Nguyen Tuan Anh, Vice Chairman of the UNESCO Hanoi Travel Club representing over 1,000 travel agencies nationwide, pledged at a conference last week to promote tourism cooperation between Hanoi and Lai Chau. He announced that Hanoi will establish alliances with the aim of jointly developing new products and connecting the Hanoi-Lai Chau itinerary in the near future.
| Cau May Glass Bridge in Lai Chau Province. Photos: Hoai Nam/The Hanoi Times |
Tran Quang Khang, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Lai Chau Province, stated at the conference that the partnership with Hanoi will serve as a motivation for the tourism industry in the province to develop high-quality products.
He emphasized that Lai Chau, with its abundant natural resources and cultural diversity represented by 20 ethnic groups, is actively working on building unique tourism products to attract both tourists and investors.
At present, Lai Chau’s tourism relies heavily on community-based tourism, ecotourism associated with the natural landscapes and scenic spots, and adventure sports tourism. However, there is still untapped potential and advantages that need to be effectively utilized.
The Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism also highlighted the lack of comprehensive investment in transportation infrastructure and the absence of large enterprises capable of creating a modern and high-quality service delivery system.
Tour operators from Hanoi who participated in the conference proposed various initiatives to develop tourism in Lai Chau. Nguyen Thi Minh Thuy, Business Director of AIC Travel Company, pointed out that many travel agencies in Hanoi lack information about Lai Chau, which makes it challenging to develop products and connect tour routes.
“Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen cooperation with Hanoi to increase promotional activities and attract more visitors to Lai Chau,” she said.
Nguyen Van Cuong, Director of New Smile Tourism Development and Trading JSC, suggested that the management authorities in Lai Chau should enhance support for service businesses and travel companies, facilitate cooperation between them, and offer reasonable service prices to collectively bring more visitors to Lai Chau.
Do Trong Thi, Head of the Department of Culture of Tam Duong District (Lai Chau Province), proposed strengthening partnerships between Hanoi’s tourism sector, the district, and other tourism destinations in Hanoi’s districts and cities in the future.
| O Quy Ho, the longest pass in Vietnam, is one of the most attractive destinations in northwest Vietnam. |
In order to establish attractive tours and connections, the Hanoi travel agency delegation visited several typical models and destinations, including Rong May Glass Bridge Resort, Sin Suoi Ho community-based tourism site, Si Thau Chai Village, Ta Phin Village, and others.
Phung Thi Hoai Huong, Head of the Culture and Information division of Hanoi’s Gia Lam District, stressed that this activity enabled them to learn valuable lessons in managing and establishing appropriate mechanisms and policies to support the training of people involved in building high-quality community-based tourism products.
In the first nine months of 2023, Lai Chau has attracted nearly 800,000 visitors, including almost 790,000 domestic tourists and 11,000 international visitors. The revenue has reached an estimated VND586.2 billion (US$24 million), marking a 20% year-on-year increase and achieving 92.9% of the 2023 target.
In August, a delegation from Hanoi visited Danang to study agritourism models. They also visited the central provinces of Quang Nam and Thua Thien-Hue to explore the development of new tours to Hanoi.
The Department of Tourism of Hanoi plans to enhance the development of cooperative tourism programs with provinces and cities in southern Vietnam, the Central Highlands, and the central regions by the end of 2023, aiming to attract more visitors to the capital city.
This year, Hanoi is expected to receive approximately 22 million visitors, representing a 17.6% growth compared to 2022. Of these visitors, around 19 million are anticipated to be domestic tourists, marking a 10.5% increase from last year. The projected tourism revenue for the year is VND77 trillion (US$3.26 billion), reflecting an annual increase of 28.2%.
| During September, the trend of taking photos with bicycles full of colorful flowers (considered a hallmark of Hanoi’s autumn) has spread to the streets of Lai Chau Province. Photo: laichau.gov.vn |
