Created by a dam in 1919, banana-shaped Ho Xuan Huong Lake was named after a 17th-century Vietnamese poet known for her daring attacks on the hypocrisy of social conventions and the foibles of scholars, monks, mandarins and kings.

The lake can be circumnavigated along a 7km sealed path that leads past several of Dalat's main sights, including the flower gardens, golf club and the majestic hilltop Hotel Sofitel Dalat Palace.