Celebrating 10 years of building the cable car to the top of Fansipan, 10 years of beautifying the land

ANTD.VN - On the morning of November 19th, at Ban May in the Sun World Fansipan Legend tourist area (Sa Pa, Lao Cai), Sun Group held a ceremony to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the construction of the Fansipan cable car line – a project considered a symbol of Vietnam's strength and intelligence.

Proud milestones

Attending the celebration were representatives from the leadership of Lao Cai province and Sa Pa town, along with leaders and staff of Sun Group, a large number of people from various ethnic groups in Sa Pa, and tourists from all over who came to visit the tourist area on this occasion.

A large number of guests and tourists attended the event celebrating the 10th anniversary of the construction of Fansipan cable car.

This is not only a moment for Sun Group in particular, and Sa Pa town and Lao Cai province in general, to look back on the brilliant achievements in their 10-year journey of establishing themselves in Sa Pa and beautifying the land known as the "town in the mist," but also an opportunity for the tourism industry of Lao Cai province to mark a decade of breakthroughs in tourism development, with the contributions of large private corporations like Sun Group, through their high-class, quality, and distinctive projects.

Acknowledging the contributions and achievements that Sun Group has made over the past 10 years to the rapid development of tourism and the economy of Sa Pa, Lao Cai, Mr. Trinh Xuan Truong, Chairman of the People's Committee of Lao Cai province, affirmed: “Sun Group's 10-year journey in Sa Pa, Lao Cai is a significant milestone. This demonstrates that Sun Group has awakened the potential and strengths of Sa Pa. With its many unique tourism products, effectively exploiting natural resources such as landscapes and climate combined with exploiting local identity and culture, it has helped Lao Cai's tourism grow nearly fivefold in the past period. Over the past 10 years, Sun Group has affirmed its role in helping Sa Pa and Lao Cai tourism develop green and sustainable.”

On behalf of Lao Cai province leaders, Mr. Trinh Xuan Truong presented a certificate of honor to the representative of Sun Group for their effective contributions to the construction and development of Sa Pa - Lao Cai tourism.

Mr. Trinh Xuan Truong (right) presented an honorary certificate to the representative of Sun World Fansipan Legend.

Speaking at the anniversary celebration, Mr. Tran Minh Son, a founding member and Permanent Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sun Group, shared: "Over the past 10 years, following the cable car project, Sun Group has successively created an ecosystem of world-class facilities in Fansipan and Sa Pa. Along with that, numerous festivals have been regularly organized, not only preserving the ethnic identity of the highlands but also making Sa Pa more attractive every day."

“With a development philosophy that harmonizes business interests with the interests of the local community, balancing development and conservation, Sun Group's projects also contribute in a small way to preserving and helping the Hoang Lien Son mountain range become greener, by conserving precious centuries-old rhododendron trees and ancient spruce trees, and planting many rare flower species. The tourist area has also contributed to the Hoang Lien National Park's efforts to increasingly effectively control the threat of forest fires and deforestation, maintaining peace in the Hoang Lien Son forest,” he said.

Also as part of the celebration, local leaders and Sun Group officially inaugurated Bản Mây within the Sun World Fansipan Legend tourist complex – one of the landmark projects commemorating the 10th anniversary of the construction of the cable car to the summit of Fansipan.

Built with the desire to contribute to preserving, conserving, and promoting the cultural values ​​of the five ethnic minority groups of Sa Pa, this small village at the foot of Fansipan Valley brings together 11 traditional houses, brought by Sun World Fansipan Legend from remote highland villages, restored and renovated to preserve their original beauty. Here, the Dao, H'Mong, Tay, Giay, Xa Pho, and other ethnic groups gather together, sharing their unique customs, festivals, and cultural rituals.

Immediately after the inauguration ceremony, the Ban May Festival will officially take place in this unique highland cultural space, on weekends until the end of December 2023, with many unique cultural and artistic activities performed by the local ethnic people. Each day, activities will honor a different ethnic group in the village. Visitors will not only see the familiar daily life of the people of Sa Pa highlands, but also participate in pounding sticky rice cakes, making five-colored sticky rice, listening to the sounds of the khene and flute, learning about the custom of wife abduction, or witnessing a complete Red Dao wedding ceremony… A miniature Sa Pa will be recreated right in Ban May, vibrant and incredibly interesting.

Local leaders and Sun Group performed the flag-raising ceremony at the sacred peak of Fansipan.

Marking 10 years of beautifying the Sa Pa region and celebrating 120 years of Sa Pa tourism, delegates attending the anniversary ceremony also participated in the planting of 100 thorny pine trees in the grounds of the Sun World Fansipan Legend tourist area. For many decades to come, these pines will grow tall, symbolizing the development and sustainability of Sa Pa tourism.

10 years of beautifying the land.

In November 2013, Sun Group Corporation started construction of a cable car line to the top of Fansipan, with the mission of realizing the dream of conquering the “roof of Indochina” of millions of tourists of all ages. The cable car line is considered an “intellectual miracle” of the Vietnamese people because of the difficulty in construction.

To construct this unprecedented project, for over 800 days and nights, thousands of workers and engineers toiled tirelessly on the sheer cliffs of Fansipan peak, battling bone-chilling cold and learning survival skills against snakes and centipedes, to lay six cable towers deep in the forest, pull thousands of meters of cable weighing thousands of tons, and bring electricity to the summit of Fansipan.

Experts from Doppelmayr Garaventa – the world's largest cable car manufacturer from Switzerland – exclaimed that they would not accept any more projects like this. To avoid encroaching on the Hoang Lien forest ecosystem as proposed by Sun Group, 35,000 tons of materials were transported manually through the forest, instead of cutting down trees to build roads, as other cable car projects in Europe had done. Thousands of people carried stones up the mountainside like diligent ants building their nest, instead of using machinery or helicopters, because those solutions were almost ineffective against the extremely complex and difficult terrain of the Hoang Lien mountain range.

The sacred peak of Fansipan is breathtakingly beautiful during the cloud-covered season. Photo: Photographer Dao Canh.

This project, a source of pride for Sa Pa in particular and Vietnam in general, achieved two Guinness World Records upon its launch: "The world's largest elevation difference between the departure and arrival stations for a three-wire cable car" and "The world's longest three-wire cable car." The arduous two-day and two-night trek through the treacherous forests to reach the sacred summit of Fansipan, once reserved only for adventurous trekkers, has now been reduced to a 15-minute cable car ride, accessible to tourists of all ages, especially those with disabilities.

Not only can visitors cross the Muong Hoa Valley by cable car to reach the 3,143m milestone, but they can now also take the cable car to visit a complex of 12 spiritual structures resembling ancient Vietnamese temples, beautiful like a paradise, and to chase clouds and admire snow at the "Roof of Indochina." At the foot of the mountain, a series of experiences are enriched every day, including the largest rose valley in Vietnam, spanning 5,000m2; Ban May, showcasing the vibrant colors of the highland ethnic groups; slopes of flowers blooming year-round; and festivals and shows reflecting the unique local culture of the ethnic groups of the Northwest highlands…

The development of the cable car system and the subsequent ecosystem of Sun Group's projects in Sa Pa, including the Sun World Fansipan Legend tourist complex and the world-class 5-star Hotel de la Coupole, laid the groundwork for Sa Pa's journey of "parting the fog to see the blue sky." In 2016, the Fansipan cable car was inaugurated, marking the first time Sa Pa reached over 1.2 million visitors per year. The number of visitors to Sa Pa and Lao Cai increased dramatically in subsequent years, reaching 3.3 million in 2019. After the Covid-19 pandemic, Lao Cai was recognized as one of the localities with the strongest recovery rate in the country. In the first six months of 2023, Lao Cai province was among the top 10 localities with the highest tourism revenue nationwide.

The Dao ethnic wedding was recreated at Ban May Fansipan, a new destination at Sun World Fansipan Legend with the desire to preserve and conserve the beauty of indigenous culture.

Sun Group's projects have also contributed to elevating Sa Pa to international prominence, with numerous prestigious awards. For many consecutive years, the Sun World Fansipan Legend tourist complex has been honored by the World Travel Awards (WTA) as: "Vietnam's Leading Tourist Destination," "World's Leading Cultural Destination," and "World's Leading Natural Scenic Destination." This year, the complex was again voted "Asia's Leading Destination" in Singapore. As for Hotel de la Coupole – Mgallery Sa Pa, in its first year of operation, it was honored by the WTA as "World's Leading Hotel Design" and "World's Iconic Hotel."

The Sun Group ecosystem in Sa Pa has also made a significant contribution to improving the quality of life for the local people. Currently, the majority of the workforce at Sun World Fansipan Legend and Hotel de la Coupole are ethnic minorities, who are trained, work in a professional environment, and have stable incomes.

This aligns with the sustainable values ​​in tourism development that Mr. Trinh Xuan Truong affirmed: "Sustainability lies in sharing benefits between businesses and the local people. Sun Group's maximum utilization of local labor, with over 60% being ethnic minorities in Lao Cai province, has helped people develop their economy, gain awareness to improve their lives, escape poverty, and contribute to the socio-economic development of the locality."

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