Lao Cai tourism promises to make a breakthrough.

In the first six months of 2025, Lao Cai's tourism industry experienced impressive growth, attracting over 8.7 million visitors and generating revenue exceeding 22 trillion VND. From July 1st, following the merger, the new Lao Cai province is expected to continue to be a tourism hub in the Northwest region, aiming to welcome 16.5 million visitors by 2030.

A wide variety of tourism products

Arriving in Mu Cang Chai commune, in the western part of Lao Cai province, visitors are amazed by the endless terraced rice fields, a sight reminiscent of the "Stairway to Heaven" amidst the lush green of the forest. Upon arriving at Nature Homestay, a community-based tourism destination owned by Mr. Thao A Chua, we were surprised by the unique approach to tourism there.

The terraced rice fields of Mu Cang Chai during the rice harvest season attract tourists from all over the world.

Thào A Chua shared: “Foreign tourists are very excited to choose this place for an extended stay, experiencing activities during the rainy season. Here, tourists join the locals in plowing and planting rice in the terraced fields, participate in catching fish and black chickens, and prepare meals with dishes in the H'Mông style of their village.”

Reportedly, A Chua graduated from the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry at Thai Nguyen University. He boldly borrowed money from the bank, built a stilt house, planted flowers, and collaborated with tour operators and many H'Mong households in Pung Luong village to develop community tourism. Thanks to his hard work and willingness to listen to tourists' feedback, A Chua's community tourism destination is constantly improving, generating an annual income of over 150 million VND.

Thac Ba Lake (Yen Binh commune), with its more than 1,300 small islands, is an attractive tourist destination. This season, visitors flock to the dreamlike vineyards planted on the islands.

Thac Ba Lake, with its more than 130 large and small islands, has great potential for tourism, fisheries, and forestry.

Mr. Ta Huu Tinh, the owner of a vineyard in Khe Gay village, Yen Binh commune, said that three years ago, after learning from the experience of grape farms in the outskirts of Hanoi, he started building a tourist farm specializing in growing small-seeded grapes and peony grapes.

Thanks to the application of science and technology in the cultivation process, such as building greenhouses, automatic irrigation, and treatment during flowering and pollination, Mr. Tinh harvested about one ton of grapes this season. With a selling price of 150,000 VND/kg and income from tourists who come to experience and participate in the grape harvest, Mr. Ta Tinh's family enjoys a comfortable life.

Next door, the vineyard of Mr. Dinh Dai Thanh's family, with 6,000 milk grape vines, also attracts a large number of tourists. Besides experiencing the vineyards, tourists visiting Thac Ba Lake can also enjoy unique dishes such as grilled catfish with ginger, fried scad, and dried red-eyed carp... all sourced from the lake's own aquatic resources.

Located in the northern mountainous region of Vietnam, Sa Pa has long been a unique tourist destination with its majestic mountain ranges, traditional culture of ethnic minorities, and a number of European-style architectural structures. Some visitors have even referred to it as the "Switzerland of Vietnam".

The unique landscape of Sa Pa has attracted the attention of foreign tourists. According to the Korean travel company Hana Tour, the total number of customers booking package tours to the Sa Pa area (Lao Cai province, Vietnam) in the first half of 2025 increased by 333% compared to the same period in 2024.

Inter Bus Lines is one of the reputable and high-quality passenger transport brands specializing in the Hanoi-Sa Pa route and other famous tourist destinations in the North. In anticipation of this year's peak summer travel season, the company is launching an attractive promotional program for families wishing to take their children to explore this misty land full of vibrant culture and magnificent nature.

Sun Group also offers many special promotions and festivals to attract tourists, such as an attractive summer promotion exclusively for Vietnamese tourists. Tourists who purchase and use Fansipan cable car tickets after 1 PM will receive a complimentary buffet dinner at one of the two most luxurious restaurants in the resort area: Van Sam or Hoa Hong. The promotion also extends the journey to explore Fansipan peak from dusk until sunset, when the majestic natural scenery takes on its most dreamy beauty…

Rapid development must be sustainable.

Northwest Vietnam is a land of majestic landscapes, unique terraced rice fields, misty villages, and ethnic communities rich in cultural colors. Within this picture, Lao Cai and Yen Bai, two neighboring provinces formerly nestled against the Hoang Lien Son mountain range, have now become part of a unified community, working together to build a potentially rich "interconnected tourism belt."

Comrade Nong Viet Yen, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Lao Cai province, stated: The merger of Yen Bai and Lao Cai provinces to form a new province is a major, strategic policy of the Central Government aimed at creating a new growth pole for the northern midland and mountainous region. For the tourism sector, this is a significant turning point, creating many opportunities, but also posing numerous challenges that need to be identified and addressed comprehensively.

Lao Cai now boasts many attractive destinations, from the summit of Fansipan to the heart of Thac Ba Lake – a series of prominent destinations such as Sa Pa, Bac Ha, Mu Cang Chai, Suoi Giang, Muong Lo… with magnificent landscapes, unique cultural identity and favorable climate. Along with this, the implementation of the Tourism System Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2045, according to Decision 509/QD-TTg and the objectives identified for the period 2025-2030, will create a clear legal framework and direction.

Muong Lo field.

Based on that, the industry also proposed key breakthrough solutions for the 2025-2030 term, which will develop Lao Cai tourism into a "Driving tourism center of the northern mountainous region" associated with the "Red River Prosperity Axis" strategy and build a high-quality tourism cluster "Sa Pa-Bac Ha-Nghia Lo-Mu Cang Chai-Suoi Giang".

The newly merged province has a significant advantage in attracting investment and developing a comprehensive tourism infrastructure. With its increased socio-economic scale, larger population, and more abundant budget, it has enhanced capacity to mobilize investment resources.

In particular, the transportation system continues to be strongly connected: the Noi Bai-Lao Cai expressway, the Nghia Lo-Tram Tau-Sa Pa expressway in the near future, Sa Pa airport, Thac Ba lake waterway… will help the tourism industry access a larger market. This is an ideal condition for developing unique tourism products associated with international tourism.

Lao Cai province has favorable conditions to become a tourism center of the Northern Midlands and Mountains region, to participate more deeply in the international tourism chain through the Lao Cai International Border Gate, and to develop products linked to the Chinese and ASEAN markets.

Fansipan Peak

With this combined strength, it is projected that by 2030, Lao Cai will welcome approximately 16.5 million tourists, making tourism a key economic sector and a significant contributor to the province's GRDP growth.

However, according to Nong Viet Yen, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Lao Cai province, along with opportunities, the province's tourism industry will face many challenges. One of the biggest challenges is how to balance rapid development with sustainable development. Without a comprehensive plan and effective management mechanisms, the tourism industry could face the risk of overcrowding, affecting the landscape, ecological environment, and local culture—core values ​​that the province is striving to preserve.

Notably, because the two former localities had different strengths—Lao Cai (formerly) excelled in international tourism, high-end resorts, and the tourist city of Sa Pa; while Yen Bai (formerly) strongly developed ecotourism and community-based tourism linked to local culture—unifying orientations, functional zoning, and ensuring harmonious development was an urgent requirement, demanding a synchronized, scientific approach and a clear roadmap.

Improving the quality of human resources and management capacity in the industry is also a problem that needs to be solved soon. As the geographical area and scale expand, and the number of tourists increases rapidly, the pressure on human resource training, digital transformation, and the organization of promotion and marketing mechanisms grows increasingly greater. If the tourism industry in Lao Cai, its localities, and tourism businesses inside and outside the province do not have a systematic plan for training, selecting, and utilizing this important resource, then growth will lack sustainability…

nhandan.vn

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/du-lich-lao-cai-hua-hen-but-pha-post648429.html