Dien Bien Phu is one of the the most remote parts of Viet Nam. For the centuries, Dien Bien Phu was a transit stop on the caravan route from Myanmar and China to Northern Viet Nam. In early 1954, Dien Bien Phu was the site of that rarest of military events- a battle that can be called truly decisive. On 6 May 1954, the day before the Geneva Conference on Indochina was set to begin half a world away, Viet Nam forces overran the beleaguered French garrison French garrison at Dine Bien Phu after a 57 day siege. This shattered French morale and forced the French government to abandon its attempts to reestablish colonial control of Indochina. History is the main attraction here and the scenery.