Enhancing the attractiveness of coastal and island tourism.

With its strengths in coastal and island areas, Quang Ninh's tourism sector promises to be vibrant and bustling this summer, welcoming millions of visitors for sightseeing, recreation, and relaxation. Local authorities and agencies have prepared everything, from infrastructure and the introduction of new tourism products to ensuring quality services, to meet all the needs of tourists.

Introducing new shipping routes

In late March, Quang Ninh officially launched its Bai Tu Long Bay sightseeing and tourism itineraries. Each itinerary offers unique experiences, from admiring the magnificent natural landscape to learning about the cultural life of local fishermen. Visitors can not only visit and relax at famous destinations like Quan Lan and Minh Chau islands, but also explore new and attractive destinations such as Phat Co Island, home to Phat Co Cave – one of the largest caves in Bai Tu Long Bay. Visitors can experience kayaking, explore floating farms cultivating Gracilaria seaweed, or relax on the island's pristine and beautiful beaches…

Tourists experience a tour of Bai Tu Long Bay.

Immediately after the official launch of the Bai Tu Long Bay tour routes, tourist boats began operating daily at the Ao Tien International Passenger Port. Notably, Quang Ninh province currently does not charge entrance fees for the Bai Tu Long Bay tours; tourists only have to pay for the boat ticket and port service fees. New tourist boats will be added during the upcoming April 30th - May 1st holiday to meet the peak demand for sightseeing and relaxation.

Along with developing the Bai Tu Long Bay tour route, the province will also innovate the Ha Long Bay tour routes. Specifically, at a meeting in early April, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Thi Hanh concluded: This year, Quang Ninh province will soon open a tourist route from Lan Ha Bay to Ha Long Bay, following routes 3 and 4, which concentrate many tourist attractions, pristine landscapes, beautiful sandy beaches, lagoons, and many potential areas for developing high-end tourism products... This will maximize the resources of Vietnam's first inter-provincial heritage site, contributing to attracting approximately 500,000 more visitors to Ha Long Bay and increasing the province's budget revenue.

Foreign tourists are excited to explore Ha Long Bay.

In addition, Quang Ninh province will soon launch a cruise ship tour, departing from Ha Long International Cruise Port and Tuan Chau International Cruise Port to the area around Column 8; and develop coastal tours along Ha Long Bay. Simultaneously, it will renovate and improve the landscape on land and underwater along this coastal tour route, particularly by applying high technology and digital transformation to enhance the visitor experience.

According to Mr. Vu Kien Cuong, Director of the Ha Long Bay Management Board, the Board will also organize service provision activities in Ha Long Bay to improve the quality of tourism in the bay, meeting the diverse needs of tourists in learning about the culture and history of Ha Long Bay and Quang Ninh province. Simultaneously, they will develop sports products such as kayaking in accordance with current legal regulations. Regulations regarding tourist boats operating in Ha Long Bay need to be adjusted, encouraging boat owners whose vessels are nearing the end of their licenses to invest in building new, more luxurious and higher-class vessels with larger passenger capacity.

Along with launching tours in Ha Long Bay and Bai Tu Long Bay, localities are also actively developing and improving sea and island sightseeing routes to serve the needs of tourists. In Co To, the district is accelerating the development of a project to develop island sightseeing tours in the district. It is expected that the district will launch the following potential island routes: Route 1: Co To Port - Hon Ca Chep (Carp Island) - Hon Su Tu (Lion Island) - Co To Con Island; Route 2: Co To Port - Hon Ca Chep (Carp Island) - Hon Su Tu (Lion Island) - Co To Con Island - Thanh Lan; Route 3: Port Zone 1 - Hon Ca Chep (Carp Island) - Hon Su Tu (Lion Island) - Co To Con Island; Route 4: Port Zone 1 - Dong Nam Island - Hon Ca Chep (Carp Island) - Hon Su Tu (Lion Island); Route 5: Thanh Lan Port - Hon Ca Chep (Carp Island) - Hon Su Tu (Lion Island) - Co To Con Island; Route 6: Co To Port - Hon Ca Chep (Carp Island) - Co To Con Island - Tran Island.

Currently, the locality is selecting eligible ports for operation; establishing self-governing groups to manage, exploit, and operate tourism activities in an orderly and organized manner. Particular emphasis is placed on ensuring environmental hygiene, waste treatment and collection; ensuring security and order; and strictly managing operating vehicles, requiring businesses and vehicles to strictly comply with legal regulations. This creates a legal framework for sustainable, safe, and controlled island tour operations. It ensures safety, quality of service, sustainable development, and enhances the Co To tourism brand. At the same time, it attracts investment in tourism infrastructure, improves service quality, diversifies experiential activities, and removes obstacles, creating favorable conditions for local people to develop tourism businesses.

Get ready for the summer travel season!

For many years, coastal and island tourism in the province has consistently attracted tourists, especially during the summer months. To prepare for this influx, local authorities and relevant agencies have made thorough preparations, from tourism infrastructure to continuously improving service quality. For example, at Ao Tien International Port, the estimated passenger volume for the summer season in 2025 is 400,000-450,000, primarily on routes to Co To, Minh Chau, and Quan Lan.

According to Mr. Ta Duc Quyen, Executive Director of Ao Tien International Port, anticipating the peak tourist season, we have developed a well-structured plan for welcoming guests, regularly inspecting, maintaining, and upgrading port equipment such as: piers, passenger boarding and disembarking systems, security systems, ticketing systems, ticket control systems… to ensure the safe reception of ships and passengers. In addition, we have improved passenger amenities, enhanced customer service, trained a professional staff to handle situations and guide customers. Furthermore, to accommodate the increased number of visitors, we have also planned contingency measures, applied technology in management, and enhanced the visitor experience.

Cai Chien Island in Hai Ha district is an attractive destination for tourists during the summer months. Photo: Duy Khoa

Along with the improvement of port infrastructure, accommodation facilities are also being invested in comprehensively to enhance the visitor experience. Currently, the accommodation and tourism infrastructure in Van Don district is increasingly modernized with large-scale, multi-utility, multi-experience (All in One) projects and complexes. For example, in the Bai Dai area – one of Van Don's famous beautiful beaches – the Sonasea Van Don Harbor City high-end resort complex, invested by CEO Group, has completed many important subdivisions and projects such as the Singapore Shoptel commercial street, the first international 5-star resort in the area: Wyndham Garden Sonasea Van Don, and a section of Sonasea Long Beach…

In addition, Van Don district is restarting the Van Don High-End Resort and Entertainment Complex project in Van Yen commune, with a total investment of approximately 50,365 billion VND; coordinating the early inauguration and commissioning of the Hon Rong Tourist Area project; the Crystal Holidays Harbour Van Don tourism, resort and entertainment complex (phase 1) of Everland Group; and the Phuong Dong hotel complex with 350 rooms…

Vietyatch Club staff are tidying up the yacht before customers' voyages.

Currently, tourist accommodations on the islands and coastal areas of the province have been diversified to meet new trends. The Dau Rong Resort in Hai Ha district is one of the outstanding tourist products, popular with visitors during the summer. This is the first 5-star resort on Cai Chien island, operational since 2023 with 42 high-quality bungalows. It is the result of Hai Ha district's efforts to attract investment, creating momentum to boost the development of tourism in the island commune.

Mr. Le Tuan Kiet, CEO of Dau Rong Resort, said: "This summer, in addition to providing excellent accommodation and resort services for tourists, we continue to offer recreational activities such as camping in the pine forest;   We organize group outdoor activities; night squid fishing; walking and cycling around the island combined with environmental protection activities; kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding on the beach. This year's highlight is the addition of a beachfront campsite, a new upscale restaurant, and several outdoor sports and experiential activities.

Along with improving tourism infrastructure, localities and organizations are also aiming to enhance the tourist experience, introducing products specifically for high-spending and luxury travelers. Many companies have invested in private yachts to develop high-end experiential services in Ha Long Bay and Bai Tu Long Bay. Ms. Nguyen Quynh Anh, Head of Sales at Vietyatch Club, said: "Our company has invested in 20 private yachts worth hundreds of thousands to millions of US dollars to serve high-quality tourists. We have already received bookings for several private experiential programs in the Bay from millionaires and billionaires worldwide until June, with many bookings extending to 2027. In the future, we will continue to participate in promotional programs and introduce our products to reach the maximum number of tourist markets, attract tourists to Ha Long, and gradually build a high-end yacht brand specifically for Ha Long Bay."

In the long term, Quang Ninh will continue to implement comprehensive and decisive solutions to promote the development of marine and island tourism and services, with a focus on attracting and developing the cruise tourism market. It will diversify tourism forms and products, improve the quality and competitiveness of tourism services, especially high-end resort tourism, high-quality marine and island tourism, and nighttime tourism and services, both on land and in Ha Long Bay and Bai Tu Long Bay, to make Quang Ninh an attractive destination year-round.

Hoang Quynh

Source: https://baoquangninh.vn/tang-suc-hap-dan-du-lich-bien-dao-3353652.html