Advantages that few places have
“Vung Tau City has advantages that few places in Vietnam have, especially the climate with nearly 360 sunny days a year,” Ms. Nguyen Thi Nga, Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of BRG Group, affirmed during a working session with leaders of Ba Ria-Vung Tau province on June 11.
According to Ms. Nga, this is an ideal condition for developing high-end tourism products. “Vung Tau in particular, and BR-VT in general, have great advantages in tourism development, from climate, location to beautiful coastline. We are committed to long-term investment, wishing to contribute to the sustainable development of the locality,” Ms. Nga said.
Mr. Nguyen Van Tho, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, said that as a coastal province in the Southern Key Economic Zone, Ba Ria-Vung Tau has a coastline of over 300km and is the only locality in the region that owns a deep-water port system of international standards. Cai Mep - Thi Vai port cluster is one of the few ports in Southeast Asia that can receive cruise ships and super-heavy containers, opening up great potential for developing high-end cruise tours across continents.
In addition to port infrastructure, the province also has the advantage of a warm and sunny climate all year round, beautiful seascapes, temperate climate, and an average temperature of 27 degrees Celsius. The tourism ecosystem is very diverse, from famous beaches such as Bai Sau, Bai Truoc, Long Hai, Ho Tram to spiritual and historical tourist destinations such as the statue of Christ, Bach Dinh, Thang Tam communal house, Minh Dam mountain revolutionary relic... All create a unique sea - mountain - cultural tourism ecosystem.
In terms of location, BR-VT will soon officially merge with Ho Chi Minh City, the largest economic center in the country, conveniently connected to Long Thanh International Airport, highways and coastal routes across the province. This is a favorable condition for building inter-regional sea tourism products, in which Vung Tau plays the role of a transit point or the first stop on the journey of international superyachts.
Not only nature and infrastructure, the locality also has a long-standing maritime culture with traditional fishing villages, the Whale Festival, fish sauce making, typical cuisine of the Southern Coast region... are factors that attract international tourists who love to experience.
Will build a port to welcome 5-star cruise ships
Since 2017, international cruise lines such as Celebrity Cruises and Royal Caribbean have chosen Cai Mep as a stopover for their Asia-Pacific tours. Each cruise carries thousands of tourists to visit destinations such as Vung Tau, Con Dao, Ho Chi Minh City, and Tien Giang. The cruises are not frequent, but they show the potential of Ba Ria-Vung Tau as a gateway to welcome international visitors by sea.
In the first 4 months of 2025 alone, Cai Mep - Thi Vai port cluster welcomed about 31 international passenger ships with 1,800 - 4,000 tourists/ship. Previously, in 2024, BR-VT received more than 50 international cruise ships with a total of more than 100,000 passengers. These numbers are a positive signal showing the interest of international shipping lines in the destination of BR-VT.
Due to the lack of a dedicated port for passenger ships, cruise ships still have to dock at commercial container ports, affecting the tourist experience and service efficiency. BR-VT identified this as a point that needs to be resolved soon to improve its position and competitiveness. Provincial leaders said that the locality does not just want to build a simple passenger ship port, but aims to form an international-class service - trade - tourism complex.
Accordingly, BR-VT has agreed to plan an international passenger port in Bai Truoc, Vung Tau City with a total investment of nearly VND8,000 billion, an area of about 10 hectares, a 420m long wharf that can accommodate yachts carrying up to 6,000 passengers. The project also includes a passenger terminal, a seaplane dock, a duty-free shopping area, an event center, a hotel, and a marina.
According to Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Le Ngoc Khanh, the function of Vung Tau International Passenger Port is a symbolic, international-class and aesthetic project, suitable for the scale of the project as a destination port, not a port of call. At the same time, this port will be a gathering place, ensuring regular community activities, organizing major events of the province and the whole region.
Perspective of Vung Tau international passenger port. (Photo in article: Dung Tien) |
Deploy multiple solutions in sync
Mr. Nguyen Van Tho, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, said that in addition to promoting investment in building passenger ports, BR-VT also implemented many synchronous solutions to effectively exploit sea tourism.
The focus is on developing specialized products for cruise passengers, quickly connecting ports and day tours in Ho Chi Minh City, Con Dao, Ba Ria, Phu My. The province also promotes administrative reform, shortens the inspection process, and performs immigration procedures right at the port, ensuring speed and friendliness.
In addition, one of the strategic directions is to build a southern coastal tourism corridor: Vung Tau - Con Dao - Phu Quoc - Nha Trang, serving both domestic and international tourists traveling by sea. To realize this, the locality is strengthening regional connectivity to expand space and extend the length of stay of visitors.
BR-VT also proposed that the Central Government allow the application of special mechanisms on investment, tax, and infrastructure to attract businesses to participate in the tourism seaport sector; at the same time, it proposed to have a separate planning for the international passenger port, separate from the existing container port system in the Cai Mep - Thi Vai area.
Experts say that when the international passenger port is completed and the service ecosystem develops in the right direction, BR-VT can completely become the largest cruise ship reception center in the Southern region.
Sea tourism is becoming the top choice of international visitors thanks to its sustainability, multi-destination connectivity and long-term experience. In that trend, Ba Ria-Vung Tau is not only a potential destination, but is gradually realizing the goal of becoming Vietnam's international sea tourism gateway.
The combination of strategic location, natural landscape, modern seaport system, sustainable development orientation and determination of local authorities is the foundation for BR-VT to realize this expectation.
Dung Tien
Source: https://baophapluat.vn/ba-ria-vung-tau-cua-ngo-bien-cua-du-lich-quoc-te-post551857.html
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