On the morning of November 20, after hearing that Mimosa Pass had been torn apart by a landslide, Nguyen Van Hai, 34, a local hotel owner, posted in travel groups offering free rooms. “We still have vacant rooms. Any tourists stuck in Dalat can stay for free,” he wrote.
Within hours, his phone was ringing nonstop. By evening, the hotel had provided 11 free rooms to visitors unable to leave the city, and existing guests were allowed to extend their stay at no extra cost.
The flood-stranded tourists are offered free accomodation at Hai's hotel
“Many tourists were afraid to travel after hearing about the landslides and heavy rain. Mimosa, Khanh Le, Prenn passes and several other routes were badly damaged, cutting off traffic. Some visitors from Nha Trang said their homes were flooded, leaving them no choice but to stay in Dalat,” Hai said.
At the same time, many guests with prior bookings asked to postpone their stays. Hai agreed and refunded deposits to anyone who requested it, saying he wanted to support travellers during a difficult period.
Trinh Hai Ha, 38, who operates another lodging facility in Dalat, also provided free rooms to stranded visitors. His property has so far hosted about 12 guests free of charge until roads reopen and conditions improve.
Dinh Thuy, another hotel owner in Dalat, refunded 100 per cent of deposits to guests forced to cancel due to the extreme weather. Some tourists declined the refund, choosing instead to keep their reservation credit for a future trip.
Thuy and two tourists at her hotel
“Last week, a group travelling to Dalat for a running event cancelled because of the weather. No one wants situations like this, so I was happy to return their deposit. Our hotel is family run and the financial pressure is manageable, so we can fully support guests during this difficult time,” Thuy said.
