The central coastal province of Quang Binh held an event in Hanoi on
April 23 to promote its tourism products and seek ways to tap its
tourism potential.
Boasting a long coastline
riddled with beaches, historic and spiritual sites and a UNESCO World
Heritage Site—the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park—Quang Binh has
plentiful opportunities to develop tourism into one of its economic
pillars, according to delegates attending the event.
According to Nguyen Quoc Hung, Deputy Director General of the
Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), the Phong Nha –
Ke Bang National Park with its world-famous caves could be as popular as
Ha Long Bay with adequate investment.
Hung said
the province should design various tours suitable for groups from all
over the world from the European Union to East Asian countries.
Tran Tien Dung, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee,
said that the province has created a number of tours, without
overlapping, at cave systems around the province, as well as seaside
eco-tourism and spiritual tours to Vung Chua – Dao Yen, General Vo
Nguyen Giap’s final resting place.
One of Quang
Binh’s weaknesses, according to Dung, is the lack of accommodation due
to a limited number of hotels and guesthouses.
The province is also developing homestay and farmstay tourism to help
tourists experience the province’s scenic nature, hospitable people and
tribal culture.
In 2014, Quang Binh welcomed 2.7
million visitors, up nearly 100 percent, 60 percent of which were
international tourists, a 26 percent increase.-VNA