Discover Kon Plong - Green lung of the Central Highlands

In the mist that blankets the peak of Ngoc Lu mountain every morning, Kon Plong emerges like a green fairytale land in the Eastern Truong Son Mountains. There, ancient forests stretch endlessly, rolling hills covered with tea plantations are as soft as silk ribbons, and cascading waterfalls sing the wild songs of the mountains and forests day and night.

And deep within that space, a dream is growing stronger every day: the aspiration to transform Kon Plong into a model ecotourism and community-based tourism center of the Central Highlands.

That aspiration doesn't begin with flashy urban plans or massive resorts. It begins with the people's genuine love for the forest, the streams, and the echoing sound of gongs during nighttime festivals.

Kon Plong today is a newly established commune formed by merging three communes: Ngok Tem, Hieu, and Po E. Three regions, three cultural colors, three streams of memory have met to create a vast space of nearly 56,000 hectares, where more than 80% is natural forest. Amidst the increasingly hectic pace of modern life, this forest cover is like a miracle remaining in the Central Highlands .

People often say the Central Highlands are beautiful in the season of white coffee blossoms or the fiery red basalt roads. But Kon Plong is beautiful in its own unique way. It's the beauty of unspoiled pristine nature, not yet fully awakened. Waterfalls like So Roach, Ho Kook, and Koi Ho Ruong still retain the roar of the mountains. The Thien Tan hydroelectric reservoir is as still as a mirror reflecting the clouds and sky. Endless stretches of pine forests and primeval forests create the feeling that nature remains intact after so many changes over time.

Perhaps that's why people believe Kon Plong could become the new "green lung" of tourism in the Central Highlands.

What gives Kon Plong the greatest hope is not just its natural beauty, but its people.

Here, people of various ethnic groups live together like streams merging amidst the vast forest. Each ethnic group brings with it a treasure trove of its own culture: the majestic sound of gongs and drums, the captivating Xoang dance, the warm and fragrant rice wine, or the brocade fabrics woven with patience and love for the mountains and forests.

While these values were previously only present in the daily life of the village, they are now becoming valuable assets for community tourism.

The resolution on tourism development in Kon Plong until 2030, with a vision to 2035, has chosen the right path: not prioritizing tourism over people, but placing the people at the center of development. This is a humane and sustainable approach.

The locals don't just open homestays or sell local products. They become the "storytellers" of the land they live in. Each stilt house, each meal of sticky rice with grilled chicken, each story told by the fireplace carries the soul of Kon Plong.

Mr Diem from Vi O Lak village, once said something very simple: "This forest, this stream is the soul of our land. If we develop tourism and lose the forest, there will be nothing left to tell".

Perhaps nowhere else do people understand the value of conservation as well as in Kon Plong. Because the people here know that if the gongs fall silent, if the forests are cut down, if the streams dry up, then tourism will lose its reason to exist.

Therefore, tourism development in Kon Plong is not a race to build concrete or commercialize at all costs. They choose a gentler path: ecotourism, community tourism, and experiential tourism linked to local culture.

Tourism training courses have been opened right in the villages. Young people learn how to welcome guests, run homestays, and promote the image of their homeland on social media. The elderly teach the younger generation the gong music, traditional dances, and brocade weaving. A new generation is emerging in the heart of the mountains, preserving their roots while also knowing how to venture out into the world .

On April 2026, the first three tourist destinations were simultaneously inaugurated as a testament to this new journey: Kon Plong Community Tourism Village, Dong Truong Son Clean Tea Farm, and Dong Truong Son Cultural and Culinary Space.

In the Kon Plong community tourism village, visitors can walk through terraced rice fields to reach the So Roach waterfall, listening to the echoing sound of cascading water deep in the forest. At the Dong Truong Son Tea Farm, visitors can pick tea leaves by hand and smell the gentle fragrance of young leaves in the early morning mist. And in the Dong Truong Son cultural space, the traditional dances around the campfire create a feeling that time is slowing down.

A green future is awakening in the Eastern Truong Son Mountains
Kon Plong today is like a sapling growing in the middle of the vast forest. Slowly but with immense inner strength.

The goal of attracting approximately one million tourists and creating thousands of jobs by 2030 is not just about economic figures. It's about the aspiration for a future where people can live better lives in their hometowns, without having to leave their villages to seek a living in the cities.

What's commendable is that in all these projects, the "green" element is always given top priority.

Kon Plong wants to develop tourism under the forest canopy, preserving the forest for tourism and using tourism to protect the forest. Locals can lease forest land to develop eco-tourism models that combine medicinal plant cultivation and welcoming visitors. This is an approach that both creates livelihoods and preserves the natural ecosystem.

Kon Plong's development potential is also expanding as the Quang Ngai - Kon Tum expressway gradually takes shape, and the Mang Den National Tourist Area enters a new phase of development. From a quiet, remote area, Kon Plong is becoming an important link in the tourism corridor connecting the Central Coast with the Central Highlands.

But perhaps what gives people faith in the future of Kon Plong is not the new roads or the growth figures. The most reassuring thing is the way the people here love their land.

In an era where many places sacrifice nature for short-term projects, Kon Plong still chooses to preserve the greenness of its forest as its core value. Amidst the hustle and bustle of mass tourism, it still wants to maintain a slow-paced, simple, and genuine way of life.

As evening falls on the Vi O Lak pass, white clouds drift past the stilt houses. The sound of gongs and drums echoes in the flickering firelight. The fragrant aroma of sticky rice cooked in bamboo tubes, mingled with the scent of rice wine, wafts gently on the mountain breeze. In that moment, one understands that Kon Plong is not just about tourism; they are preserving a way of life.

A way of life that cherishes the forest, values water, respects memories, and nurtures identity. A way of life where humans do not stand above nature, but are integrated with nature to A way of life that cherishes the forest, values water, respects memories, and nurtures identity. A way of life where humans do not stand above nature, but are integrated with nature to coexist.

And who knows, perhaps in ten years, when tourists return to hear the roar of the So Roach waterfall amidst the vast forest, chase clouds on the peak of Vi O Lak, or sit by the fire drinking rice wine with the Mo Nam people, they will realize that: In the vast Central Highlands, there is a land that has chosen to develop with kindness to nature and sincerity to its people.

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