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In 2014, Pha Din (1466 m a.s.l.) was established as a Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) regional station for aerosol and trace gas measurements in northwestern Vietnam. This study presents a five-year climatology of aerosol optical properties derived from nephelometer and aethalometer measurements and a comparison with ground-based remote sensing measurements at the nearby AERONET station Son La. The annual variations of the aerosol measurements at Pha Din are clearly dominated by annually recurring periods with high biomass burning activity in northern Southeast Asia (February– May). During these periods, the majority of air masses arriving at Pha Din originate from the southwest (northern Thailand, Laos and Myanmar). Both the meteorological conditions and the aerosol optical properties are very similar during the individual high biomass burning periods (increased temperature: > 20°C; moderate ambient relative humidity: 60–70%; decreased single scattering albedo: 0.8–0.9; increased absorption Ångström exponent: 1.6–2.0; and scattering Ångström exponent significantly larger than 1). Prior to the biomass burning season (October–January), the meteorological conditions at Pha Din are influenced by the SE Asian monsoon, leading to a frequent transport of air masses from SW China with moderate aerosol loadings. The lowest pollution levels are observed from June to September, which represents the wet season.