Happy Homestay — Hotel in Buon Ma Thuot

THE OWNER ASSAULTED ME.

I was attracted to this homestay because the reviews were so great, I booked two nights. The first day/night was amazing and I was having such a lovely time with the wife and husband (the owners). But on the second night the husband assaulted me.

I was driving to the homestay with the husband on the back of the motorbike giving directions. Whilst driving he grabbed/squeezed my hips, thighs, and breasts, and said 'can I touch you there' after he had already grabbed me. Each time I told him very clearly to get off me and not touch me. He continued to grab me and I shouted  and swore at him. He told me to pull over (which I did), he said i had misunderstood him because his English isn't good, that we were very far away from the homestay and asked me 'what are you going to do'. I told him that he had better direct us back to the homestay and keep his hands off me. Again he touched me inappropriately whilst I drove, I shouted at him and told him to get off.

When we arrived at the homestay he said I misunderstood and I had driven the wrong way (even though he was directing me on where to go). I described to him and his wife exactly what had happened. I left the homestay that night and the wife drove me to a hotel.

His wife repeatedly apologized and begged me not to write a review, explaining the husband can't control himself when he drinks alcohol. I am sorry for his wife (who seems very lovely), but if he can't control himself then he should NOT be running a homestay and inviting tourists/travelers into the home. HE IS NOT SAFE TO HOST GUESTS.

The next morning I checked Google reviews and there is a review from 1 year ago by someone who was also assaulted by the husband.

I hope the husband and wife consider how they would feel if a man twice their daughter's age treated their daughter the way the husband treated me, and considers how that would make their daughter feel.

If the husband really can't control himself when drinking alcohol, then he needs to address that and not use it to excuse his...

This is by far my favorite stay. I have stayed at quite a few hostels in Vietnam and the facilities here are much better for comparable if not lower price. Unless there is another person in the room on your floor, you essentially have the bathroom to yourself. It’s similar bathroom style to traditional houses where the shower is in the same room as the toilet. Hot water was great. My room was quite large with a desk and a mosquito net. The bed was firm, like most beds in Vietnam, but not as hard as other places I had stayed at, which made it quite easy to sleep. FYI no AC but the family provides a fan.

What made this stay special was the family - this is a true home stay. They are FANTASTIC!! Very welcoming and kind. They had opened up the home stay a few years ago to help their daughter improve her English and they themselves have been learning as well. Their eldest daughter, who isn’t at the home stay but controls the Zalo account, was BEYOND helpful before I even got there. She gave me great advice for what to do in the area, when to book things in advance, and even booked my bus ticket for me to get to BMT and offered to book other transportation as well. I had soooo any questions but she was incredibly patient in answering everything.

Mom and Dad were welcoming from the moment I walked in and even had some food ready because they knew I was coming at an odd hour. Dad will take you to amazing sights in the country side and to the family farm as well as a neighboring coffee farm. He knows a lot of his neighbors, including those from the E De minority group, so you can interact with them with beers or home visits and learn more about their culture. Ngan, their daughter who lives there, is also very helpful and even took me for a market run in the morning because I was curious to see this part of daily life. Mom is also a great chef and will make lunch and dinner upon request. Highly recommend if you want a part in local life. I would definitely stay here again - they made my trip to BMT...

We were 3 male American friends wanting to experience Vietnam away from the fancy resorts and hotels so we chose this place. Wow what a fantastic experience!! The family invites you right into their home to live amongst them while they go about their business. They’ll cook you a nice dinner, and provide great conversation, or leave you alone, whatever you want. They also arranged scooters to be delivered so we could ride up to the waterfalls. It’s so nice to have local guidance for everything you’re doing in the area. They also helped us plan to get to the Yok Don National park so we could spend a day seeing the elephants out in the jungle. They also showed us a nearby farm that grew coffee, Dorian fruit and other stuff that we don’t see in America. If one of their daughters is in town she’ll translate English for you perfectly (VERY smart kids!) If not, the parents will communicate with you in multiple ways that are easy to understand. This is why you came to an exotic place after all, isn’t it? Ask the father about his upbringing if you want some history starting in the 1960’s They have no air conditioning, and mosquito nets are provided in each open-air room. This is how the locals live, and you should also if even for only a night or two. Even now that we’re back home in America, we’ve stayed in touch with the family because they are so generous and humble. We all need more people like this...