Tourists shop for souvenirs at Thuy Xuan incense-making village.

Located about 7km southwest of Hue city center, Thuy Xuan incense-making village has long attracted visitors with dozens of establishments that both demonstrate the incense-making craft and sell souvenirs, gifts, and rent traditional ao dai (Vietnamese long dress) for photo opportunities, creating a bustling and colorful atmosphere along Huyen Tran Cong Chua street in Thuy Xuan ward, Hue city.

Famous for its centuries-old incense-making tradition, the people of Thuy Xuan continue to maintain and preserve this craft. Furthermore, the businesses have invested in renovating their shops and adding new products and services to attract customers. Many establishments here have invested hundreds of millions of dong in decorating their shops, purchasing traditional Vietnamese ao dai (long dresses), five-panel ao dai, accessories, umbrellas, etc., to serve tourists.

According to Ms. Bich Loan, who has been involved in the incense-making craft for over 35 years, the village has never been as vibrant and attractive to customers as in recent years, with the number of visitors coming to tour, shop, and use services at her store constantly increasing. “On peak days, the store welcomes around 200 visitors who come to browse, shop for souvenirs and gifts, and rent traditional Vietnamese dresses for photos. With the high volume of customers, sales and revenue from the dress rental service have increased, so the business has invested in renovating the store and adding more goods to build a brand and attract more customers,” Ms. Loan shared.

Ms. Nhu Trang, owner of an incense production facility, believes that tourists visiting the incense village can experience the craft for free, witness demonstrations, and earn profits from services and sales, which makes everyone very happy. There is no aggressive sales tactics here; visitors are allowed to freely choose products and experience services as they wish, making them feel quite comfortable.

Along with Thuy Xuan incense village, the number of tourists visiting Hue to combine sightseeing with purchasing traditional handicrafts has been increasing recently. Some tourism experts believe that the close integration of tourism and traditional crafts has brought novelty, attractiveness, and economic efficiency to craft villages, thereby contributing to the preservation and development of traditional crafts and villages.

To promote the development of craft village tourism , many localities in Hue City have invested in building exhibition areas to introduce craft village products; local authorities also focus on disseminating information and encouraging production households to implement measures to overcome environmental pollution in craft villages; strengthening coordination with travel agencies to develop tours and routes connecting with craft villages to attract tourists; and at the same time preserving and promoting traditional cultural values ​​such as customs, traditions, and festivals of craft villages in conjunction with tourism development.

According to the assessment from the Department of Tourism's leadership, in recent years, the people of Thuy Xuan incense-making village in particular, and other traditional craft villages such as paper flower making, embroidery, fine art woodworking, and bronze casting in general, have been very creative in creating many new services and designs to attract tourists. Utilizing and exploiting the values ​​of traditional craft villages not only promotes the development of these villages but also contributes to promoting the cultural beauty, land, and people of each locality, attracting tourists to visit and experience. Through the development of craft village tourism, many localities in the province are gradually becoming attractive tourist destinations, contributing to increased income for the local people.

Text and photos: Khanh Thu