Haiphong to host National Tourism Year 2013

The national tourism year 2013 will be held in Haiphong City aiming to introduce destinations, attract both domestic and foreign visitors, and foster tourism linkage among localities across the country.

This was affirmed by the General Director of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, Nguyen Van Tuan, and the Vice Chairman of the Haiphong City People’s Committee, Le Khac Nam, at a press briefing to introduce to event in Ho Chi Minh City on September 13.

Themed “The Red River civilization”, the tourism year will provide a good chance for Vietnam to strengthen international integration and attract investment for tourism development as well as promoting local advantages to raise public awareness of the role and position of the tourism sector in socio-economic development.

The event will help international friends know more about local cultural identities.

A wide range of cultural, art, sport, tourism and trade events will take place during the whole year in Hanoi, Haiphong, Quang Ninh, Thai Binh, Nam Dinh, Ninh Binh, Bac Ninh, Hai Duong, Hung Yen, Ha Nam, Vinh Phuc, Phu Tho and Bac Giang provinces.

The opening ceremony will be held on May 11, 2013 to mark the 58th liberation anniversary of Haiphong. City centre and Do Son and Cat Ba towns will be the main venues for activities.

VietNamNet/VOV

Soc Trang diversifies tourism models to attract tourists

Soc Trang tourism sector is to continue to improve the quality of existing tourism products and gradually put into operation products and new tourism programmes associated with the strengths of the province such as cultural festival tourism, ecological tourism and shopping tourism to attract more and more domestic and foreign tourists.

In the first five months of 2012, the total number of visitors to Soc Trang was 50,749, reaching 46 percent against the yearly plan, an increase of 14.3 percent over the same period. International arrivals were 3,429, reaching 40 percent of the yearly plan, an increase of 28 percent compared to the same period in 2011. And domestic tourists were 47,320, an increase of 13 percent compared to the same period in 2011. The tourism revenue was VND48,253 billion, reaching 38 percent of the yearly plan, an increase of 47 percent over the first 5 months of 2011.

Being the province located at the end of Mekong River Basin, adjacent to the provinces of Tra Vinh, Vinh Long, Hau Giang, Bac Lieu and the East Sea with the similar features as other provinces in the Mekong Delta region, Soc Trang has its own advantages favourable for tourism development. This is characterised by the convergence of the three ethnic cultures including Viet - Chinese - Khmer with diverse and unique features. Soc Trang is the land of festivals and spiritual cultural tourism with hundreds of pagodas. Especially, there are many famous pagodas visited by domestic and foreign visitors such as Doi Pagoda, Chen Kieu Pagoda, Dat Set Pagoda and Kh'Leang Pagoda.

To be able to take full advantage of the potential and turn the province into one of the most attractive tourist destinations in the Mekong Delta, Soc Trang Provincial People's Committee has approved the adjustment of the planning of provincial tourism development to 2015 and vision to 2020. According to Mr Nguyen Tanh, Director of Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Soc Trang province, in order to realize this plan, the province is putting special focus on investment in infrastructure and human resources.

Currently, Soc Trang has 35 operating hotels including one 3-star hotel, seven 2-star hotels, eleven 1-star hotels, eight standard hotels and eight new yet-to be-evaluated hotels. All the hotels have a total of 1,000 rooms, capable of receiving 1,500 to 2,000 tourists. For dining facilities, the province has six restaurants located within hotels, and two restaurants at tourist sites. In addition to dining facilities for business purpose other than tourism services, there are over 400 restaurants and canteens with capacity of over 27,000 seats. All the transport system, electricity, water and telecommunications are in good operation giving favourable conditions to the tourists.” In general, the province's infrastructure and infrastructure for tourism development has been in good condition in recent years and the number of visitors to Soc Trang is on the rise" said Mr Tanh.

To meet the increasing demand of tourists, every year, Soc Trang organizes training courses on professional skills for the tourism sector. With the size of 25-30 students per class, the industry also takes students to visit and learn from the experiences in other provinces, sends officials to attend conferences and trade fairs at home and abroad, or attend professional management and expertise training held by the central agencies to improve management skill and professional qualifications to serve tourism development in the province.

Sharing on the target in 2012, Mr Tanh revealed that Soc Trang province aims to welcome over one million visitors this year. Revenue is estimated at VND126,4 billion. To attract more tourists, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism has directed its agencies to strengthen the tourism marketing and promotion, and has released thousands of documents, newsletters, leaflets, tourist maps, VCDs introducing the local tourist destinations. Besides, attention is paid to linking hotels and restaurants in the introduction and marketing for Soc Trang tourism products in the fairs and festivals in and outside the province.

In addition, to attract the investment in tourism, the Department of Culture has published information on two projects calling for investment, namely floating resort tourist site No.2 Song Phung (Long Phu), and Ho Be (Vinh Chau).

To achieve the target of tourist volume, Soc Trang Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism continues to improve the quality of products and services in the province through the selection and appreciation of the top services provided to domestic and foreign tourists. Simultaneously, it is essential to maintain and improve the quality of existing tourism products and gradually put into operation the new tourism program focusing on the province's strengths of cultural festival tourism, ecological tourism, and shopping tourism to attract more and more domestic and foreign tourists to Soc Trang.

Source: VCCI

Debate on restoring Mekong Delta Floating Markets

Floating markets on rivers in the Mekong Delta have existed for hundreds of years and are not merely a place for buying and selling of farm produce but have over time become quintessentially a cultural and economic traditional heritage of people in South Vietnam.

Nga Bay Floating Market, also known as Phung Hiep floating market, is the biggest floating market in the Mekong Delta. It is called ‘floating market’ because of its mobility on the river.

On a vast and boundless water surface, hundreds of boats, big and small, gather together and create a floating arena for trade activities. The market is open all day long, but is most spirited early in the morning.

Boats of different sizes and shapes thread their way along the waterway in an atmosphere of vibrant activity, in a fun filled yet businesslike environment, purchasing and bargaining, with sellers and buyers bellowing over noisy boat engines.

At the bow of each boat is attached a bamboo pole and a sample of the goods being sold from the boat are strung over it, making it easy for buyers to find what they need. The poles are also of different sizes, upright or bent which makes for an interesting graphic view and is a really unique form of advertising.

Bay Khanh, an 80-year-old resident in Dai Thanh Commune, recalls with nostalgia the floating market’s old glory. In the old days, around 1,000 boats, even 3,000 during Tet holidays, of all sizes gathered in Nga Bay Floating Market and lit oil lamps at night, which all appeared stunning and colorful, like garlands of flowers. Some amateur farmers sang and played music through the night, creating a dreamlike atmosphere.

Duong Van Day, former director of Saigon Tourist, is a local man and had discovered the Phung Hiep floating market and exploited it for trips to the Mekong Delta. Many international holidaymakers have remarked that the floating markets in Thailand are not as beautiful as the ones in Vietnam,   although the Thai government spends a lot of money to promote and preserve floating markets for tourism.

However for traffic safety on rivers, the local government had removed the floating market to a location three kilometers further away from the old place. This subsequently and gradually reduced the hustle and bustle of the market as well as its prosperity, as fewer boats and people participated in trade activities on the river and tourists’ became less frequent. The reason could also be because of its inconvenient location with no road access.

The fact that the Nga Bay Floating Market lost its glory caused pressure on the local government and they began to call for ideas to restore it via their website.

Currently, there is an ongoing and heated debate among the public, experts, economists and travel agencies on the benefits of restoring it. According to Vo Thi Thang, former chairperson of Vietnam National Tourism, the province should restore the market and if necessary, her department will give financial support. Huynh Phong Tranh, former chairman of the People’s Committee of Hau Giang Province and current government general inspector, believes that restoring the floating market to its old location will require VND50 billion (US$2,4 million).

In mid June the Party Congress in Nga Bay Town discussed the restoring of the floating market, and developing it for tourism. In July, a seminar organized by the Information Center for the Promotion of Hau Giang Tourism, held a debate between experts, university lecturers and travel agencies. 

Concerning the return of the famous floating market’s old glory, participants said the government should also help revive the traditional handicraft villages, as those products can be sold as souvenirs to tourists.  Truong Van Ngon, deputy director of Can Tho Tourist Company is optimistic that the market will return to its lost glory within a period of three years.

The restoring of the well-known floating market is not just an economic matter but also a cultural one for Hau Giang Province in particular and the Mekong Delta in general, bringing back to life its 300-year-old history.

VietNamNet/SGGP

Vietnam the beautiful wonder of Asia

The countrymen call their motherland “The Land of Dragons.” Vietnam is a land of history filled with memory of many told and untold events. The great theme of modern Vietnamese history is the Vietnam’s war of Independence and reunification.

The Vietnam War was proved to be an extremely sobering experience which caused so much suffering for the Vietnamese people. The people of the country have a well-deserved reputation for being hard workers, but they enjoy their leisure as much as anyone else. Today the largely agrarian society of the country is shifting towards a more multi-sector economy. The country has a population of 91.5 million (estimates 2011) with a wealth of dialects spoken in different regions.

 

President Ho Chi Minh’s name comes to mind when we remember the recent history of Vietnam. He is the best-loved and famous political figure in the country. Ho Chi Minh the founder of the Vietnamese Communist Party and leader of the revolution carried the torch of Vietnam’s independence movement for over half a century.  As a revolutionist he made great contribution to the victorious Viet Minh that unified the country. Mausoleum Ho Chi Minh a monumental marble edifice at Ba Dinh Square in Hanoi was built to show the deep gratitude of the countrymen to their great leader. His remains are displayed inside the chamber of the mausoleum.

Hanoi the capital city, known as “city of lakes” is one destination for which any number of praising words seems inadequate. It is a thriving metropolis with cloud-tickling skyscrapers, numerous specialty shops, │boutiques and colorful markets that unhesitatingly leap into the future.

 

A visit to the country would remain incomplete if one doesn’t drive a 3½-hour journey on road from Hanoi to Halong Bay port. The five hour cruise in a double deck wooden boat on the bluish green waters, one can enjoy the beauty of  the bay. The UNESCO world Heritage site Halong (or "Descending Dragon) Bay is situated amidst a splendid panorama. The bay covers an area of 1500-square-kilometres dotted with a cluster of 1960 lime stone islands.

Hue in the center of the country is studded with many archeological sites. There is no end to the breath-taking sites visitors can see in Hue. Among those sites, feudal capital city with fortresses, temples, mausoleums, pagodas, bridges attract thousands daily. The area also offers the tourist to enjoy the riverside beauty. The Perfume River is famed for breathtaking river cruise in a traditional wooden boat.

Traveling from North to South of Vietnam can be a fantastic experience for a tourist.

Ho Chi Minh City is the largest city in Vietnam and is situated nearly 1,700 kilometers south of Hanoi. After the end of war in 1975 the Saigon city was renamed Ho Chi Minh City in honor of this great Leader. It is a city with a rapid development, where modern buildings are rising besides the 19th century buildings.  An array of giant cranes show the development fever in the city.

Among its highest-esteemed attractions are the Notre Dame Cathedral, Municipal Theater, the Re-unification palace, the Mekong River cruise, the Cu Chi tunnels and the Vietnam War Memorial Museum. The Vietnam War memorial museum is one of the most recognizable places to visit in the city. It is a living testimony to the history of   the Vietnam’s war of independence and re-unification of North and South Vietnam.  It is a place preserving the memories and relics of the Vietnam war.

Vietnam culture possesses several distinctive characteristics that give its own unique style. Today, the mixture of influences is apparent in art, music, dance and literature. Moreover, the fast growing tourism sector is another major pillar in the overall economic field of the country Vietnam is emerging as a strong tourist destination with number of visitors to the country climbing to 6.0 million in 2011.

Traveling to the country can be done in different ways .However the experience that a visitor gains is unforgettable. The country is home to a wide range of domestic and international airports. Hanoi’s Noi Bai Airport, Da Nang and Tan Son Nhat Airport of Ho Chi Minh City are the major stop over points for many international airlines. Vietnam has a great deal to offer and is worth visiting.

 

Srimal Fernando

(A journalist and a correspondent based in Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Trang An Tourism Complex waits for World Heritage title

Comprising of an ecological site, an ancient capital city and a scenic limestone reserve, the Trang An Tourism Complex is now in the tentative list to be considered for Viet Nam’s world heritage site.

Trang An ecological site is one of the most diverse fauna and flora area in Northern Viet Nam, with about 600 species of plants and 200 species of animals. Besides the terrestrial ecosystem, Trang An also houses an aquatic one of important value with many rare zoo-plankton and zoohenthic recorded in Viet Nam’s red book. The ecological site is one of the three pillars that Trang An Tourism Complex is seeking to promote.

A landmark of historical significance, Hoa Lu was Viet Nam’s ancient capital in the late 10th century, before King Ly Cong Uan made a strategic move to Thang Long (Hanoi) and set the place as new capital of Dai Viet (ancient name of Viet Nam). At that time, Hoa Lu was the capital as well as the economic, political and cultural center of Dai Co Viet, an independent Vietnamese polity founded in 968 A.D. Though only few vestiges of the 10th century remain out of 300 ha (30km2) of the ancient citadel, visitors can still get a good view of the scale of the old city. Located in a flat valley, Hoa Lu is protected by a natural wall with surrounding Trang An limestone mountains and Hoang Long rivers. The combination between mountains and rivers gives Hoa Lu a unique landscape.

Tam Coc – Bich Dong, considered “Ha Long Bay on land”, is characterised by picturesque limestone mountains-amid emerald water-body. Visitors have enjoyed following the canals and springs on sampan boats to explore caves and karst formation here for years. Past tours to the region have been scattering and short-termed due to a lack of service quality and quantity. The world heritage title is thus expected to help the site attract more investment from tour companies and public attention in preserving its natural beauty.

Several other sites of historical or natural importance in Viet Nam have set a great example how the UNESCO and other world organizations’ recognitions can benefit a destination. Ha Long Bay, for example, has seen more cruise companies offering tours (refer to halongbaytours.com), foreign tourists sightseeing the caves and grottos and public programs implemented to protect and retain the beauty of the attraction. The title presented by UNESCO has been seen as both a motivation for more tourists to visit these regions, bringing economic advantages; and an effort to mobilize more effort to protect these heritage sites, generating environmental awareness. With this in mind, local tourism authority has been organizing many activities to promote Trang An Tourism Complex’s image and waiting for UNESCO’s final decision.

All Leisure Holidays launches Cruise Mekong

UK travel firm All Leisure Holidays has announced that it is to launch a new brand, Cruise Mekong, concentrating on the lesser known areas of the Mekong River.

All Leisure Holidays currently operates a range of firms, focusing on different regions, including Discover Egypt, Voyages of Discovery, Swan Hellenic and Hebridean Island Cruise – this will be its first venture into the emerging Mekong market.

“We wanted to offer a different cruise experience to the UK market and the Upper Mekong River in Laos and northern Thailand is not heavily featured by operators,” explained All Leisure Holidays director Philip Breckner. “We saw this as a great opportunity for an established operator like ourselves to offer the trade something new, exciting and very sellable – as this region is fast becoming a very popular part of the world for long-haul adventure travellers.”

The firm will be using specially adapted ships for the voyages – which will need to cope with the notoriously wild waters of the Mekong – from Lao-German joint venture, Mekong River Cruises.

“The cruises are voyages of discovery in this little known part of the Mekong River in Laos and are combined with pre and post visits to some of the more well-known places in SE Asia such as Siem Reap in Cambodia for the chance to visit the incredible temples of Angkor Wat and the UNESCO World Heritage Listed Laung Prabang in Laos. Travellers can also add on Hanoi and a cruise in Halong Bay in Vietnam to their itinerary,” he added.

Nha Trang offers ideal destination for Russian tourists

Together with Da Nang and Phan Thiet, Nha Trang is considered an attractive destination that foreign tourists cannot ignore, especially for visitors from Russia.

With a long and clean coastline as well as lots of famous places such as Hon Mun Marine Protected Area, Hon Mot Island, Hon Tam Island, the Cham Po Nagar Towers, Institute of Oceanography, Hon Nhi Island, Hoa Lan Stream Tourist Site, Yangbay Waterfall, and Vinpearl Land, the city of Nha Trang and Khanh Hoa Province in general have increasingly brought into play its advantages to promote tourism development. The image of Nha Trang has become increasingly familiar to foreign tourists, especially Russian tourists.

In late October 2011, Russia's OrenAir Airlines began to offer direct flights between the city of Krasnoyarsk to Cam Ranh International Airport in Khanh Hoa, serving tourists from the Far East Region of Russia who toured the Vietnamese cities of Nha Trang and Phan Thiet during their winter vacation. Currently, OrenAir Airlines offers one round-trip flight to Cam Ranh International Airport everyday and in the future, it will expand this service to serve tourists from nine cities in the Far East Region of Russia such as Khabarovsk, Vladivostoks, Novosibirsk and Kemerovo. Pegas Turistik, a Russian travel company, currently arranges nine flights from the Far East Region of Russia to the Cam Ranh International Airport every week, 70 percent of whom stay in Nha Trang.

Truong Dang Tuyen, the director of the Khanh Hoa Culture, Sports and Tourism Department, said that in the first six months of 2012, the province received more than 1.12 million tourists, up 8.14 percent compared with the same period last year, including 266,000 foreign tourists, up 36 percent, with their stay in the locality totaling about 2.6 million days, up 18.67 percent. Total revenue from tourism reached an estimated VND1.24 trillion, up 15.6 percent. This year, Khanh Hoa expects to welcome about 2.35 million tourists, including 500,000 foreign tourists; and revenue of the provincial tourism sector is projected to reach VND2.5 trillion. Satisfactory results of the first six months have made Khanh Hoa's tourism sector confident of its ability to realize the targets set for the whole year. In the first half of 2012, the number of foreign tourists to the province increased and most of them were Russian tourists with a long stay. In the first six months of 2012, Khanh Hoa received about 35,000 Russian tourists, and in June alone, more than 2,500 Russian tourists came to Nha Trang. The Kemerovo Airport of Russia has launched a new flight route to Cam Ranh. Last year, Khanh Hoa was visited by more than 60,000 Russian tourists.

Russian tourist Sergei Udovichenko said that Vietnam remained an attractive destination for Russian tourists. The cost of tours to Vietnam and prices while in the country remain reasonable and security in Vietnam is ensured; Vietnam has lots of beautiful tourist sites; Russian tourists enjoy the sea in Nha Trang and highly appreciate the hotels and restaurants for their quality services. Exhibitions and tourism promotion activities in Russia have made Vietnam and Nha Trang known to a growing number of Russian tourists. Most Russian tourists like swimming in sea, sunbathing and enjoying seafood.

Survey results show that Russian tourists account for a considerable percentage of tourists staying in Nha Trang's hotels such as Michelia, Sunrise and Yasaka Saigon. At Yasaka Saigon for example, Russian tourists account for 40 percent. Natasha, a Russian person who works in the field of tourism, said that Russian tourists like the weather and the sea in Nha Trang as well as tourist sites in the city such as Nha Phu Lagoon, Hon Mun Island, Hon Nhi Island and the Cham Po Nagar Towers. Russian tourists highly appreciate security and service quality in Nha Trang and they are willing to introduce it to their friends and relatives. Russian tourists are generous and this is a favorable condition for Nha Trang to increase revenue from tourism.

Many tourist sites as well as hotels and restaurants in Nha Trang provide tourists with information in Russian about things such as tour-guides, services and menu. The demand of the Vietnamese tourism sector in general and that of Khanh Hoa Province for tour-guides who can speak Russian is increasing as Russia emerges as one of the top ten markets in terms of the number of tourists to Vietnam.

(Source: VEN)

Workshop on Vietnam Tourism Marketing and Tourism Branding

(TITC) – On August 7, in Hanoi, Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) and Environmentally and Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme (ESRT) organized a workshop on Vietnam Tourism Marketing and Tourism Branding.

It was a part of ESRT’s activities supporting in the development of Vietnam Tourism Marketing Plan period 2013 – 2015, vision 2030. The event attracted the presence of VNAT’s leaders, directors and staff of VNAT’s departments and ESRT programme’s professionals.

Speaking at the workshop, General Director of VNAT Nguyen Van Tuan said that National Tourism Development Strategy 2011-2020, vision 2030 has been approved by Prime Minister and VNAT has been deploying activities to realize the strategy objectives, in which building and implementing marketing plan plays an importance role.

In the workshop, ESRT international professionals presented issues on tourism marketing and branding for Vietnam. They stressed that in current changing situation, Vietnam’s tourism sector should re-organize marketing and promotional plans, researching market, focuse investment, increasing promotion via internet… Based on the core message of “Vietnam – Timeless charm”, the sector should develop various branch – messages to promote different tourist products…

Deputy General Director of VNAT Hoang Thi Diep said in order to have good tourism brand, it is necessary to build good tourism products that satisfy customers. Provided limited budget, VNAT should select and implement different marketing methods effectively, paying attention to the role of the internet, renovating VNAT’s website to enhance promotion effectiveness; focusing on human resources training.

Mekong Delta attracts nearly 13 million visitors

The Mekong River Delta drew 1.8 million foreign arrivals in July, raising the total number of visitors since the beginning of the year to 12.8 million, up 6 percent from a year ago.

The tourism industry brought VND2.6 trillion to the region, a year-on-year increase of 25 percent.

According to the Mekong River Delta Tourism Association, regional provinces have collaborated with each other to upgrade infrastructure, produce new tourism products and attract more investment for developing tourism in the 2010-2015 period.

Each province focuses on promoting specific key tourism products, for instance waterway tourism and festivals in Can Tho and An Giang, convalescence in Kien Giang, tours of Vietnam’s southern tip and eco-tourism in Ca Mau and cultural festivals of the Khmer ethnic group in Soc Trang.

Along with upgrading tourism infrastructure, these localities also develop particular specialty products such as fine arts and handicrafts, fruit, fish sauce and confectioneries.

(Source: VOV)

Life along the Mekong to be on TV

A filmmaking team from Thailand recently began to shot the first scenes of a documentary featuring the daily life of Vietnamese people living on the banks of the Mekong River .

The footage will be aired in mid-June on Thai PBS Television in a programme entitled The Rivers of Life.

"The programme aims to capture the most lively scenes of people's daily lives in Southeast Asia and the Mekong River as a means to encourage more knowledge of the river," said Peeyada Prasutsaengchan, head of the filmmaking team. "They will have then the responsibility to preserve the river's resources and develop its values," she added.

The one-hour programme has been shown every Friday at 10pm since April 13 of this year. It can be watched on the internet at program.thaipbs.or.th/documentary or www.facebook.com/Theriveroflife.

This filmmaking team had visited Vietnam several times before to make documentary films all over the country. But this is the first time that Prasutsaengchan has come to Vietnam. "I am very impressed by the floating market in Soc Trang Province on the Mekong River . It offers many occasions for people from different regions to meet and exchange their goods," she said.

In her eyes, the Mekong Delta is like a "green dragon" full of vitality in the rainy season.

"With its potentialities, the delta could soon become an attractive tourist destination," she affirms.

Source: VNA