Four and five-star hotels in Nha Trang cut prices

The number of four- and five-star hotels in Nha Trang in the south-central province of Khanh Hoa have reduced room rates by 30 per cent or more in order to attract more visitors this summer.

The hotels are also offering many services such as teaching children to swim. Many of the discounts will be valid until the end of August.

Earlier, a tourism website, www.priceoftravel.com, selected Nha Trang as one of the world's ideal destinations, along with Bali, Indonesia; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Da Nang aims to attract 3.6 million tourists

Da Nang's tourism promotion centre has launched a programme to promote MICE tourism (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) in Ha Noi and HCM City, the two major domestic tourism markets.

Ha Noi was the first stop of the programme yesterday before it reached HCM City today, along with 20,000 vouchers offering between five per cent and 50 per cent discounts between September and December.

The promotion programme, launched in 2012, has drawn the participation of more than 90 travel agencies, hotels and transport companies in Da Nang city with the aim of attracting 3.6 million visitors this year to the region.

Over 50 hotels, including Green Plaza, five-star resorts Furama, Sandy Beach, Ba Na Hills mountain resort and Debay hotel in the city, have promised 10 per cent to 50 per cent discounts in bookings, while 10 major tour operators have offered 20 per cent to 25 per cent discounts, according to the city's Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism's tourism accommodation service.

The city also launched a road show to accelerate tourism in the Mekong Delta; Bangkok, Thailand; Russia; Korea; and Japan.

The central coastal city hosted over 3.1 million tourists in 2013.

VietJet Air joins Amadeus Global Distribution System

Leading low-cost airline VietJet Air on July 3 signed a comprehensive cooperation agreement with Amadeus Global Distribution System - the largest technology provider in the worldwide travel and tourism industry.

The deal will offer opportunities to tens of thousands of travel companies across the world and passengers using Vietjet Air services.

Through Amadeus’ agent network, the airline will provide information about products services, and promotion campaigns on its domestic and international flights.

In addition, VietJet Air will also use Amadeus e-ticketing system to meet domestic and foreign customers’ demand.

VietJet Air Executive Director Luu Duc Khanh said that the agreement is the airline’ first step towards joining the global distribution system in the near future.

Vietjet Air has also received a number of cooperation offers from other airlines across the world to help expand its market in not only Asia and Northeast Asia, but also East Europe and North America.

At the event, Hazem Hussein, Executive Vice President, Airline Commercial, Amadeus Asia Pacific, hailed the landmark deal between the two sides and vowed to optimise VietJet Air’s promotion programmes and services to its customers and travel agents.

Ba Ria-Vung Tau welcomes 6.9 million visitors in first half

The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province said that 6.9 million tourists visited the province in the first half of this year, a year-on-year increase of 17 per cent.

Tourism turnover totalled VND1.8 trillion (US$86 million), up by 23 per cent over the same period last year.

Many big tourism projects have opened and new services introduced, bringing even more investors to the province.

Nearly 1.4 million foreign tourists visit Hanoi, year to date

Hanoi welcomed 1.4 million foreign visitors in the first six months of the year, an increase of 17.4 percent over the same period last year, according to Truong Minh Tien, vice director of the Hanoi Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Vice Director Tien said that Hanoi expects to welcome 2.5 million foreign visitors in 2014.

The number of domestic tourists also reached 8.2 million in the first six months in 2014, up 3,6 percent.

In order to develop its tourism industry, Hanoi has recently focused on promoting its more popular sites and improving the quality of tourism products and events.

Recently, TripAdvisor, the premier US travel website, has rated the top 95 attractions in Hanoi in 2014 based on the reviews of people who have visited the capital city of Vietnam.

The Hanoi Ca Tru Club tops the list, with most reviews saying they had an enchanting cultural experience listening to ca tru (ceremonial singing). It was recognised by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in October 2009.

Hanoi’s Old Quarter, which comprises nearly 40 streets packed with shops selling all kinds of goods, came in second. It was followed by the Vietnam Women’s Museum and the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology. The Thang Long Ca Tru Theatre, the Temple of Literature and Hoan Kiem Lake were also on the list.

Earlier, Hanoi was also named the cheapest destination for a city break this summer in the website’s fourth annual TripIndex Cities.

Saigontourist’s properties launch summer promotions

Many hotels, resorts and restaurants under the management of Saigontourist Holding Corporation are offering summer promotions for customers.

Que Huong Liberty 4 Hotel (265 Pham Ngu Lao St., Dist.1, HCMC, Tel: 08 3836 4556) Guests to the hotel will enjoy a “Connecting Heart” buffet promotion of ‘buy five and get one free.’

The buffet features over 60 Vietnamese- style and Asian dishes like Hue-style rolls, curry, seafood and BBQ. Especially, the hotel also offers students and teachers 35% discounts for lunch buffet and 30% discount for dinner buffet.

Prices for lunch and dinner buffets are VND206,000++per person and VND306,000++per person, respectively. There’s another promotion for a free flow of drinks for those who book parties at the hotel during this summer promotion. Guests who book meeting rooms will receive a promotion price of VND155,000 ++ per guest.

Metropole Wedding & Convention Center (216 Ly Chinh Thang St., Dist.3, HCMC, Tel: 08 3526 2288) With a “Dream wedding” package, the hotel will offer customers 25% off on food from July 25 to August 25.

During this season of shareholders meetings, the hotel will offer a package price from VND228,000++ per guest inclusive of tea break, decoration and stage system.

Royal Hotel Saigon (133 Nguyen Hue Boulevard, District 1, HCMC, Tel: 08 3822 5914)

The four-star hotel will run a promotion price for wedding parties at VND4 million per table for a six-course menu and a free flow of drinks.