The villa that captured international attention

CNN once described Hang Nga Villa as “wild, weird and wonderful,” calling the complex one of a kind.

The villa was named among the world’s 10 strangest buildings by People’s Daily in 2009. In 2015, Bored Panda included Hang Nga Villa on its list of unusual hotels around the world for its striking architecture and unconventional spaces. Architecture website ArchDaily has also featured the property among remarkable architectural works worldwide.

More than 30 years after it began welcoming visitors, the villa has lost none of its appeal. “Crazy House in Da Lat” remains a popular search term among international travelers and continues to be widely shared on social media.

During a recent visit, the site was bustling with tourists, many of them international visitors from Russia, South Korea, India and elsewhere.

Daria, an 18-year-old tourist from Russia, said she was astonished when she first stepped inside. The winding passageways, twisting staircases and unusual architectural forms made her feel as though she had entered another world.

“It feels like a fairy-tale land - mysterious and surreal, yet there are also corners that are incredibly poetic and dreamy. I’ve never seen anywhere so unique and creative. It was absolutely worth traveling from Nha Trang to Da Lat just to visit this villa,” Daria said.

According to Nguyen Dinh An, a tour guide in Da Lat, curiosity about the Crazy House’s unconventional architecture remains one of the reasons international visitors seek it out when traveling to the city of flowers. What fascinates them most, he said, is its originality and unmistakable character.

High balconies and attic-like spaces offering panoramic views of Da Lat are particularly popular, with visitors often lining up for their turn to take photos.

A nearly four-decade-old creation, carefully preserved

Hang Nga Villa is located on Huynh Thuc Khang Street in Xuan Huong - Da Lat Ward. Architect Dang Viet Nga began building it in 1990. The property serves both as her family home and as a destination for sightseeing and overnight stays.

One of its defining characteristics is that Nga has continued creating new spaces throughout the years since it opened, constantly adding fresh elements for visitors to discover.

Passing through a small wooden gate draped in thick climbing vines, visitors enter a surreal fairy-tale world filled with enormous concrete tree trunks, uneven walls in a variety of colors, distorted windows and narrow, interwoven staircases.

The villa comprises four main architectural structures, each with a distinctly different appearance.

According to CNN, its winding cement “branches” resemble trees while also functioning as bridges connecting different sections of the complex. The architecture evokes the surreal world of Salvador Dali’s paintings as well as the organic forms associated with architect Antoni Gaudi.

From balconies and high windows, visitors can look down over a small garden filled with flowers, greenery and a giant iron spider web.

Inside, walls and ceilings are sculpted to resemble stalactites and other formations found in caves. The different spaces are connected by a network of reinforced-concrete staircases shaped to look like tree trunks and roots.

Hang Nga Villa is arranged like a multi-layered architectural world in which almost every step can lead to an unexpected space. More than 100 roofs, along with an intricate network of corridors, stairways, verandas, halls and interconnected spaces, form an extraordinary whole in which no detail is repeated.

Some passageways are broad and flooded with natural light, while just a few steps farther on, visitors can suddenly find themselves in a dark, mysterious space.

Several staircases are steep and exposed, leading to elevated viewpoints overlooking Da Lat and adding an element of adventure to the experience.

The property currently offers 11 guest rooms tucked inside structures resembling tree trunks. Each has its own theme: the Bamboo Room represents Vietnam, the Bear Room evokes Russia, while the Honeymoon Room symbolizes love.

Rates range from VND1 million to VND2.7 million per night (about US$38-103).

The rooms are designed around the idea of bringing people closer to nature. As a result, beyond basic amenities, guests will not find televisions or many of the modern devices commonly found in conventional hotels.

More than three decades on, even as new photo spots and tourist attractions continue to emerge across Da Lat, the Crazy House retains an appeal all its own. The villa is said to welcome around 100,000 visitors each year.

Linh Trang