Vietnam attends Berlin International Tourism Fair

Nearly 30 Vietnamese firms, led by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) are participating in the International Tourism Fair ITB, which opened in the German’s capital city of Berlin on March 6.

 Vietnam's pavilion at ITB (Source: VNA)

In the framework of the National Tourism Promotion Programme 2013, VNAT wants to popularise the image of Vietnam – a peaceful, hospitable and attractive destination to tourism markets in Germany and the Europe.

This year’s five-day fair draws the participation of over 10,000 tourism firms from 188 countries across the world and is expected to greet around 170,000 visitors.

Addressing the opening ceremony, German Chancellor Angela Merkel consideredITB “a gate to the world”. She expressed her hope that the exhibitors would win many contracts and attract lots of visitors to their pavilions.

Vietnamplus

Vietnam – an emerging tourist destination

Vietnam has overtaken Thailand in travel agency Hayes & Jarvis’ rankings of the ten most popular destinations for UK tourists.

The agency’s list of the top ten long-haul locations favoured by UK travelers include Mauritius, Mexico, Kenya, New York, Hawaii, Egypt, Vietnam, Tanzania, Thailand, and the Dominican Republic. Vietnam placed seventh ahead of Thailand’s ninth.

Hayes & Jarvis explained African countries topped the list thanks to UK naturalist and broadcaster Sir David Attenborough’s TV series.

New York is still recovering from the impact of Hurricane Sandy, ranking fourth. Brazil, Costa Rica, China, and the Caribbean’s Tobago Island were also popular with UK tourists.

VOV

Vietnam's adventure travel - Organized or independent?

A commercial attitude has always been part of Vietnamese culture. So it's no miracle that after the years of isolation, Vietnam quickly changed into a unique mix of communism and capitalism. As soon as you will arrive in Vietnam, you will be offered all kinds of services, including postcards, shoe shine, and different Vietnam tours.

Independent adventure travelers, however, do not fancy organised tours in buses with many tourists. But the lack of public transport almost requires taking such a tour. Unless, of course, you have your own means of transport. In that case, try to reach the following exciting Vietnam destinations on your own.

Northern hill tribes

In the mountainous regions of North Vietnam, several different hill tribes still live their traditional lives. The village of Sapa and the valleys around it are great for exploring. For independent travelers, it can be reached by train and mini bus, but it is also great for touring around on a motorbike. Make sure, though, to make a trekking, too.

Tours from Hanoi

From the capital of Hanoi, different tours can be made. Before exploring by yourself, however, take into account that for instance Halong Bay, but also the Perfume Pagoda, require boat transportation as well.

Central Vietnam

In the centre of Vietnam, between the cities of Hue and Hoi An, lies a small mountain range, causing a change in climate, especially in winter. Where Hue is the wettest place in Vietnam, and still pretty cold in winter, Hoi An sees a lot of sun, and is warm year-round.

In these regions, there are a lot of interesting sights. Independent travelers, however, need to take care since a lot of landmines are still around. This is the area of the former demilitarized zone, and a lot of fighting took place here. The remnants of the once flourishing Champa kingdom at My Son has suffered from it, but is still worth a visit. While on the road, you can see more sites with Cham towers, though.

Around Dalat

Moving south, it's best to move away from the coastal road into the central highlands around Dalat. This area is well suited to visit with your own means of transport, visiting waterfalls, hill tribes, nice scenery, etcetera. Without transport, you are stuck to another Vietnam travel guide to visit those sites.

Mekong Delta

The most challenging area for independent adventure travel is in the south of Vietnam. The Mekong Delta area mainly has waterways. The roads alongside the water are connected over the water by monkey bridges. The Vietnamese take their motorbikes over these bridges, but can you?

So many places in Vietnam are worth a visit. But visiting those independently is often a challenge. For some regions, you may want to stick to a Vietnam Tour. For others, consider having your own means of transport for the best adventure travel. The choice is up to you.

Patrick van der Meer is the creator of Adventure Travel Tales and Tips, a website composed of his experiences during a 15 month world journey and other trips. Visit his website for exciting travelogues, tips on preparations, means of transport, a wide range of destinations and much more.

Internet

Kien Giang open sea tourism to Cambodia, Thailand

A route connecting the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang with Cambodia’s Sihanoukville and Thailand will be launched this year, heard a meeting of representatives of the province and Thailand’s Trat and Chanthaburi provinces in Kien Giang on Monday.

Le Minh Hoang, director of the provincial Department of Culture, Tourism and Sports, said Kien Giang and Thailand had agreed on opening the sea route to Cambodia. Therefore, the meeting was only attended by representatives of Thailand and Vietnam on Monday.

The sea route when in place will be attractive to international visitors, especially European travelers. Vietnam will also benefit from the route as many foreign visitors traveling to Thailand and Cambodia want to go to Phu Quoc Island offshore Kien Giang Province by the route.

“This afternoon we agreed to make surveys of tourist sites from Ha Tien, Rach Gia and Phu Quoc to Sihanoukville, Trat and Chanthaburi and the route will be opened after that,” Hoang told the Daily right after the meeting.

The new tourism route will help tourists shorten traveling time to attractive destinations in the three nations. It will take visitors about two and a half hours to go to Sihanoukville by boat from Phu Quoc and two more hours to go to Trat.

However, all the three provinces are lacking qualified tourism boats for the route. The side preparing enough ships will be allowed to be operational first as per the agreement.

“In Kien Giang, only the Duong Dong ship is qualified for this route, so we will encourage local companies to build more ships with capacity of 250-300 tourists to serve travelers,” he noted.

Hoang said Kien Giang, Trat and Chanthaburi provinces will set up more rest stops on islands so that visitors can stop by there.

There were nearly 5.6 million local and foreign visitors to Kien Giang in 2012, a year-on-year growth of 10.1%, the local tourism department reports. The number of visitors to the province is estimated at more than 5.88 million people this year.

 

Vietnam seeking for new tourism ambassador

The heated race for the 2013-2014 Vietnam Tourism Ambassador between the former holder of this position and some fresh candidates is attracting much attention.

The candidates include actress/businesswoman Ly Nha Ky, the first and current Vietnam Tourism Ambassador, Huynh Thi Ngoc Han, a lesser-known beauty with two master’s degrees and some local beauties and famed singers such as My Tam and Hong Nhung.

Though there are mixed public opinions on Ky’s performance as last year’s tourism ambassador, according to Nguyen Van Tinh, head of International Cooperation Office under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism at a convention on Jan 4, Ky made remarkable contributions to the promotion of Vietnam’s tourism during her term.

 Singer My Tam

She was one of those credited with successfully promoting Halong Bay in the race to gain worldwide recognition as one of the new natural world wonders.

She was also active in calling for support for Vietnam’s bid to host the Asian Games (ASIAD) in 2019.

Armed with good looks, foreign language command and good relations, Ky is standing a high chance of being reelected.

She is set to promote the Trang An relic of northern Ninh Binh province in its bid to win world cultural heritage recognition.

However, this celebrity’s reputation has been tainted by some scandals like showing too much skin in a certain movie.

Meanwhile, 26-year-old Huynh Thi Ngoc Han, from Can Tho province has also applied for the post.

The beauty, who won the Miss Tourism subtitle of the 2011 Miss Ethnic Vietnam, holds 2 master’s degrees in international trade and public relations in Australia.

Han is currently working as a PR executive at Brisbane City Hall as well as providing international trade counseling in Australia.

An ambassador for international students at Queensland state’s Brisbane city last year, she was honored by the city mayor for her remarkable efforts to help the students bridge the gap between the cultures of their home country and Australia.

However, according to expert opinions, Han’s popularity is quite limited compared to Ky’s.

Thu Huong, the second runner up of 2011 Mrs World, is also among the candidates. Other promising nominees are My Tam, a famed pop singer with free-from-scandal lifestyle and diva Hong Nhung, with a long, successful musical career.

According to Tinh, the new ambassador must be famous, professionally successful, knowledgeable about Vietnamese culture, history and tourism, active in social work, and capable of mobilizing financial support for the country’s tourism promotion activities.

“The ambassador must also sacrifice a lot in terms of money and time, which is one of Ky’s dominant strengths,” he added.

The competition is ongoing.

“The fact that there are several contenders for the post means the increasing recognition of its importance,” said Ky.

Applications can be submitted to the culture ministry’s International Cooperation Office until the end of February.

Dtinews

10 events that make Vietnam's tourism proud of

Apart from the increase of international visitors, the development of heritage tourism, the release of new slogan and emblem of the tourism sector, 50 percent of tourist sites having standardized toilets for tourists is one of the boasts of the tourism sector in 2012.

Reporters who cover tourism have selected the 10 typical events of the tourism sector in 2012, as follows: 

1. Vietnam welcomed nearly 6.85 million of international visitors and 32.5 million of domestic visitors, earning a total revenue of VND160 trillion (over $7.6 billion). In the context of economic recession in Vietnam and the world, it is a big success for the tourism industry to fulfill the basic criteria of 2012.

2. The National Tourism Year of the Northern Central Coast - Hue 2012 with the theme Heritage Tourism with nearly 30 cultural, sports, tourism events being held throughout the year, bearing the mark of Northern Central provinces, especially Hue culture in harmony with Vietnamese culture.

3. Ha Long Bay officially recognized as the new natural wonder of the world has contributed a world-class title on the outstanding value of Ha Long Bay and helped attract domestic and foreign tourists to the site.

4. In the eyes of journalists, another important is the International Tourism Fair ITE – HCM City 2012 from September 13 to 15, with the theme "Four countries - One destination." The event attracted the participation of more than 500 businesses, travel agencies, media companies from over 30 countries and territories worldwide. After eight times, ITE – HCM City has become a reputable tourism event in the Greater Mekong Sub-region.

5. The new slogan and icon for Vietnam’s tourism in 2012-2015 (Logo: a blooming lotus with five petals. Slogan: Vietnam – the endless beauty. However, according to Mr. Nguyen Manh Cuong, Deputy Director General of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), due to limited funding, the promotion of the new slogan and logo has not been implemented yet so visitors do not understand them clearly, resulting in limited effect.

6. Three hotels in Vietnam made the top hotels in the world by Travel + Leisure Magazine is also a pride. According to a survey with the readers of the magazine, three hotels in Vietnam, The Nam Hai (Hoi An), Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi and Park Hyatt Saigon, have good quality of service.

7. The switching of priority to the tourism markets of England, Germany, Russia, Japan and South Korea was implemented strongly in 2012. Vietnam organized many effective promotion and advertising programs in these countries, contributing to the steady growth of international visitors to Vietnam in 2012.

8. Although the tourism industry could build standard toilets in 50 percent of tourist site, this is still considered a success of the tourism sector in 2012 because for a long time, dirty toilets affected the image of Vietnam’s tourism in the eyes of foreign visitors.

9. Da Nang, Khanh Hoa and Binh Thuan made breakthroughs to become important tourist destinations of the central region and the country.

10. The conference honoring the leading travel firms and hotels in Vietnam in 2011 was mentioned as the driving force for the tourism industry to continue overcoming difficulties in the new year.

VNAT officials said that the agency would be in parallel with businesses in attracting and servicing international and domestic travelers. Some plans to reform and increase investment in tourism have been submitted to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for approval.

Source:Vietnamnet

Binh Thuan-an attractive destination for Russian visitors

Binh Thuan is said to have been an attractive destination for Russian travelers because the number of Russian tourist arrivals to Binh Thuan has been increasing rapidly in the recent years. 

As of November, 2012 Binh Thuan was estimated to welcome more than 2,871,400 turns of visitors, an increase of 11.2% over the same period last year, including about 315,210 turns of overseas visitors, rose by 18% compared to the 2011’s corresponding period. Among foreign visitors from Russia, Germany, China, United Kingdom, the U.S, South Korea, Australia, etc, Russian arrivals made up 47.11%. Because the peak season of winter vacation for Russian tourists to “shelter from harsh winter” is from November onwards. At the same time, Cam Ranh airport has started to receive direct flights from Russia, the number of Russian visitors to Binh Thuan has sharply increased. Currently, Mui Ne-Binh Thuan has gradually become a “Russian village” with a lot of hotels, resorts, restaurants, spa centers, gymnastic centers jointly opened by Vietnamese and Russian investors.

Russian tourists prefer to travel to Binh Thuan mainly because this is an ideal destination where has several high-grade resorts known as “the capital of resorts”, various delicious dishes from fresh seafood at reasonable prices. The climatic conditions here are favorable for water and extreme sports such as: windsurfing, kitesurfing, diving, etc. Moreover, Mui Ne is only 200 km from Tan Son Nhat airport (Ho Chi Minh city) and Cam Ranh airport (Khanh Hoa province).

In current time, Russian tourists staying at Bamboo Village Resorts & Spa are making up more than 60% of our total customers. There are a lot of Russians coming to Mui Ne for recreation and they usually stay here from 7 to 10 days. Several visitors have come and returned to Bamboo Village resort & Spa for 8-9 times. Particularly, some travelers have ever stayed here 18 times. As annual plan, at the end of the year, the resort will organize two special Gala nights to welcome Christmas Eve (in the evening of December 24-) and New Year’s Eve (on December 31 night). On these events, our visitors will join in traditional games, enjoy tasty dishes and impressive performances with Vietnamese traditional songs and dances.

Most of Russian visitors usually arrive and spend long period in Mui Ne. Many of them have returned to Binh Thuan several times. According to Binh Thuan Tourism Association, the total tourism industry is joining hands to strive for the aim “Mui Ne-Binh Thuan- a destination today, tomorrow and forever”. Drawing tourists to Binh Thuan for the first time is a difficult task. But it is more difficult to satisfy and attract them to come back to the locality for recreation and enjoying new experiences. Besides Mui Ne - Binh Thuan, there are a lot of competitively attractive tourist destinations in Ho Chi Minh city, Vung Tau, Nha Trang, Da Lat with each own advantages. Meanwhile, in spite of the fame of “the capital of resorts”, Binh Thuan tourism is still facing many obstacles due to disadvantages in traffic (both road and air traffic). For that reason, the province needs to promote and renew its images by means of organizing international events, as well as attaching special importance to improving service quality.

In recent years, Binh Thuan has hosted a lot of large-scale events such as: the international windsurfing (PWA Worldtour), international sailing festival, 1st Vietnam international hot air balloon fiesta, Mui Ne half-marathon. Otherwise, the provincial authorities have continually upgraded the traditional festivals of the locality such as: Kate festival of the Cham community, Nghinh Ong festival of the Chinese-Vietnamese people, Cau Ngu festival, lantern procession in Mid-Autumn festival, traditional boat race on Ca Ty river in Lunar New Year to be on par with other international festivals. Besides, visitors also contemplate flying sand hills in Mui Ne, Trinh Nu sand hill, Bau Ong and Bau Ba lakes in Hoa Thang commune (Bac Binh district), or the “Lying Buddha statue with more than 40 in length on the top of Ta Cu mountain, various temples and towers of the Cham ethnic minority… In addition, the resorts in Mui Ne often organize many art performances with intangible cultural features of the ethnic groups in the locality. By their own fair hands, visitors can wrap “banh chung”, one of the indispensable traditional meals of Vietnamese families in Lunar New Year. 

Source: Bao Binh Thuan

Thirty-three intangible cultural heritages recognised

The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism has decided to announce a list of 33 national intangible cultural heritages.

Among those, seven have been recognised by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as intangible cultural heritages of humankind. Don ca tai tu Nam Bo (Southern amateur music) has been submitted to the committee for recognition.

As many as 11 folk performance arts are named in the list, including the Vietnam Royal Court Music in central Thua Thien-Hue province, the Space of Gong Culture in the Central Highlands of Vietnam, the Bac Ninh Folk Songs in northern Bac Ninh and Bac Giang provinces, Ca Tru (Ceremonial singing) in 15 provinces and cities, Xoan singing in northern Phu Tho province, southern amateur music in 21 provinces and cities, Cao Lan and San Chi folk songs in Bac Giang province, the Binh Dinh traditional martial arts in central Binh Dinh province and water puppetry in northern Hai Duong province.

Also listed are traditional festivals such as the Giong Festival at Phu Dong and Soc Temples in Hanoi, the Yen The and Tho Ha Festivals in Bac Giang province, the Fire Jumping Festival of Pa Then people in northern Ha Giang province, the Con Son and Kiep Bac Festivals in Hai Duong province, the Do Son Buffalo Fighting Festival in Hai Phong city, the Fish Worshipping Festival in central Khanh Hoa province, the Gau Tao Festival in Lao Cai and Ha Giang provinces, the Ky Yen Festival in the Gia Loc Communal House in southern Tay Ninh province, the Ponagar Festival in Nha Trang city of central Khanh Hoa province, and the Long Tong Festival of Tay ethnic people in northern mountainous Tuyen Quang province.

Seven social practices and beliefs honoured this time are the ritual of worshipping Hung Kings in Phu Tho province, the ancestor worship of Lo Lo people in Ha Giang province, the “Cap Sac” - a ritual to recognise a mature Dao ethnic man in northern Bac Kan, Ha Giang, Lao Cai and Yen Bai provinces, the Forest God Worship of Pu Peo ethnic people in Ha Giang province, the “leaving the tomb” ceremony of Raglai people in Khanh Hoa province, the Chau van or hau dong ritual of Viet people in Ha Nam and Nam Dinh provinces, and the Then ritual of Tay ethnic people in Lao Cai, Quang Ninh and Tuyen Quang provinces. Chu Nom (Ancient Vietnamese script) of Dao ethnic people in Bac Kan province, Dong Ho folk paintings in Bac Ninh province and the ceramics of Cham ethnic people in central Binh Thuan province are also recognised as intangible cultural heritages.

(Source: VNA)

Hue festival pays homage to Vietnamese crafts

The 2013 Hue Traditional Craft Festival will take place in central Thua Thien-Hue province from April 27 to May 1. 

The biennial festival will draw artisans from craft villages in Thua Thien-Hue, and cities and provinces across the country. The event will showcase traditional crafts, including weaving, pottery, Hue enamel, wood and bamboo handicrafts, lacquer, embroidery and paper flowers.

A seminar looking at the role of craft villages in tourism development will be held, during which researchers, scientists and artisans will evaluate the development of traditional crafts and craft villages.

The touring exhibition, France ’s Metamorphoses, will introduce five French textile techniques at the festival.

International designers and artisans, including Francoise Hoffmann (France), Patis Tesoro (the Philippines) and Kinor Yang (Hong Kong), will join renowned Vietnamese designer Minh Hanh in a fashion show.

A street festival, gastronomy demonstrations, and traditional games will also take place during the five-day event.

(Source: VNA)

Ba Be Lake awarded national special relic status

The title of national special relic site was awarded to Ba Be Lake in the northern mountainous province of Bac Kan at a ceremony on December 29. 

Ba Be Lake

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung attended the ceremony. Addressing the event, he affirmed that the title will help the province make the most of its natural heritage to promote socio-economic development, culture and tourism.

The lake covers an area of around 500 hectares and is located in the 10,000 hectare Ba Be National Park. It has been listed among 20 freshwater lakes in the world in need of protection.

Its new status not only brings pride, but also challenges to the locality to maintain and promote the lake’s value that will encourage socio-economic and tourism development.

At the event, a special arts programme was performed to showcase the cultural identities of the local mountainous ethnic groups.

Source:Vietnam plus