VOV.VN - After three years of piloting the development of a tourism model linked to the construction of new rural areas, Kha village in Yen Chau commune, Son La province, has become an attractive destination not to be missed on the Son La - Northwest exploration route.
Bản Khá is located near National Highway 6, about 10 km from the center of Yên Châu commune, Sơn La province, towards Hanoi. The village has 93 households, over 420 inhabitants, and most of them are ethnic Thái people.
Visiting Kha village, tourists will be immersed in the peaceful atmosphere of an ancient Thai village with many beautiful traditional cultural features preserved and developed. Most families live in traditional stilt houses, surrounded by shady mango and tamarind trees, and the winding Vat stream. In 2025, an ancient mango tree and a tamarind tree here were inscribed on the list of Vietnamese Heritage Trees.
Bản Khá is covered in lush green, peacefully situated beside the Vạt stream.
Mr. Quang Van Luong, a resident of Kha village, said: "We have seen tamarind and mango trees in the village since we were born and raised. Everyone in the village cherishes these trees because they provide shade and bear fruit that brings income to households. Therefore, everyone is conscious of protecting and preserving them, not cutting them down or tying buffaloes and cows near them."
Thai women in Kha Se Bong village
In particular, the people of Kha village still preserve many unique cultural features of the Thai ethnic group. Besides the traditional stilt houses with their unique, sturdy architecture that harmonizes with nature, the villagers also retain quite a complete collection of "khap" dances, "xoe" dances, traditional costumes, and the brightly colored "pieu" headscarves…
Ms. Lo Thi Bon, a resident of Kha village, shared: "We always pay attention to preserving the cultural traditions of embroidery, spinning, weaving, and brocade... We will soon establish an embroidery club so that tourists can embroider and experience it with us."
The men in the village always pay attention to maintaining traditional crafts such as weaving everyday household items; along with preserving the unique festivals of the Thai people such as "Xen Ban," "Xen Lau No," "Dong Sua," etc. These are traditional rituals that signify prayers for good health, a year of favorable weather, and a bountiful harvest.
Mr. Quang Van Phanh, a resident of Kha village, said: "Every year, around the 10th of June, the village holds a ceremony. The ceremony is for the villagers' health, prosperity in business, abundant harvests in the fields, and healthy, disease-free livestock."
The people of Kha village organize the "Dong Sua" festival in the village's forest.
To capitalize on existing potential and advantages, in 2022, the People's Committee of Yen Chau District (formerly), Son La Province, issued a project to develop a rural tourism model in Kha village. Implementing this project, the village selected 5 families capable of renovating and upgrading their homes into homestays; 3 families capable of opening ethnic cuisine restaurants; and 3 families capable of weaving, embroidering scarves, and handcrafting rattan and bamboo products to serve tourists. Many households in Kha village received training in community tourism. The village also established two folk art troupes, regularly practicing and performing folk songs, dances, and music to entertain tourists.
The men in Kha village preserve the craft of basket weaving.
To develop a tourism model linked to rural development in Kha village, the Yen Chau commune government and Son La province have allocated funds to build tourism infrastructure, such as investing in the construction of a concrete bridge over the Vat stream into the village, paving the road to the ancient mango orchard with asphalt, providing guidance on production development, and creating sustainable livelihoods for the people through tourism and service activities, creating diverse and attractive experiential trips for tourists on their journey to explore agricultural tourism in the Northwest region.
Practicing performing arts in preparation for welcoming and serving tourists.
Mr. Tran Xuan Viet, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Son La province, said: "Kha village is one of the villages that the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, together with the Department of Agriculture and Environment, has included in the plan to develop it into a model village in the program for developing agricultural and rural tourism associated with the new rural development program. In the coming time, the department will continue to have a more detailed and specific plan to build Kha village into a typical model and develop it into one of the truly attractive tourist destinations."
Despite potential shortcomings in infrastructure, Kha village – a typical rural agricultural tourism model in Yen Chau – with its unique characteristics, has truly become an unmissable destination on the Son La – Northwest Vietnam exploration route.