The problem of expanding eco-tourism space at My Son Sanctuary

A corner of My Son temple complex seen from above. Photo: My Son World Cultural Heritage Management Board

During a recent visit to My Son Sanctuary, a group of tourists from the United States, including several members specializing in Southeast Asian culture, were impressed by the unique historical, architectural and artistic values of the Champa temple complex here.

They appreciated the efforts to restore and preserve the relics, as well as the improvement in service quality and Cham dance performances – tangible and intangible cultural values.

Expanding space, solving the problem of low spending

However, besides the compliments, tourists also frankly pointed out the limitations. In particular, there are not enough reasons for them to stay in the area near the heritage longer. Or in other words, there is a lack of products to keep visitors at night and as a result, the spending level of each tourist is still low.

According to various sources, the average spending of international tourists in Quang Nam (old) is 100-120 USD/day, in which in the My Son Sanctuary area, the spending level is much lower than this average level.

These comments also reflect the reality that the My Son World Cultural Heritage Management Board (MB) is facing in the context of global tourism shifting strongly to eco-tourism, experiences but must be highly attractive.

According to the representative of the Management Board, in recent years, the work of preserving and promoting the heritage value at My Son (now part of the new Da Nang city) has achieved many positive results. With the support of international organizations and experts, the Management Board has completed and put into operation the tower areas, while upgrading the infrastructure, the electric shuttle system and digital conversion tools such as multilingual automatic commentary, 360-degree virtual reality tours.

Cham cultural performance at My Son Sanctuary. Photo: My Son World Cultural Heritage Management Board

However, there are still bottlenecks that are difficult to solve. The number of visitors is unstable, depending largely on the tours of travel agencies, while the experience and entertainment products are not attractive enough to keep tourists staying overnight, especially international visitors.

Speaking at a recent seminar on solutions to attract visitors, Mr. Nguyen Cong Khiet, Director of the My Son World Cultural Heritage Management Board, pointed out the challenges.

“In reality, My Son currently has no products to retain visitors, and tourist spending is still low. My Son tourism still depends largely on the tours of travel agencies,” said Mr. Khiet.

Realizing the indispensable role of travel agencies, the Management Board is promoting consultation and cooperation to find a sustainable direction. Representatives of some travel agencies also commented that what they need are new products, with continuity and cultural and ecological depth so that tourists can stay from 4 to 6 hours, instead of just 2 hours as at present. At that time, My Son will truly be the highlight to retain tourists in the Central region heritage tour chain.

In addition, tourism businesses also shared that the cause of these limitations lies not only in the products, but also in the policy mechanisms and overall planning. This requires My Son Sanctuary to have an innovative strategy, not only based on core cultural values but also to expand the space and create more added values.

Strategic orientation of ecotourism and experience

Recognizing the opportunities in the trend of responsible tourism, ecotourism and returning to nature, the Management Board has proposed a new strategic development direction. That is to develop ecotourism as the focus.

This strategy aims to take advantage of potential landscape resources (hills, streams, lakes, waterfalls) inside and outside the buffer zone of My Son Sanctuary, combined with diversifying experiential products to extend the length of stay and increase visitors' spending.

Tourists visit My Son Sanctuary. Photo: Song Chau

Accordingly, first of all, eco-tourism will be developed in combination with the surrounding area. Specifically, nature exploration products, such as rowing on the Khe The River or the neighboring Thach Ban Dam area will be built. Trekking and mountain climbing routes in the ecological forest in the heritage buffer zone; and building watchtowers combined with a space to view the entire My Son temple complex from above will bring a new perspective to visitors.

In addition, according to Mr. Khiet, the Management Board will plan a complex of service products under the slope of a main tower here, expanding the space for tourists to rest, experience ecology, botanical gardens and wildlife reserves, creating a complete tourism ecosystem.

Along with that, My Son Sanctuary continues to diversify intangible cultural experiences by enhancing Cham-Vietnamese craft village experience products, including pottery making, brocade weaving, and relaxation services such as herbal foot baths. In addition, regular performances of cultural activities will be increased, such as singing Bai Choi or Cham folk songs.

In parallel, the product “My Son Legend Night” will be rebuilt, combining cuisine, fairs, and experiences of craft villages. Regarding digital technology, the film “My Son Legend” and 3D Mapping and virtual reality (VR) technologies will be built to vividly recreate Champa cultural history.

Expanding eco-tourism, diversifying experiences and increasing the application of digital technology are comprehensive answers to the concerns of the above-mentioned group of American tourists.

By promoting core cultural values combined with natural strengths, My Son is aiming to become an attractive eco-tourism and experience center, creating sustainable resources for the conservation of this world cultural heritage.

In the first 9 months of 2025, My Son Sanctuary, officially recognized as a World Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in December 1999, welcomed 353,072 visitors. The number of visitors has maintained an average growth rate of over 10% in recent years. To better serve, the current number of Cham dance performances has been increased to 9 per day, and it is expected to increase the number of Bai Choi singing performances to 6 per day.

Source: https://sgtt.thesaigontimes.vn/bai-toan-mo-rong-khong-gian-du-lich-sinh-thai-tai-thanh-dia-my-son/