Da Nang's night economy still lacks a worthy 'magnet'

Despite being a pioneer in investing heavily in developing the night-time economy, Da Nang still seems to lack a worthy "magnet" that is enough to make tourists willing to "open their wallets" to have fun all night long.

There is still no "true night economy "

From the City's night-time economic development project issued in 2020, over the years, Da Nang has focused on promoting investment in the night-time economy to create a new look and increase attraction for tourists. A series of night-time tourism destinations, products and services have been invested in and operated, helping to diversify choices, increase the length of stay of visitors and revenue from night-time tourism activities.

Da Nang's night-time economy has not yet developed to its full potential. Illustration photo: Bach Dang walking street

Many night markets, art shows, Han River tours, water music shows at 2/9 Square, Dragon Bridge with fire and water spraying... have been deployed, attracting a large number of people and tourists to come and have fun. In particular, the famous tourist area in the Central region, Sun World Ba Na Hills, with its attractive and unique Ba Na By Night product, has created its own mark on tourists.

Ba Na By Night Combo has made its own mark on tourists

Despite investment in building many service products, Da Nang’s night tourism ecosystem is still not worthy of the potential of one of the largest tourist centers in the country. The city on the Han River still lacks large-scale complexes that provide a series of classy night tourism experiences that are systematically and synchronously designed for visitors.

Besides, although the number of visitors and tourism revenue of Da Nang increases every year, it has not been able to exploit the large space from nighttime entertainment and shopping services. Discussing this issue, Associate Professor Dr. Pham Trung Luong - Member of the National Tourism Advisory Group, said that Vietnam still does not have a true "night economy" because we are lacking a complex that includes at least 3 types of services: Entertainment, Cuisine, Shopping. "We have visitors, but they do not have much space to spend. According to the data I have, the current average spending of visitors to Da Nang is only about 80 USD/day, while in Tokyo it is about 200 USD, Singapore about 180 USD, and Kuala Lumpur or Bangkok is also approximately 170 USD", he said.

Da Nang Downtown - a "miracle" dream like Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

In the early 2000s, Singapore was at risk of losing its position as its share of Asian tourism fell sharply. The bold decision to invest nearly 6 billion USD in Marina Bay Sands (MBS) changed the landscape of the Lion Island.

Perspective illustration of the "super" complex Da Nang Downtown

After only 2 years of operation, MBS has almost recovered its investment, welcomed more than 500 million visitors and brought in EBITDA of more than 2 billion USD/year, contributing about 1% of the country's GDP. The complex currently employs more than 11,800 direct workers and creates tens of thousands of indirect jobs in the fields of services, trade and tourism operations. From a quiet bay, MBS has now become the most high-end tourism and entertainment center in Asia.

Not only does it have a strong impact on the economy of the Lion Island, MBS also helps increase Singapore's recognition on the world map. The ship-shaped building of MBS has become an image that appears on all Singapore tourism promotional publications.

Returning to Da Nang, the super project Da Nang Downtown with an investment capital of 80 trillion VND, with the highlight being a 69-storey building inspired by the design of Vietnam's traditional "ao dai", is expected to create a miracle not inferior to Singapore's MSB, creating a new symbol, and at the same time helping to solve the difficult problem of Da Nang's "night economy".

The 69-storey building, inspired by the Vietnamese ao dai, promises to create a new iconic building in Da Nang. Perspective image

Located in a central location, only 2.8 km from the international airport, Da Nang Downtown is planned as a modern "entertainment city", similar to MBS but with its own breath of Da Nang. In addition to the tallest symbolic tower in the Central region, the super project also has a series of high-class items serving resort activities, entertainment, and high-class shopping day and night, with a cultural park - entertainment, a riverside commercial street, a 4,000-seat theater, a light art festival area, luxury apartments, 5-star hotels, class A offices, conference and event areas, observatories...

In particular, with the position of "center of the center" of Da Nang, Da Nang Downtown is also an important link in two key projects of Da Nang, "River of Light" and "Inland Waterway Tourism" worth nearly 10,000 billion of the city, promising to create an international-class tourism ecosystem, bringing diverse new experiences to visitors.

According to Vice Chairman of Da Nang People's Committee Ho Ky Minh, Da Nang Downtown, when completed, upgraded and operated in the right direction, will contribute to filling the gap in iconic night products.

Mr. Ho Ky Minh said that in terms of economy, the project will add an entertainment - commercial - cultural center with service items such as art shows, museums, exhibitions, shopping and entertainment activities operating day and night. In terms of tourism, this could become a new highlight, helping Da Nang diversify its products, reduce dependence on daytime activities, and at the same time create competitiveness with other destinations in the region.

Le Thanh

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/kinh-te-dem-da-nang-con-thieu-mot-thoi-nam-cham-xung-tam-2462721.html