Visitors experience playing Bài Chòi (a traditional Vietnamese folk game) at Thanh Toàn tiled bridge.

Concerns about the product

Recently, the Hue tourism industry conducted a survey of 1,800 tourists, with 600 for each group: Thailand, France, and South Korea. The survey compiled feedback on the main tourism products and services in Hue. The results showed that, regarding the quality of products and services, most tourists rated sightseeing services well. Accommodation, food, and performing arts were also rated highly. Services that did not meet the high standard and need attention included boat tours on the Perfume River, shopping, entertainment, transportation, and tour organization.

Despite its many advantages, Hue still faces many concerns regarding its tourism products. Mr. Do Ngoc Co, Chairman of the Hue City Tourism Association, shared that tourism products play a crucial role in tourism development and attracting visitors. Hue possesses significant tourism potential and resources, but its tourism products are not yet truly diverse and attractive, failing to live up to its inherent tourism potential.

Undeniably, Hue's tourism industry has developed tourism packages that suit current tourism needs and trends, especially focusing on the theme of "Green Tourism," such as: health and wellness retreats, tourism combined with medical examinations and treatment, culinary experiences, and the creation of eco-tourism products/check-in points associated with rivers, lakes, streams, waterfalls, and lagoons. Many tourism products linked to environmental protection activities have been implemented in the area and have been well received by the community and tourists. However, some travel businesses believe that Hue has only partially met the needs for cultural, historical, and culinary sightseeing, while entertainment, shopping, and other services have not yet fully met the needs of tourists and have not reached a high quality.

One of Hue's highlights and strengths is its cuisine, but it's not regularly updated, leading to boredom for tourists. French tourists are very fond of Hue's culture. This European market appreciates temples, tombs, ecological features, gardens, the Perfume River, and everything that reflects culture, such as the way Hue's culture is incorporated into its cuisine. However, in the last 5-10 years, there has been little change in this product, so French tourists rarely return.

According to tourism experts, tourism activities remain monotonous and have not effectively exploited the unique and distinctive values ​​of cultural heritage to create differentiated products. While the quality of tourism services and products has improved significantly, it remains fragmented, spontaneous, and lacks organization and linkages, failing to demonstrate the competitive advantages of the local tourism resources. Coastal and lagoon tourism centers are developing slowly and lack the competitiveness to attract tourists to Hue. Tourist service facilities (food streets, tailor-made ao dai streets, souvenir shops, traditional art performance venues, etc.) are largely inadequate or non-existent.

In particular, Hue still lacks shopping opportunities and entertainment services on a large scale, suitable for domestic tourists; it also lacks facilities to serve large groups of tourists, such as restaurants and shopping centers. This leads to boredom for tourists, short stays, and very low spending.

Currently, Hue hosts many events and festivals, especially the Hue Festival, but very few events and activities become tourism products. In particular, very few events and festivals maintain a fixed schedule for regular organization in subsequent years, making it difficult for tourists and travel agencies to prepare and plan.

Product completion

According to Tran Thi Hoai Tram, Director of the Department of Tourism, in the coming time, the local tourism industry will focus on perfecting the set of characteristic tourism products, the Hue tourism brand, and developing some new products to meet practical requirements.

Hue will prioritize the development of heritage tourism, focusing on organizing tourism services day and night within the Hue Imperial Citadel complex, especially in the Imperial Citadel area, to serve tourists. Services at heritage sites will be restructured to ensure professionalism, systematic planning, and a strategic approach based on detailed planning of service items and functions at each heritage site. Emphasis will be placed on applying digital technology in management and operation to meet the needs and preferences of tourists. A waterway tourism route along the Perfume River and other rivers such as the Dong Ba, An Cuu, and Ngu Ha will be developed and put into operation soon, linked to the development of related services.

Hue City will also focus its resources on "brightening and highlighting" tourism products and services along the Perfume River from Phu Xuan Bridge to Truong Tien Bridge, linking them with the development of food streets, exhibition streets combined with a chain of high-end restaurants.

Currently, Hue tourism will focus on developing tourism products that leverage the value of the cultural industry, built upon the rich and diverse cultural, historical, and human heritage of Hue, such as: the ao dai (traditional Vietnamese dress), live performances, music, film sets, etc. It will also develop Hue folk singing into a unique cultural tourism service product (including Hue folk singing on the Perfume River and chamber music). Furthermore, it will diversify and improve the quality of various tourism types: health and wellness tourism; community tourism; ecotourism; beach and lagoon tourism; MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions) tourism; and culinary tourism.

Text and photos: HUU PHUC

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/du-lich/hoan-thien-bo-san-pham-du-lich-dac-trung-153772.html