Data provided here forms the basis of a study which is published in the journal Land Use Policy (year 2023) under the title 'The nature of a ‘forest transition’ in Thừa Thien Huế Province, Central Vietnam – A study of land cover changes over five decades'. The database contains the image files of the maps (and associated legends) shown in the publication. Further data (currently under use for other related research) will eventually be added to the repository.