Removing bottlenecks to open up the "treasure trove" of tourism in the Central Highlands and Central Vietnam

On the afternoon of May 30 in Quy Nhon City, the People's Committee of Binh Dinh Province coordinated with the National Tourism Administration to organize a Conference on Linking Tourism Development in the Central Coast - Central Highlands region, with the participation of local leaders, experts, businesses...

Tháo điểm nghẽn để mở — Delegates attending the seminar on Cooperation between some provinces and cities in the Central Coast - Central Highlands region

"Treasure" of resources but still... potential

Mr. Ha Van Sieu, Deputy Director of the National Tourism Administration, said that Vietnam is currently a comprehensive strategic partner of 13 countries around the world , and tourism is full of opportunities to welcome visitors from this market.

"Resolution 66 on comprehensive innovation, administrative reform, and simplified procedures create openness for businesses. The private economy is the most important component, which needs to be prioritized, creating conditions to motivate businesses to invest, innovate, and connect. In particular, the expansion of administrative boundaries creates new opportunities for localities with new development space, diverse tourism products, and the difference between the highlands and coastal areas to create effective connections. This is a historic opportunity for businesses and localities to do things they have never done before," Mr. Ha Van Sieu emphasized.

Vice Chairman of Binh Dinh Provincial People's Committee Lam Hai Giang assessed that the Central Coast - Central Highlands region is a diverse, unique, potential and historical cultural and natural space. From the blue sea, white sand, and golden sunshine of the Central Coast to the majestic Central Highlands, from cultural heritages to unique traditional festivals, carrying the breath of life.

"This land is a "treasure" of tourism resources, but why can't we exploit and promote all of that potential for development?" - Chairman of Binh Dinh Provincial People's Committee asked.

He also said that in recent years, Binh Dinh province has implemented many synchronous solutions to gradually turn tourism into a spearhead economic sector. It has signed a cooperation program, linking 6 coastal and Central Highlands provinces, 5 provinces in the Central key economic region in tourism development to form inter-provincial routes and tours, connect and organize common events; support cross-promotion of products.

"However, we must also frankly admit that our tourism linkages are still too formal, have not created truly different and attractive products, have not mobilized many businesses to participate, and lack an effective, stable, and long-term coordination mechanism."

Go far together

Associate Professor Pham Trung Luong, former Deputy Director of the Institute of Tourism Research, said that 20 years ago, the issue of tourism linkage between the Central and Central Highlands regions was raised in a project. The linkage issue is not new, but after a long time, it has not been successful.

"The nature of tourism is inter-regional and inter-sectoral. If we still have localism in our blood, we cannot successfully connect. In addition, if we do not have enough resources, we cannot implement that idea," said Mr. Luong.

Mr. Dinh Van Thieu, Vice Chairman of Khanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee, emphasized that building a local brand is very important. Khanh Hoa has invited many tourism consulting units to advise the province to create a highlight for Khanh Hoa tourism. "We are determined to go far together. Infrastructure conditions connecting nearby localities are very important to have this connection" - Vice Chairman of Khanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee said.

Responding to this opinion, Mr. Lam Hai Giang said that if the association is only "on paper", it will not develop, and a flexible and responsible coordination mechanism is needed.

"The subjects of cooperation, not local authorities, but enterprises and tourism associations, must proactively link together to build inter-regional products and propose policy mechanisms for localities. Without common policies, the effectiveness is not real. To realize cooperation, it is necessary to build inter-regional products and exploit the unique strengths of many localities. Then, it is necessary to focus on promotion, build a common database, and build a system of values for regional tourism to create an environment that is both competitive and cooperative for development.

Removing aviation bottlenecks

From a business perspective, Ms. Tran Thi Kim Qui, Permanent Deputy General Director of FLC Hotels & Resorts, said that in order for businesses to truly promote their role as the central driving force in international tourism development, they need to focus on four key areas, including removing infrastructure bottlenecks - especially aviation.

"When there is a lack of suitable flights, no matter how good the service ecosystem is, businesses will find it difficult to bring customers and retain them. We need to be accompanied in the process of building a connection strategy, from flight promotion policies to coordinating the implementation of charter flights," Ms. Tran Thi Kim Qui emphasized.

"FLC once coordinated with the locality to propose the implementation of charter flights and received attention from many travel partners. However, a group of nearly 10,000 international tourists, although they really wanted to sign a contract to bring guests to Quy Nhon, were ultimately unable to do so due to the lack of a convenient flight plan.

During the famtrip, the guests expressed their excitement about the destination. Although there were no direct flights, they still accepted to fly to Ho Chi Minh City and then transfer to Quy Nhon. However, having to wait too long at the transit airport made the guests tired, significantly affecting their first impression. It was only on the second day, when they had somewhat recovered, that we were able to carry out the experiential activities, but by then the time left was running out.

This shows that transport infrastructure, especially aviation, is the first point of contact and can determine the entire tourist experience. If this bottleneck is not resolved, it will be very difficult to retain customers in global competition" - FLC representative stated.

Ms. Choice Young Gill, CEO of DA Trip, Korea, said that Korean tourists like to go to Vietnam but direct flights from Korea to Quy Nhon face many difficulties.

"The local tourism products are not yet diverse, and promotional information is limited. With much development potential, we really hope Quy Nhon will become the second Da Nang of the Central region," said Ms. Choice Young Gill.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/thao-diem-nghen-de-mo-kho-bau-du-lich-mien-trung-tay-nguyen-196250530184844532.htm