Taking a tour of the peak of Ba Na Mountain in Danang City, visitors often follow a designated route that takes in the Linh Ung Ba Na Pagoda, the huge half-finished recreational complex on top of the mountain and the old suspension bridge over a stream that no longer exists.

Inside the French-built villa that was destroyed in wartime

Still, there is another place of interest there for curious tourists to drop by. That is the remnants of a villa built by the French. Early in the 20th century, French colonialists constructed hundreds of villas as vacation retreats on the peak of Ba Na, which is nearly 1,500 meters above sea level. All of them were destroyed in wartime.

Along the way up the mountain on a cable car, one can see the vestiges of some old luxurious French-built estates nestled in the thick jungle.

Halfway to the Linh Ung Ba Na Pagoda, visitors should turn right when they meet a T-junction, go up, then turn left just behind an abandoned building, and follow a narrow pathway until they see the remnants of a French-built villa. The visit to this structure is even more interesting if visitors are accompanied by a tour guide who can tell a story about what the French did in the past and what has been and will be developed in the entire area on the peak of the mountain that has become a must-see destination in Danang.

The fireplace in the villa

One of the windows of the villa seen from inside