Muong Lai improves the quality of tourism products

Muong Lai commune has long been known as a land rich in tourism potential. With beautiful natural landscapes and unique traditional culture of the Tay and Nung ethnic groups, in recent years, Muong Lai commune has had many practical solutions to improve the quality of tourism products, turning potential into advantages, contributing to the development of local socio-economy.

In Muong Lai commune, there is one provincial-level historical-cultural relic; the Khap Coi art of the Tay people has been recognized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage. The commune has three artisans, one of whom has been awarded the title of "Meritorious Artisan" in the field of folk performance. Therefore, the commune has proactively taken action, mobilizing the participation of the entire political system and the people, considering improving the quality of tourism products as a key task to gradually turn tourism into a sustainable livelihood for the people.

The early year festivals attract a large number of people and tourists to visit and experience.

Ms. Hoang Thi Thuy - Vice Chairman of Muong Lai Commune People's Committee said: In the period of 2025 - 2030, the commune will focus on building 4 lists of projects to attract and call for investment in tourism in the commune, including: Investing in Co Tra scenic stopover associated with experiential tourism on Thac Ba Lake in Cao Khanh village; investing in building homestay infrastructure to serve experiential tourism activities on Tu Hieu Lake associated with intangible cultural heritage; investing in building an inland waterway wharf for Thac Ba Lake in Dong Dan village; investing in building an inland waterway wharf for Thac Ba Lake in Lang Ven village. Thereby, contributing to improving the quality of tourism products with strengths of the locality.

One of the important steps of Muong Lai is to focus on diversifying tourism types and products. Instead of just exploiting the advantages of natural landscapes, the commune encourages households to develop community tourism models (homestay), bringing tourists to directly experience the daily life, cuisine and culture of the people.

Muong Lai Tay Folk Song Club is the backbone of local cultural, sports, festival and tourism activities.

Muong Lai commune also aims to develop spiritual tourism and festival culture. Traditional festivals of the Tay and Nung people such as the Xo May festival associated with the Na Ngam communal house praying ceremony held on the 10th of January every year; the Lang Xo communal house festival held on the 5th of January and the 15th of July every year... are restored and held periodically, contributing to preserving cultural identity and creating unique tourism products.

Mr. Nguyen Thanh Trung - Head of Muong Lai Commune Culture Department shared: To improve the quality of local tourism products, the commune has coordinated with artisans to organize art classes for clubs and village art teams to preserve the unique cultural features of the people. In addition, we organize tourism training courses for people to change their mindset towards more professional tourism.

Currently, 36/36 villages of the commune have art troupes, each troupe attracts about 30 participants, the commune has established a Tay Muong Lai folk song club with 30 members. Art troupes and folk song clubs will be the core of local art, sports, festival and tourism activities.

Muong Lai commune also pays special attention to developing typical products. Currently, the commune has 7 OCOP products that meet 3-star standards. These products not only increase economic value but also contribute to promoting the image of Muong Lai to tourists near and far.

Booth displaying key specialty products and OCOP products of the commune at the annual Xo May festival.

Along with that, Muong Lai commune has paid attention to investing in upgrading the inter-village and inter-commune traffic system; planning points to exploit and attract investment resources for tourism development.

Currently, at some community tourism spots in Muong Lai commune, visitors can use free wifi, get detailed introductions about customs and practices from local guides, and watch performances by mass art troupes. This is a clear change, contributing to improving service quality and creating a good impression for visitors.

An important factor contributing to the success of Muong Lai is the synchronous participation of the entire political system and the people. The commune has established a Community Tourism Development Board, mobilizing associations, unions, and departments of the commune to participate in propaganda, advocacy, and organizing a variety of cultural, artistic, and sports activities associated with important events of the country, the province, and local activities to promote stronger tourism development.

Muong Lai commune art troupes actively participate in major local activities and events.

Muong Lai commune also encourages households to do community tourism; establish cooperatives and cooperative groups to connect and support each other. From there, people not only increase their income but also contribute to preserving the landscape, protecting natural resources and cultural identity.

That consensus and cooperation has turned tourism into a driving force for socio-economic development of Muong Lai. Since the beginning of the year, Muong Lai commune has welcomed over 10,000 tourists to visit, experience, and stay, with tourism revenue reaching over 8 billion VND.

Elite artisans of Muong Lai commune guide club members and art troupes in playing bamboo flutes.

To achieve the goal of welcoming 12,100 tourists by 2025, tourism revenue of over 9 billion VND, Muong Lai commune continues to promote propaganda to raise public awareness of sustainable tourism development; complete planning of tourist destinations; attract investment enterprises; build more unique products, bearing the unique mark of Muong Lai. In particular, the commune aims to connect tours and routes with other tourist destinations in the region to form a chain of linked products, creating attractiveness for tourists.

Muong Lai also focuses on applying digital technology in promotion and image building from websites, tourism fanpages, to QR codes for product introduction and tours to improve accessibility for tourists on their journey to explore Muong Lai.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/muong-lai-nang-cao-chat-luong-san-pham-du-lich-post883890.html