving at your next destination on this itinerary.

Stop 4 of Dalat Motorbike Loop: Linh An Pagoda

This pagoda is one of the most unique I’ve ever encountered. It has statues that you can go inside of and climb up for a nice view. The Goddess of Mercy statue is the taller one, and the view was worth the many steps up.

There is also a big Buddha statue (that I was unable to enter when I visited in August 2022) and other statues and temples to visit.

Stop 5 of Dalat Motorbike Loop: Elephant Falls

You can see the Elephant Falls from Linh An Pagoda, but if you want to get closer to these impressive falls, you can!

A ticket costs 20,000 VND.

Alternatively, a friend I met at my hostel suggested going to Elephant Coffee. It has access to the other side of the waterfall, so you can get close for the price of a drink or food.

Stop 6 of Dalat Motorbike Loop: Me Linh Coffee Garden

If you like coffee, why not enjoy it fresh at a coffee plantation? The area around Dalat holds many coffee farms, but this is among the most famous, and conveniently located on the motorbike loop from Dalat.

The prices are high for coffee, but you get to enjoy a beautiful view and many great photo spots.

Alternative to the Coffee Garden: Cau Dat tea plantation

If you’re not a huge coffee fan and prefer tea like me, I’d suggest the following:

Drive to Cau Dat Farm, which is both a tea and coffee plantation. I’d especially recommend this place if you love tea or nature. The hills of tea trees are very photogenic, and you can walk through the rows of trees. The café was under construction when I was there, but there was still a stand where I got an iced oolong tea and could enjoy it on the nearby train café.

The problem is, it’s about a 40-minute drive one way from Dalat, and not in the direction of this motorbike loop. What I did was drive to this tea plantation in the early morning, and then go back toward Dalat to complete the above motorbike loop itinerary (skipping Me Linh Coffee Garden at the end). You can alternatively go to this tea farm at the end of this itinerary if you have time, but keep in mind that it closes at 5:30 pm.

What to do in Dalat at night?

You’ll likely get back to Dalat around 6 or 7 pm, as many stops on this motorbike loop close at or before 6 pm.

This is the perfect time for dinner, so why not head over to the night market? It’s right in the center of town, and you can try local and cheap food here. It’s also a good place to do some shopping.

And if you haven’t visited yet, I highly suggest heading over to the nearby 100 Rooftops Bar after dinner (or before dinner, depending on when you finish the motorbike loop). By far the most unique bar I’ve ever been to; it’s like a playground for adults.

Looking for more things to do in Dalat, perhaps for the next day? Check out my post on the most magical places in Dalat!

Backpacker Place to Stay in Dalat for Motorbike Loop

I found that most people on this Dalat 1-day motorbike loop were backpackers, so assuming you’re one, I’d recommend Tigon Hostel. You can rent your motorbike from this hostel for 150,000 dong, so it’s really convenient.

The view from this hostel has few rivals, and free (tasty) breakfast is provided. It is a bit of a party hostel at night, but music stops at 11 pm, so you’ll still get enough sleep to be well rested to complete this Dalat motorbike loop.