The tourist attractions of Lao Cai

In 2025, despite many localities still facing difficulties, Lao Cai's tourism industry continued to grow steadily and showed significant improvements in service quality, products, and market size. The tourism landscape shows that Lao Cai remains a bright spot in the Northwest region and the country as a whole, opening up new expectations as the province enters a period of inter-regional development after its merger.

Sa Pa remains a popular choice for tourists visiting Lao Cai . Not only famous for its majestic landscapes, unique climate, and rich culture, this region is gradually becoming a destination offering profound, refined, and authentic local experiences.

The allure of Lao Cai is not only reflected in the experiences of tourists but also in the lives of households involved in tourism .

Ms. Vang Thi Can, the owner of a homestay in Ban Lien commune, said that her establishment is almost fully booked year-round. 2025 was a truly prosperous year, with many tourists, providing the people of Ban Lien with a stable source of income. For her, the greatest pride is being able to introduce her hometown to friends both domestically and internationally.

This result demonstrates a strong recovery after the challenges facing the tourism industry in general and affirms the growing attractiveness of Lao Cai.

2025 also marks a significant milestone with the merger of the two provinces of Lao Cai and Yen Bai , opening up opportunities for the development of inter-regional tourism on a broader scale.

After the merger, Lao Cai province possesses rich potential in terms of natural landscapes, culture, and history. Therefore, the connection will create new tourist routes, expand experiential spaces, effectively exploit the advantages of each region, and create a continuous tourism ecosystem.

The merger of the two provinces of Lao Cai and Yen Bai has opened up opportunities for the development of inter-regional tourism on a broader scale.

Mr. Nguyen Trung Kien, Deputy Director of Cat Cat Tourism Company Limited, believes that the merger of the two provinces of Lao Cai and Yen Bai has opened up a new, vast, and potentially rich tourism space.

According to him, tourism is a field that requires close cooperation between localities, and this connection will create more impetus and opportunities for development for the entire region. With these combined advantages, the business community places great faith and expectation in the sustainable development prospects of the tourism industry in the future.

The tourism landscape of Lao Cai in 2025 is marked by several significant milestones. For the first time, the province welcomed over 1 million international visitors, a landmark achievement that demonstrates Lao Cai's attractiveness. This was achieved thanks to a strategy of diversifying products, boosting overseas market promotion, improving service quality, and developing integrated infrastructure.

In addition, Lao Cai has successfully organized many large-scale cultural and tourism events. The first-ever Lao Cai International Tourism Fair in 2025 attracted a large number of local and international businesses.

In particular, the Red River Festival 2025 will become a cultural highlight, creating a strong impact in the media and attracting hundreds of thousands of tourists.

Lao Cai regularly participates in tourism promotion and marketing activities in localities both domestically and internationally.

Lao Cai promotes and develops tourism in Yunnan (China).

Beyond the quality of its events, Lao Cai's tourism industry also made its mark last year with a series of international tourism awards. Sun World Fansipan Legend was honored for the sixth consecutive year as the "World's Leading Natural Scenic Destination." Sa Pa was ranked among the Top 6 most worthwhile mountain destinations in Asia in 2025 by Agoda. Topas Ecolodge held the Top 3 position in Asia. These awards further solidify Lao Cai's image as a professional, high-class, and distinctive tourism destination.

Ms. Vu Thi Mai Oanh, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Lao Cai province, affirmed: "Building on the outstanding achievements of 2025, Lao Cai tourism enters 2026 with a new mindset and expectations. Implementing the resolutions of the Party congresses at all levels, the province has developed a plan and strategic framework for tourism development aiming to build Lao Cai into a 'four-season tourism center of the country,' reaching international standards. This orientation is linked to the development of unique tourism products based on natural landscapes, climate, and ethnic cultural identity, while simultaneously improving the quality of infrastructure, services, and human resources, aiming for the image of 'Lao Cai - the colorful Northwest'."

By 2026, Lao Cai aims to welcome over 11 million tourists, including 1.5 million international visitors, with total tourism revenue reaching 51,000 billion VND.

In addition, the province aims to develop higher-quality, more diverse tourism products, focusing on models linked to nature, culture, history, community, and adventure sports.

Inter-regional tourism routes connecting with Northwest and Northeast Vietnam, as well as routes linking to Yunnan (China), will be promoted to expand the reach and attract international tourists. In addition, the industry will strengthen human resource training and improve transportation infrastructure.

Community-based tourism and sustainable tourism models continue to be identified as important pillars. Lao Cai aims to support local people, especially ethnic minorities, to become key players in tourism activities, creating stable livelihoods while preserving local culture and enhancing the visitor experience. The province is also promoting tourism on digital platforms and collaborating closely with businesses and media outlets both domestically and internationally to spread the image of the destination.

Community-based tourism and sustainable tourism models continue to be identified as important pillars.

The allure of tourism in Lao Cai stems not only from its natural beauty but also from its professional and community-oriented approach to tourism. From peaceful villages to upscale resorts; from the simple stories of the local people to the internationally renowned Fansipan, Lao Cai is gradually asserting its position as a tourism hub in the Northwest region, aiming for national and international stature in the coming years.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/suc-hut-du-lich-lao-cai-post890566.html