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Vietnam urged to explore maritime tourism potential
Maritime tourism resources in Vietnam have been diversified in both high value natural and human resources. However, developing maritime tourism in the country has not yet matched its potential.
As a coastal nation in the eastern part of Indochina, Vietnam has around 1 million square kilometres of exclusive economic forest on more than 3,000 islands and islets in the Tonkin gulf and Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagoes.
Dr Le Trong Binh, Head of the Institute for Research and Tourism Development: Strengthening advertisement on mass media.
Mr Binh says that, sea tourism has not yet matched its potential as there remain many shortcomings in the investment and development of tourism facilities, services and products.
Nguyen Chu Hoi, Deputy Director of the General Department of Sea and Islands says that there is a lack of cooperation among agencies in using and managing maritime resources. Many places, which have the potential for maritime tourism, are located near ports, and seafood processing zones but the involvement of local communities in developing maritime tourism remains limited.
Dr Le Trong Binh said that it is necessary to promote sea tourism to the mass media. In the short-term, priority will be given to investing in regions such as Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Central North, Thua Thien Hue, Da Nang, Quang Nam, Binh Dinh, Khanh Hoa, Binh Thuan, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, and Kien Giang as these areas have potential to attract foreign visitors. In addition, it is important to pay attention to improving the quality of tourism products to meet international and local demands.
Regarding tourism promotion, Dr Le Trong Binh from the Vietnam National Tourism Administration (VNAT) says that the agency will promote tourism activities in the international mass media such as CNN. In the near future, the VNAT will also sign contracts with many foreign news agencies to promote Vietnam’s tourism activities, develop its unique tourism products, organise seminars, trade fairs, and exhibitions, and strengthen international cooperation to promote tourism activities.
To develop maritime tourism, Mr Binh proposes several measures including improving the local people’s awareness of the important role of maritime resources to classify exclusive economic areas that need investments to ensure sustainable development.
Deputy Director of the General Department of Sea and Islands Nguyen Chu Hoi: lack of high-grade tourism products and services.
Maritime tourism is short of high-grade and special tourism products and services due to poor attention being paid to tourism diversification. Vietnam still does not have a maritime complex that reaches international standards. Islands are an important factor in developing maritime tourism and attract the visitors. So due attention must be paid to exploiting traditional maritime values such as fisheries festival, buffalo fights, temples to whales and fishermen in coastal areas.
Luu Nhan Vinh, director of the Vietnam Tourism Company in Hanoi: local people’s participation is very important.
Currently, maritime tourism products are not unique as they do not reflect the special features of each locality. Vendors are often seen trying to pull and win over tourists at every tourism site. Many provinces do not have detailed plans to develop sea tourism, causing a number of problems such as ships docking at beaches and waste being thrown directly to sea.
Local people play an important role in developing maritime tourism programme. To achieve this goal needs closer coordination among departments and agencies as well as between travel agents and local people.
From now to 2010, the tourism sector plans to achieve an annual growth rate of 10-20 percent, to receive around 5.5-6 million foreign visitors and 25 million domestic visitors (80 percent of whom are sea travelers) and earn US$4-5 billion, double the 2005 figure.
VOV
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