Bản Giốc–Detian Falls on the Quây Sơn River, Vietnam
© Shane P. White/Minden Pictures
A borderline paradise
Welcome to a spot where rivers meet international borders in the most stunning way: the Bản Giốc – Detian Falls, featured in today's image. Tucked between the karst hills of China's Daxin County and Trùng Khánh district in Vietnam, these falls tumble along the Quây Sơn River about 170 miles north of Hanoi. For most of the year, they flow as two distinct cascades, but come summer, when the rains swell the river, they merge into one big fall. At over 95 feet tall and 980 feet wide, Bản Giốc holds the distinction of being the widest waterfall in Vietnam.
Even with better roads, easier public transport, and drone videos showing off the jaw-dropping beauty of the falls, Bản Giốc remains refreshingly off the beaten path. Mass tourism hasn't caught up yet, and on most weekdays, you'll find only a handful of visitors—just you, the locals, and the sound of cascading water.