Tam Coc - Bich Dong tourist area has opened but is still "inactive"

As reported by Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper on July 8, Trang An Investment - Trade - Service Company Limited (the unit managing and exploiting Tam Coc - Bich Dong tourist area) announced the temporary suspension of Tam Coc - Bich Dong tourist area to repair and upgrade works and items in the tourist area.

Trang An boat dock has resumed operations but there are no boatmen due to the contract signing problem with the management company.

This is a famous tourist area in Ninh Binh, located in the Trang An world heritage site, so the temporary suspension of operations has surprised many tourists, affecting tourism activities in Ninh Binh province.

After a period of temporary closure, on August 21, Tam Coc - Bich Dong tourist area reopened. However, up to this point, boating activities at this tourist area are still "inactive" with no boatmen.

According to research, the reason why the boat reopened but still had no boatmen was due to problems in signing labor contracts between the boatmen here and the managing company.

Many people in Van Lam village (Ninh Hai commune, Hoa Lu district, Ninh Binh province) said that Tam Coc ferry has existed for about 40 years. At that time, people often rowed boats along Ngo Dong river to plant and harvest rice. Later, tourism developed and boat rowing became a profession in Van Lam village, creating additional income for local people.

Ticket sales point for boat tours to Tam Coc - Bich Dong is deserted

In 2014, Trang An became a world heritage site, and Tam Coc - Bich Dong tourist area was managed and operated by Xuan Truong Construction Enterprise. Since then, tourists who want to visit by boat along Ngo Dong River must buy tickets. Part of the ticket sales are paid to the boatmen, the enterprise collects the rest.

Currently, the management and operation of Tam Coc - Bich Dong Tourist Area is Trang An Investment - Trade - Service Company Limited.

"Now the company requires a contract to work 24 days a month, 8 hours a day. In reality, people only row boats 4-5 days a month, and on the remaining days when there is no work, they still have to go to the boat dock. We find it unreasonable so we have not agreed to sign a labor contract" - a boat rower in Tam Coc said.

According to the report, they receive 150,000 VND for each ferry trip, while with only 4-5 trips a month, their income is less than 1 million VND. The binding contract prevents them from doing other jobs to make ends meet.

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Hung, Chairman of Hoa Lu District People's Committee (white shirt, left), had a dialogue with people at Tam Coc - Bich Dong ferry on August 31. Photo: Dieu Anh

Responding to the press at a press conference organized by the Propaganda Department of the Ninh Binh Provincial Party Committee on August 30, Mr. Vu Van Chung, Head of the Propaganda Department of the Hoa Lu District Party Committee, said that boating activities at the Tam Coc - Bich Dong tourist area have not yet been able to return to normal because a common voice has not been found between boat rowers and businesses.

According to Mr. Chung, up to now, there have been over 130 people who have signed boat rowing contracts with the enterprise. These are all people who have been given boat numbers, while the boat rowers, who do the main job, have not signed. "The people with boat numbers (people who are given boat rowing numbers according to the village convention - PV) have agreed to sign, but the boat rowers have not agreed. Here, there are people who have both boat numbers and row boats, but there are also people who have boat numbers but do not row boats but rent out their boat numbers to others. Meanwhile, the contract must be signed with the boat rowers" - Mr. Chung informed.

According to Mr. Chung, due to these two opinions, boating activities have not been able to return to normal.

Faced with the above problem, on August 31, the People's Committee of Hoa Lu district coordinated with the Department of Tourism, Department of Justice, Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs of Ninh Binh province, business representatives... to have a direct dialogue with hundreds of boat rowers at the Tam Coc - Bich Dong tourist area.

People rowing boats at Tam Coc - Bich Dong tourist area before the closure.

At the dialogue, Mr. Nguyen Quoc Hung, Chairman of Hoa Lu District People's Committee, said that the Tam Coc tourist area had to close and temporarily stop receiving visitors in the past time was a very regrettable incident, and he himself accepted responsibility for the above incident. At the same time, Mr. Hung hoped that people would understand that signing a labor contract is mandatory, so the parties would sit down to discuss and resolve the problem so that the tourist area could return to normal operation as soon as possible.

Tam Coc tourist area is located in Ninh Hai commune, Hoa Lu district, Ninh Binh province. This tourist destination is located entirely in the core area of ​​Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex - a world cultural and natural heritage recognized by UNESCO in 2014. Every year, this tourist area welcomes tens of thousands of domestic and international tourists to visit and relax.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/thoi-su/da-mo-cua-nhung-khu-du-lich-tam-coc-bich-dong-van-an-binh-bat-dong-2023090113591797.htm