A desire to shine!

(Baothanhhoa.vn) - Sam Son, with its abundant tourism resources, is becoming one of the most attractive tourist destinations in Thanh Hoa province. Visiting Sam Son is not only about satisfying the need for relaxation and sightseeing, but also about exploring the culture and history of this region.

Báo Thanh Hóa•26/04/2025

A desire to shine!

Sam Son - a city of vibrant colors.

Sam Son boasts a long beach and beautiful natural scenery, making it an ideal place for relaxation. Therefore, from 1904, the Governor-General of Indochina, Jean-Emest Moulié, ordered the construction of observation towers, medical stations, and health and wellness centers in the beach area and along the Trường Lệ mountain range. The book "Beautiful Thanh Hoa" contains a detailed description of Sam Son at that time: "The beach boulevard stretches for nearly 3km (...). Along the boulevard are private residences and buildings belonging to the Telegraph House Association, the Six Ministries, the Customs House, the villa of the Ninh Binh Commissioner, and the Governor-General's residence. The villa of the Thanh Hoa Commissioner's Office, with its beautiful lim wood columns, was built near the Độc Cước temple on Mũi Chao mountain - between that building and coordinate 79 is the Des Rochers villa (on the mountain), built on a steep promontory at the foot of the waves and reserved for officials to vacation in."

Sam Son boasts a diverse mix of landscapes, including rivers, mountains, and the sea; a blend of beaches with Truong Le mountain and the surrounding rivers, lakes, and lagoons, creating a rich and varied tourism resource. It features a coastline nearly 15km long, stretching from Cua Hoi to Quang Dai, with flat, gently sloping beaches, fine white sand, and relatively clean water. The seawater is warm, clear, and has a salinity of around 0.3%. According to some French studies on the best beaches in Vietnam, Sam Son beach ranked first based on criteria such as: beautiful scenery; fine, clean sand; gently sloping beach extending into the sea; waves suitable for swimming; and a salinity level beneficial to human health.

Besides its beautiful beaches, nature has also endowed this place with many historical sites and scenic spots shimmering with legendary charm. Truong Le Mountain, 76m high, is located right next to the sea and is considered the jewel of Sam Son. The steep cliffs facing the sea create the majestic beauty of Truong Le Mountain and are very suitable for mountain climbing and adventure tourism. The gentle slopes and hills, formed from ancient granite (typically the Doc Cuoc granite massif), are suitable for camping and other recreational activities. On Truong Le Mountain, there are also historical sites such as the Doc Cuoc Temple, Co Tien Temple, and To Hien Thanh Temple, which have cultural and spiritual tourism value. Especially, the Hon Trong Mai (Rooster and Hen Islet) on Truong Le Mountain is a unique natural landscape of Sam Son. According to statistics, the area has 50 historical and cultural relics, including 1 special national relic, 8 national relics, and 30 provincial relics associated with many unique traditional festivals, such as the blessing festival, the sticky rice cake festival, the fishing festival, etc.

Furthermore, the natural landscape along the banks of the Ma and Do rivers provides ideal conditions for Sam Son to develop eco-tourism routes on the river. From Cua Hoi in the north, tourists can take a boat to Hon Me and further south, or travel upstream on the Ma River to visit the Ham Rong and Lam Son historical sites and many other historical sites and scenic spots in the province. In particular, the Do River, which flows through the city (from the Ma River in the north to Truong Le in the south), boasts attractive natural scenery, with lotus ponds south of the An Duong Vuong Temple, representing a potential resource for eco-tourism development.

Despite its rich tourism potential, Sam Son's tourism industry has experienced many ups and downs due to historical factors, social changes, and especially the way tourism is conducted. In February 1989, following the province's policy, Sam Son organized the Sam Son Economic and Tourism Fair with the theme "Sam Son Summer 1989: Health - Economy - Friendship". Particularly, the successful organization of the 100th anniversary of Sam Son tourism, with many outstanding achievements, laid the foundation for the flourishing of Sam Son tourism. Since then, Sam Son has invested thousands of billions of dong to upgrade its tourism infrastructure and facilities. At the same time, it has basically overcome the limitations and weaknesses affecting the image of tourism, especially price gouging, harassment of tourists, and poor communication and behavior towards visitors. The city has attracted many large projects, creating highlights in terms of tourism landscape such as the FLC high-end resort, the beach area east of Ho Xuan Huong road...

To create a foundation for attracting investment and developing the city in a sustainable, civilized, and modern direction, the city has prepared and submitted to the Provincial People's Committee for approval the revised General Planning for the construction of Sam Son City until 2040. Simultaneously, it has coordinated the implementation of detailed zoning plans according to regulations; approved and adjusted detailed planning projects at a scale of 1/500... Many key projects have been inaugurated and put into operation, such as the Memorial Area for the people, cadres, soldiers, and students from the South who relocated to the North; projects such as the seaside square, the festival landscape axis, the seaside square urban area, and the Sunworld water park... Through these efforts, the city has fundamentally transformed its urban landscape, created architectural and landscape highlights, and developed new tourism products. In 2024, Sam Son tourism continued to affirm its leading position in the province, attracting 8.86 million visitors, serving 17.27 million visitor-days, and generating an estimated total revenue of 17.1 trillion VND from tourism.

Today, Sam Son has established itself as an attractive and vibrant tourist center. Building on its achievements, the city aims to welcome 9.68 million visitors, serve 19.9 million visitor-days, and generate 21 trillion VND in revenue by 2025. This is a major goal, requiring strong determination and effort from all levels of government. More importantly, along with other localities in the province, Sam Son is urgently undertaking a "revolution" to streamline and reorganize its political system. This significant change presents Sam Son with both challenges and great opportunities for development. However, it is hoped that with the achievements gained from over a century of tourism development, Sam Son's tourism sector will not only achieve its set goals but will also shine even brighter, further solidifying its position as a key tourist center of Thanh Hoa province and the entire country.

Text and photos: Tran Hang

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Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/khat-vong-toa-sang-246828.htm