When sovereignty milestones become cultural and experiential tourism destinations

Photo caption — Tourists enjoy checking in with the landmark at the southwestern border of the Fatherland.

New direction of tourism industry

Tourism activities associated with sovereignty markers are considered a new direction, when combining landscape exploration, cultural learning and historical education. Therefore, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism has organized a Famtrip to survey the Vietnam - Cambodia border for tourism businesses to assess the reality in order to exploit and develop this product into a special type of tourism, if organized appropriately.

Accordingly, the survey team visited the landmarks at Dinh Ba, Moc Ra, Thuong Phuoc (Dong Thap), Tinh Bien international border gate, Giang Thanh and Ha Tien international border gate ( An Giang ). In particular, Tinh Bien and Ha Tien are assessed to have many advantages thanks to convenient transportation, open border space and vibrant trade activities between Vietnam and Cambodia, very suitable for developing border tourism to visit border landmarks.

Specifically, combining the Ha Tien – Phnom Penh – Moc Bai or Ha Tien – Phu Quoc – Cambodia routes into existing tour programs also helps businesses diversify products without increasing costs.

Mr. Nguyen Trung Tay Do, Deputy Director of Trang Thanh Tourism Service Trading Company Limited, said that a sustainable tourism product must meet three factors: Accessibility, attractiveness and service convenience.

With the new product of the sovereignty milestone tour, Mr. Tay Do expects the greatest attraction to lie in the symbolic value of the Fatherland's borders. Because each milestone is associated with the history of establishing the border and the sacrifice of many generations of soldiers, this is not only a tourist attraction but also a place to evoke national pride.

"Visiting the sovereignty landmark is also a journey to break the notion that the border area is a difficult-to-access area. When organized properly and coordinated with local forces, the border area can completely become a safe, close and meaningful destination for people and tourists when traveling in Vietnam," said Mr. Tay Do.

Meanwhile, Mr. Tran Anh Hung, Director of Inbound Promotion at Golden Smile Development Joint Stock Company, said that Tinh Bien and Xa Xia border gates (Ha Tien) are suitable for developing tours to bring international and domestic tourists to experience. At Tinh Bien border market, tourists can shop for goods from Cambodia and Thailand, and at the same time directly experience the atmosphere of border trade - something that many international tourists consider unique and always makes tourists want to experience.

Despite the great potential for development, the tours to visit the landmarks still have some limitations. According to Mr. Diep Duc Duy, Director of Sao Bien Travel and Event Company, currently the traffic infrastructure to many border landmarks is limited, the roads are small and degraded, making it difficult for large vehicles, affecting the quality of the tour when put into operation. What is more important is that the storytelling must be attractive and engaging.

“A border marker is only valuable when the tour guide can convey the history, life and spirit of the border guards to protect the land. If you just come to take pictures and leave, the trip will be bland and in the long run will not keep tourists coming back,” said Mr. Duc Duy.

Similarly, Mr. Tran Anh Hung also added that in border landmark areas that want to welcome visitors, it is necessary to invest in basic facilities such as toilets, rest areas, drinking water, rest areas... These are small details but determine the satisfaction of visitors when experiencing the landmark tour.

From a research perspective, Dr. Duong Duc Minh believes that it is necessary to build a synchronous service ecosystem, connecting accommodation - cuisine - transportation - cultural experiences. Procedures related to bringing tourists to the border should also be shortened, increasing coordination between businesses and border guards to ensure both safety and convenience for tourism activities.

Turning sacred values into experiential values

In order for sovereignty landmark tourism to truly become a unique product, operate stably and have widespread influence, many tourism businesses emphasize the need to simultaneously resolve the issues of procedures, product models and accompanying service ecosystems. Of which, administrative procedures are the first point that needs to be improved.

Mr. Nguyen Trung Tay Do said that currently, requesting permission to access border areas often takes a lot of time, and the process changes between border posts, making it difficult for businesses to build fixed tours. Therefore, he also proposed establishing a unified one-stop process, with clear instructions on permitted areas to visit, travel routes and length of stay, helping businesses proactively plan, while the management force also has better control.

In addition to procedures, businesses believe that it is necessary to focus on building themed tours to turn sacred values into experiential values, instead of just stopping at the model of "going to the milestone to take photos". Mr. Diep Duc Duy commented that each trip must have a central story, such as "the mark of preserving the Fatherland's fence", "cultural identity of border residents" or "trade along the Vietnam - Cambodia border"... In addition to visiting the milestone, organizing exchanges at the border guard station, listening to soldiers share about patrolling tasks, and living with the army will help the trip have depth, creating emotions and cognitive values for tourists.

According to Mr. Tran Anh Hung, if we want to develop landmark tourism, the locality should look at the border attractions to see what tourism resources they have, such as historical and cultural relics, and then invest in more diverse and practical destinations to avoid the experience being "discontinued" when only visiting the landmark.

From a general perspective, Dr. Duong Duc Minh believes that currently, the development of milestone tourism is not just a business story. For the product to exist sustainably, it is necessary to form a border service ecosystem including transportation - accommodation - cuisine - tour guides - community experiences. When these factors are coherently linked, the tour can extend the length of stay and create economic benefits in the locality, instead of just a short round trip in a day.

From a market orientation perspective, Ms. Pham Thi Ngoc Yen, Representative of Chu Du S Tourism Company, said that the milestone tour can be effective for students, students, and young people through extracurricular activities and practical experiential education; this product is also suitable for veterans, armed forces, and those who need to reminisce and show gratitude... Including this tour in the local education program will help build early awareness of sovereignty and spread community values.

It can be seen that sovereignty milestone tourism is therefore not only a journey to explore geographical space but also a journey to awaken historical emotions, helping visitors identify the role of the lands on the Fatherland's border. When procedures are simplified, products are told with the right story and the service ecosystem is completed, the border area will no longer be a "distant boundary" but will become a destination rich in identity, pride, and cultural and educational significance on the Vietnam tourism map.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/du-lich/khi-cot-moc-chu-quyen-tro-thanh-diem-den-van-hoa-du-lich-trai-nghiem-20251031182438559.htm