Among a series of noble titles announced, Vietnam was once again named when the Dong Van Karst Plateau UNESCO Global Geopark in Tuyen Quang, for the first time, won the category of “ World's Leading Cultural Destination 2025”.
This is not only an important milestone for the locality but also a source of pride for the Vietnamese tourism industry, when a destination in a mountainous province that still faces many difficulties has stepped onto the international podium, affirming its heritage value and new position in the global integration flow.
Honor means more than the award
World Travel Awards – established in 1993 – is considered by experts as the “Oscar of the tourism industry” due to its strict evaluation criteria, transparent voting process and far-reaching influence. Dong Van’s winning of the award in the cultural category shows that the attractiveness of the destination comes not only from the landscape but also from the depth of identity and human values – an increasingly important factor in positioning the world tourism brand.
For Tuyen Quang - a northern mountainous province known for its revolutionary tradition, this event is a strong affirmation: the locality is ready to break through in the big playground of world tourism. This is also the first time Tuyen Quang has a destination named in a global award, opening up attractive opportunities to enhance recognition, attract investment, expand international cooperation and continue to affirm the role of tourism in the province's economic structure.
Leading the delegation attending the award ceremony, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Phan Huy Ngoc personally stepped onto the stage to receive the winning trophy. The presence of senior leaders demonstrated political determination, proactive integration spirit and commitment to accompany the development of local tourism. The delegation also included leaders of the Provincial Party Committee, Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, representatives of the Dong Van Karst Plateau Global Geopark Management Board and local authorities - those who have contributed to today's achievements.
Speaking at the ceremony, the provincial leader affirmed: “This title is not only the pride of Tuyen Quang but also the world's recognition of the province's efforts to preserve and promote heritage values that the province has persistently carried out over the years. This is the driving force for Tuyen Quang to continue pursuing the goal of making tourism a key economic sector in the coming period.”
Dong Van - where geology creates foundation, culture creates soul
Recognized by UNESCO as a Global Geopark since 2010, Dong Van Karst Plateau is not only a unique natural landscape but also a giant archive of the Earth's geological evolution over more than 550 million years.
Here, visitors can encounter majestic karst mountain ranges, wild cat-ear valleys, caves and fossils buried over hundreds of millions of years. The naturally stacked sediment layers are like exposed ancient books, recounting the history of the formation of ancient oceans, the uplift and downfall processes, and the geological changes that took place over millions of years.
But the value of Dong Van is not only under the rock layer. On that plateau, 17 ethnic minority communities live together, creating an original, colorful, and symbolic cultural space. The rammed earth houses, highland markets, festivals associated with the agricultural calendar, traditional musical instruments, the blacksmithing of the Mong people, the linen weaving of the Dao people, traditional medical knowledge... all create a vibrant cultural ecosystem, where people and nature have coexisted and supported each other for thousands of years.
What is special is that this identity is not frozen into a “living museum” but still moves, adapts, and goes hand in hand with the changes of contemporary life. It is this continuity that creates the soul of Dong Van – a destination for experience, learning, contemplation and dialogue between humans and nature.
Cultural tourism is becoming a major trend in the world. Today’s tourists not only look for beautiful places, but also for places with stories, memories, depth and engaging experiences. Dong Van fully meets these factors – an important reason helping the locality step up to the podium with the title of “World’s Leading Cultural Destination 2025”.
From potential to recognized value: Tuyen Quang's enduring journey
Before being honored today, the journey to make Dong Van an international tourism brand was a long-term effort. Immediately after being recognized by UNESCO as a Global Geopark, Tuyen Quang province implemented a series of solutions: planning sustainable tourism development, preserving traditional architecture, restoring and promoting folk festivals, strengthening international cooperation, building unique tourism products and developing the community associated with tourism.
Ethnic community training programs on tourism, handicraft preservation, and raising awareness of environmental protection have helped the people themselves become the subject of the conservation process. The Stone Plateau is therefore not simply a “heritage to be seen”, but a “living heritage” – where people continue to create, interpret, and spread their cultural values.
In addition, the province has promoted foreign relations, participated in international fairs and forums, organized famtrips for international travel agencies and press, and invested in tourism infrastructure, transportation, digital technology and heritage information systems. All of these solutions have created the foundation for today's success - when the world officially recognized the role and brand of Dong Van.
According to tourism experts, the WTA title not only creates a strong media effect but also promotes international tourist flows, opens up opportunities to attract investment capital, and enhances the competitiveness of destinations.
For Tuyen Quang, this is a golden opportunity to increase brand recognition on a global scale, especially in the European, Middle Eastern and American markets - where WTA titles are highly valued. Attract private and international investment in tourism infrastructure, services and unique products associated with culture and heritage. Accelerate the economic transformation of the highlands, making tourism a key industry, creating jobs, retaining young people and increasing income for local people. Promote research on heritage conservation, develop sustainable tourism, ensuring a balance between economy - culture - environment.
In fact, WTA award-winning destinations often witness outstanding visitor growth after 1-3 years. This is the basis for expecting Dong Van to enter a new development phase, with a broader vision and a deeper market.
The victory of Dong Van Stone Plateau contributes to enriching the series of achievements of Vietnam tourism in the international arena. Thereby, the world has a new symbol when referring to Vietnam: not only the country of beautiful bays or great cultural heritage, but also the land where geological heritage crystallizes with the vibrant identity of the community.
From a broader perspective, this title sends a message: Vietnam is steadfastly pursuing sustainable tourism development, focusing on people and culture, while making efforts to transform the model from “resource tourism” to “experiential tourism – value tourism”.
Let the title become the driving force for development
After the moment of honor, a new challenge is opened: how to make the title become a real driving force for growth? This requires Tuyen Quang to continue to focus on: Upgrading transport infrastructure and services, to increase accessibility to destinations. Training high-quality tourism human resources, especially tour guides, heritage managers and indigenous cultural experts. Diversifying tourism products towards experience - discovery - culture - ecology. Strengthening regional linkages, connecting Dong Van with Ha Giang, Lao Cai, Bac Kan to form an inter-provincial heritage tourism route. Ensuring a balance between development and conservation, avoiding the risk of commercialization, destroying identity or putting too much pressure on nature.
If done well, the WTA title will not only be a temporary highlight, but will become a driving force to promote the image of Dong Van - Tuyen Quang to shine for many years to come.
Dong Van winning the title of "World's Leading Cultural Destination 2025" once again proves that Vietnamese tourism is entering a period of deep integration, confidently competing with famous global destinations.
But above all, this is a story of pride – pride in a majestic rocky plateau where people have clung to it for thousands of years, preserving the traces of the Earth, preserving their living culture and turning their own lives into heritage. It is also an affirmation that identity values – when properly preserved – not only help the community survive, but also help the locality step out into the world, becoming the pride of the nation.
Today’s title is just the beginning. The journey ahead will be wide open, full of challenges but also full of opportunities. And with a special heritage foundation and local determination, Dong Van – Tuyen Quang has the basis to believe in a future where tourism is not only an economic sector, but also a way to preserve and spread Vietnamese cultural values to the world.
Source: https://baolaocai.vn/cao-nguyen-da-dong-van-duoc-vinh-danh-diem-den-van-hoa-hang-dau-the-gioi-2025-post888473.html
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