Ebola scare discourages travels to South Africa

Many tours to South Africa have been canceled although Ebola-hit areas are in West Africa, far from South Africa’s tourist destinations.

Many travel firms in HCMC have called off tours to South Africa and Kenya, as observed by the Daily. In normal times, some travel firms may organize one or two trips a month as these tours are expensive.

Tran Thi Bao Thu, head of marketing and communications at Fiditour, said her company had suspended arranging South Africa tours amid concerns over the deadly Ebola virus. Regarding customers who are already finalizing procedures for traveling to this destination, Fiditour will support part of the cost or suggest another tour.

Other tour operators such as Saigontourist, Vietravel and Lien Bang Travelink did not hold off the tours but had to do this because their customers cancelled tour bookings for fear of the disease.

Earlier, the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism required international travel firms to suspend tours to Ebola-hit areas west of Africa.

Danang launches tourism advertising campaign

Danang has launched a new advertising campaign touting its new slogan “Danang City – a friendly, safe and hospitable community” aiming to attract more domestic holiday and foreign tourists from traditional markets.

Tran Chi Cuong, Vice Director of the Municipal Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism (DoCST), said that from now through the end of the year many new tourism products and services have been launched..

This year’s programme focuses on three main groups: domestic holiday-makers, foreign tourists and meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE).

According to the Danang Tourism Promotion Centre, around 90 units have registered to take part in the programme with many new products and promotional tours.

To lure 880,000 foreigners this year, since July the Danang DoCST has introduced a MICE tourism promotion programme and promotional packages in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

After Hanoi and HCM City, Danang were chosen as locations for foreigners to claim the (VAT) refund, the city decided to use it as a way of promoting its image to international friends and to stimulate the tourism sector.

All preparations for claiming the VAT refund have been completed and Danang International Airport and Tien Sa Port will begin issuing refunds in late September.

If the tax refund is implemented effectively it will help stimulate domestic sales.

Currently, Danang has opened many international air routes to many countries like Malaysia, Singapore, China, Japan and Cambodia.

Danang eyes Russia as key tourism market

Danang city launched its tourism promotion programme in Moscow on August 18, expecting to break into this strong Russian market which sees an increasing number of visitors to Vietnam every year.

In his address, Danang municipal People’s Committee Chairman Van Huu Chien highlighted the city’s huge potential for tourism development, saying that Danang – a social and cultural centre in the central and Central Highland regions – has been voted as the most worth living locality in Vietnam.

The city lies at the heart of the three World Heritage sites in Vietnam, namely the former imperial city of Hue, the ancient city of Hoi An, and My Son Sanctuary.

It is also the ending point of the East-West Economic Corridor and a gateway to Myanmar, Thailand and Laos.

With a 60km long coastline, the city houses many beautiful beaches with pure water and fine white sand. Danang beach alone was voted as one of the six best beaches in the world by the US-based Forbes magazine in 2005.

Chien said Danang aims to boost trade and service sectors, with a focus on the tourism industry. Last year, the city welcomed more than 3 million tourists, including 750,000 international arrivals.

However, the number of Russian travellers to Danang remains modest, reaching 4,000 in 2013. Chien expressed his hope with its huge potential for tourism development, Danang will woo more Russian holiday-makers, turning it into an attractive tourist destination in central Vietnam.

A Vietnam Airlines representative spoke highly of the Russian tourism market and introduced travellers to a number of preferential travel services.   

The ceremony was attended by diplomats and officials, as well as many representatives of businesses from both countries, including Vietnam Airlines.

Ninh Binh, Thanh Hoa co-operate in developing tourism

Ninh Binh and Thanh Hoa, having great potential for natural and historical tourism, promise to become attractive destinations when the provinces co-ordinate closely in developing tourism.

Trang An landscape complex in northern Ninh Binh province has recently been recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage, while Thanh Hoa province is also planning to prepare for National Tourism Year 2015. For this reason, 2015 is expected to highlight the co-operation between Ninh Binh and Thanh Hoa provinces in exploiting tourism potential. The co-operation is a strategic plan towards sustainable tourism development in the provinces.

Both the provinces are lucky enough have been endowed with the world heritages, including Ho Dynasty Citadel in Vinh Loc district, Thanh Hoa province and the Trang An landscape complex in Ninh Binh province, which possess unique natural and historical values.

Ninh Binh is now home to a number of ancient places of worship, including the century-old Phat Diem stone cathedral and the newly constructed 700-hectare Bai Dinh pagoda – the largest Buddhist cultural and spiritual centre in Vietnam. The province currently has 242 temples, 380 shrines, 209 temples and 148 other places of worship within its borders. Constructed hundreds of years ago, a number of these sites have been recognised as special national historical sites, such as the temples commemorating King Dinh Tien Hoang and King Le Dai Hanh and the ancient Bai Dinh pagoda. In addition to religious sites, Ninh Binh also abounds with spectacular landscapes, such as the Van Long tourist site, the Trang An cave system, the Tam Coc – Bich Dong river cave and the Kenh Ga hot mineral spring. Therefore, visitors to Ninh Binh can engage in two types of tourism – spiritual tourism and sightseeing tours.

Meanwhile, Thanh Hoa is renowned for its Dong Son culture, with a series of archaeological relics and historical monuments such as Nui Do (Do Mountain), Cong Moong Cave, Ho Dynasty Citadel and Lam Kinh historical site. Another advantage of Thanh Hoa is a 100km coastal line with beautiful beaches, and some ecological tourism areas such as Ben En, Pu Hu, Pu Luong and Tam Quy national parks.

With these advantages, the co-operation between Ninh Binh and Thanh Hoa will help to promote the positives and develop tourism. However, the co-ordination requires strategic vision to ensure sustainability and efficiency in tourism development, with concrete activities such as building tourism products and tours linking heritage sites.

According to many tourism professionals at a recent seminar on tourism co-operation between Ninh Binh and Thanh Hoa, upgrading traffic systems is one of important factors in developing tourism links between two provinces in particular and with other provinces in general. Highway 45 connecting the Trang An Complex and Lam Kinh historical site, Ho Dynasty Citadel and Sam Son sea tourism area should be upgraded quickly to prepare for the 2015 National Tourism Year. Beside traffic issues, infrastructure and tourist areas should see investment to meet the increasing demand of visitors. In building tourism products, the professionals have encouraged two provinces to focus on spiritual tourism and ecological tourism.

Additionally, the tourism should be developed with environmental protection and the preservation of cultural and historical heritage. State management of tourism must also be strengthened, tourism marketing enhanced and hospitality sector professionalism increased.

Effective co-operation will create strong success in reaching the targets of Ninh Binh and Thanh Hoa provinces’ tourism sector in 2015.

Argentina streamlines visa procedures for Vietnam tourists

Argentina, the second largest country in South America, is trying to lure more Vietnamese travelers by streamlining visa procedures.

Las week the Argentine Embassy in Hanoi organized a program in HCMC to promote tourism and invited local travel agencies to the event. The embassy said the time required for applying for a visa would be cut for Vietnamese tourists.

“The number of Vietnamese travelers coming to Argentina is rapidly increasing. Especially, the 2014 World Cup soccer tournament in July saw many Vietnamese visiting the country after spending time in Brazil,” Juan Pablo Volken, head of the Consular Section of the Argentine Embassy, said at the event.

To obtain Argentine entry visa, the applicant must email the consulting team and provide some basic information such as name, cell phone number, and purpose of travel, and departure date.

Meanwhile, other documents such as visa application form, valid passport, return air ticket and hotel room booking and proof of funding for stay in Argentina are required.

The email will be replied within one or two days together with an interview appointment.

At the interview, the applicant must submit the originals of the documents that have been sent by e-mail and pay US$40.

The visa can be sent via mail or obtained by the applicant at the embassy. All this should be completed 15 days before departure date.

Juan Pablo Volken said although travelers submit many documents, his organization would put the visa procedures on fast track. For instance, regarding proof of funding, no bank statement will be needed if the applicant shows a savings certificate, a home ownership certificate, a business project or an income statement issued by their employer.

If married couples travel to Argentina together, just one of them will have to show proof of incomes.

A tour package to Argentina usually lasts 17 days with a cost of around VND170 million. Tourists will leave HCMC for Europe and then fly on to Argentina or for the Middle East before coming to the country.

Hanoi craft village tourism festival to take place in October

The 2014 Hanoi traditional craft village tourism festival will be held at the Quan Ngua Sports Palace from October 9-12.

The festival, themed “Convergence of Quintessence”, will feature 400 booths introducing products of traditional craft villages in Hanoi and other localities nationwide.

Visitors to the event will have a chance to enjoy special dishes of the capital city and other localities.

Last year’s event drew the participation of 139 trade villages in Hanoi and provinces in the Red River Delta which showcased their products at 300 stalls.-

Marine economy, tourism key to Central region’s growth

The central region needs to focus on making the most of its potentials in the marine economy and tourism, as these two sectors are decisive for its development, heard a forum on boosting development in the central region held in Danang last weekend.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said the central region has huge potential to develop the marine economy owing to the rich availability of natural resources such as petroleum and seafood. Such potentials, if fully tapped, will help make the regional economy dynamic and sustainable, eradicate poverty and cushion negative impacts of natural disasters and climate change, he said.

Vuong Dinh Hue, head of the Central Party’s Economic Commission, said the central region should pay close attention to the marine economy, especially industries concerning seaports, sea freight, shipbuilding and repair, logistics services, tourism, petroleum and seafood.

Tran Du Lich, head of a research group under the coordinating committee for the central coastal provinces, suggested the central region’s marine economy as a strategic part of Vietnam’s economic development.

The Government and local provinces should put more investments in modern technology with an effort to support offshore fishing and protect the national sovereignty over waters and islands.

In terms of tourism, the central region is famous for numerous beautiful beaches and many world heritage sites including Hue Citadel, ancient Hoi An City and My Son Sanctuary. As such, provinces in the region need to join forces in tourism development, according to Professor Tran Dinh Thien.

VNS/VOV/VNA/SGT