Tourists experience many activities related to community life when staying at a homestay in Hue

Experience local life

What attracts tourists when choosing homestay is the desire to "live like a local". Instead of staying in a closed hotel, they like to cook Hue dishes themselves, cycle around the village, participate in festivals, or simply chat together under the porch of a traditional house. Mr. Dang Quang Dat, a tourist from Ho Chi Minh City, shared that the memorable thing is not the room but the experience, sleeping in a traditional house and listening to Hue songs, enjoying cuisine in a cool green garden.

In Thuy Xuan ward, the advantage of pomelo gardens is exploited into a unique tourism product. Visitors come not only to relax but also to pick fruit, cook, and enjoy the countryside atmosphere. On Huyen Tran Cong Chua street, the incense making village becomes an attractive experience, visitors learn how to roll incense, color, and create souvenirs. Kim Long with its ancient houses renovated into a place to stay brings the feeling of "slow living", connecting with heritage.

Ngu My Thanh village (Dan Dien commune) connects homestay with Tam Giang lagoon; guests stay overnight by the lagoon, early in the morning join fishermen pulling nets, enjoy fresh seafood. In the mountainous areas, A Luoi commune has more than 25 homestay establishments, where Pa Co and Ta Oi people turn their stilt houses into places to welcome guests, organize zèng weaving, perform gongs, and take guests to the forest, a clear demonstration of community tourism associated with livelihood.

In the inner city, many new establishments combine modern elements with Hue's identity. Ms. Pham Thi Duyen (Thuan An ward), owner of L&D Homestay, said: "I invested in buying a modern-designed townhouse in BigTown Urban Area. As soon as it opened, thanks to advertising, customers came regularly and earned nearly 30 million VND per month."

Moc Truly Hue Homestay of Ms. Pham Thi Dieu Huyen (Phu Xuan ward) on the occasion of the September 2nd holiday was fully booked from the first day. Guests can also dress up in royal costumes, enjoy Hue specialties, and check-in at the traditional craft village space.

Each homestay has its own design and story to tell visitors, creating a unique identity and attraction. This is also a startup opportunity for young people, taking advantage of available space to both generate income and add new tourism products. According to a survey, over 50 homestay, farmstay and bungalow establishments in Hue recorded an average revenue of 250 million to 1.2 billion VND/year, depending on location, scale and investment level.

Particularly, homestays in the inner city near relics and walking streets have an average income of 700 million to 1.2 billion VND/year thanks to the advantage of accessing diverse customers. Farmstays in Huong Thuy and Huong Tra (old) areas reach 400 - 800 million VND/year, taking advantage of nature to attract customers. Communes of A Luoi 2, A Luoi 4, Khe Tre, Nam Dong only reach 250 - 400 million VND/year due to low number of customers and high operating costs, but still contribute significantly to community development. Over 60% of establishments reported stable profits, proving that homestay is a feasible and effective business model.

Positioning strengths, aiming at spearhead economy

According to the Department of Tourism, the development of homestays, farmstays, and bungalows in recent years has contributed to enriching local tourism products, linking accommodation with culture, ecology, and indigenous agriculture, opening up new directions for the tourism industry. Currently, the city has nearly 250 establishments that create hundreds of jobs, actively contributing to the process of shifting the economic structure from agriculture to tourism services.

The city has also issued many policies to encourage the development of community tourism and eco-tourism, emphasizing the role of homestay as part of the strategy to build "Hue - a heritage, green and smart city" in the future. At the same time, management work focuses on standardizing services, training human resources, supporting credit and promotion, aiming for even development, overcoming the quality gap between regions.

With its landscape, heritage, culture and community potential, Hue has all the conditions to become a national highlight in homestay. If strictly managed and synchronously supported, this model will both preserve the heritage and create sustainable livelihoods, becoming the key for Hue to affirm its position as a green and smart tourism center of the country.

Article and photos: Dang Nguyen

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/du-lich/diem-nhan-moi-trong-buc-tranh-du-lich-158071.html