Developing Bac Ninh tourism into a spearhead economic sector

On July 1, 2025, Bac Giang and Bac Ninh officially merged to form a new administrative unit called Bac Ninh province. This event is not only an administrative turning point, but also opens up a golden opportunity for socio-economic development. Tourism is identified as one of the strategic spearheads.

On the basis of rich heritage, tourism infrastructure is gradually being completed with the synchronous participation of all sectors and levels, Bac Ninh tourism is opening up a large, sustainable and comprehensive space for socio -economic development. The province has many new opportunities and chances to make a breakthrough, on the basis of combining and promoting the strengths of cultural heritage, history, natural landscape conditions and economy of both localities before "coming under one roof".

Resonance of diverse, rich and unique resources

In the flow of national history, the two provinces of Bac Giang and Bac Ninh (formerly) have many similarities in geography, history, and culture. Both have the same origin and are closely linked by the unique cultural features of both banks of the Cau River. Bac Ninh - Kinh Bac has been a land of talented people for thousands of years, the birthplace of Lac Viet civilization, associated with the legend of the Ancestor Kinh Duong Vuong. This is also the homeland of the Ly dynasty - the dynasty that built and developed the brilliant Dai Viet civilization; it is the "fence" guarding the North of the thousand-year-old Thang Long - Dong Do - Hanoi citadel.

Drum performance at Tay Yen Tu Spring Festival 2025

In particular, Bac Ninh is a locality with up to 7 heritages recognized by UNESCO as world and regional cultural heritages. In particular, Bac Ninh Quan Ho folk songs continue to be strongly spread domestically and internationally, becoming a symbol of Bac Ninh culture and tourism in particular and Vietnamese culture in general. In July 2025, along with the provinces and cities of Hai Phong and Quang Ninh, Bac Ninh province was honored to receive good news from UNESCO when this organization officially recognized the "Complex of Monuments and Landscapes of Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son, Kiep Bac" as a World Heritage. All of the above heritage treasures are national pride and dignity, and at the same time are invaluable assets and resources for socio-economic development and development of local tourism products.

In addition to the national and international cultural heritage values, Bac Ninh province currently owns and preserves a huge treasure of folk cultural heritage, diverse in types and unique in content with the residence of more than 20 ethnic groups. Each ethnic group brings its own unique features in customs, habits, costumes, cuisine and beliefs, creating a colorful cultural picture. Notable are 1,400 traditional festivals, more than 1,441 historical and cultural relics ranked at all levels, 24 national treasures; 33 national intangible cultural heritages and hundreds of craft villages, traditional art forms and unique traditional folk games...

Bac Ninh province currently has many conditions to expand its economic terrain, especially socio-economic development from the advantages of geology and natural landscapes such as forests, mountains, valleys and lakes. The province also has a large plain with many famous traditional craft villages, many tourism products are initially exploited from natural tourism resources, such as: Suoi Mo tourist area; Tay Yen Tu spiritual - ecological tourist area; Ban Ven Xanh eco-tourism site; Bau Tien eco-tourism site; Van Hoa Ho Va eco-tourism site... and many urban, tourism, ecological and resort projects have been and are being invested in the province. Connecting the Quan Ho cultural space, Truc Lam Yen Tu Zen sect with scenic areas of the mountains, rural agricultural fruit growing areas in Bac Giang (formerly) helps to expand tourism products, prolong the length of stay of visitors and enhance the value of the experience.

Tourism facilities and services ensure to meet needs.

Located at the "gateway" to the Northeast of Hanoi Capital, Bac Ninh province has taken advantage of its strategic advantage to build a multi-dimensional transport system, conveniently connecting with neighboring provinces/cities such as Hanoi, Hai Phong, Thai Nguyen and Quang Ninh. With a convenient road, waterway, railway and air transport system, especially when Gia Binh International Airport is expected to officially operate in 2026, it will be a great opportunity for Bac Ninh to affirm its position as an attractive destination for domestic and foreign investors and tourists. Strong investment in transport infrastructure, especially expressways such as Hanoi - Bac Giang - Lang Son, Ring Road 4, and routes connecting mountainous and plain areas, helps visitors easily access tourist destinations from urban centers such as Kinh Bac - Tu Son - Viet Yen - Bac Giang to highland areas such as Luc Ngan, Luc Nam, Son Dong, Yen The.

The commercial infrastructure of Kinh Bac ward is modern, diverse in types and service scale, contributing to attracting tourists. Photo by Nguyen Huong

Regarding tourism infrastructure, as of July 2025, Bac Ninh has 1,027 tourist accommodation establishments, including 4 5-star hotels, 34 1-4 star hotels; 97 travel and passenger transport businesses and establishments meeting tourist service standards; 38 provincial-level tourist areas and spots. The culinary system in the province is rich in types, diverse in form and scale of service. In addition to restaurants with Vietnamese identity, bearing the traditional culture of Bac Ninh - Kinh Bac, many international quality restaurants, streets specializing in cuisine, and services for foreign guests have also been formed.

Bac Ninh continues to receive good news when attracting many investors to ecological urban areas, resort tourism, hotels, high-class accommodation facilities...

Some solutions for Bac Ninh tourism to break through

Firstly, develop a comprehensive tourism development strategy and project and clearly define the position of tourism in the province's socio-economic development strategy in the period of 2026 - 2030, with a vision to 2050. Identify the province's key tourism products as: Cultural - spiritual tourism; Ecological - resort tourism; Community tourism associated with experiencing cultural identity, traditional cultural heritages recognized by UNESCO; Tourism in craft villages, agriculture, rural areas of fruit growing areas; Tourism for entertainment, recreation, sports, conferences - seminars (MICE); at the same time, determine the planning for the construction of key tourism centers, key areas and points to raise the national level; promulgate investment incentive mechanisms and develop tourism infrastructure; Strengthen tourism investment promotion activities, invite large corporations to invest in resorts, tourism - cultural - entertainment complexes, community tourism models, and ecological agriculture.

A corner of the Van Hoa Lake eco-tourism site. Photo: VH

Second, it is necessary to promote brand building and promote the positioning of Bac Ninh Tourism brand. Develop publications, documents, and tourism gifts. Develop free tours to promote tourism and arouse pride in Bac Ninh - Kinh Bac culture. Use digital technology to build a digital map of Bac Ninh tourism. Artificial intelligence (AI); promote tourism images on social networking platforms. Applications to look up information, book tours, tickets, and online services for tourist destinations.

Third, it is necessary to orient and develop symbolic, non-duplicated products that represent the Bac Ninh tourism brand, spreading the unique values of the land, culture and people of Bac Ninh to domestic and foreign tourists; developing tours that exploit the values of UNESCO-listed cultural heritages, special national relics, national treasures, craft villages and traditional festivals and cultural identities of ethnic groups in the province.

Fourth, it is necessary to have synchronous coordination among all levels and sectors and the active participation of communes, wards, businesses and people in the province to create quality products and services. Tourism needs to be linked and cooperated to develop tourism, especially connecting cultural heritages of national and international significance, tourist areas and spots in the province, outside the province and international cooperation to create diverse and unique tours.

Fifth, continue to effectively implement the work of preserving and promoting the value of cultural heritage, especially heritages recognized by UNESCO, focusing on key points and associated with sustainable exploitation in tourism development, increasing tourism revenue.

Sixth, it is necessary to continue to promulgate and implement well the policy mechanisms for tourism development to create favorable conditions to promote sustainable tourism development, truly becoming a spearhead economic sector. Localities, depending on specific socio-economic conditions, need to have appropriate support policies for tourism activities. The province needs to continue to promulgate the Resolution on Tourism Development of Bac Ninh Province for the period 2026 - 2030, with a vision to 2050; a project to develop green tourism in the province; policies to attract investment, support the development of community tourism; support the preservation of cultural heritage; training human resources for tourism, etc.

The synchronous implementation of the above solutions will help Bac Ninh tourism make a breakthrough, affirming its position as a key economic sector, one of the major cultural and tourism centers of the country, contributing significantly to promoting the socio-economic development of the province.

According to Bac Ninh newspaper

Source: https://bvhttdl.gov.vn/phat-trien-du-lich-bac-ninh-thanh-nganh-kinh-te-mui-nhon-20250819083002406.htm