Russian firm leases resorts in Binh Thuan

Russian firm Pegas Touristik has clinched long-term contracts to lease three four-star resorts in the central province of Binh Thuan Province to serve travelers from Russia.

According to Anh Duong Tourist Company, the sole partner of Pegas Touristik in Vietnam, the three resorts are Sea Lion in Mui Ne and Ke Ga areas and The Sailing Bay.

Pegas Touristik is now upgrading the kitchens, bars and other facilities of the resorts to meet the needs of Russian tourists. Its employees will take charge of the main management operations of the resorts and the Vietnamese side will be responsible for the rest.

Pegas wants to take the initiative in providing quality services at reasonable prices for Russian tourists, according to Hoang Thi Phong Thu, chairwoman of Anh Duong Company. “The move is to help attract more Russians to Vietnam,” Thu said.

Earlier, Pegas entered into a long-term lease contract with Dessole - Sea Lion Resort in the central province of Khanh Hoa to serve Russian travelers.

In the past years, Pegas Touristik in cooperation with Anh Duong Company has brought a large number of Russian tourists to Vietnam via chartered flights.

At present, a majority of Russians arrive in Vietnam via the two firms. They arrange frequent chartered flights for Russian visitors to Vietnam via Cam Ranh, Phu Quoc and Tan Son Nhat airports.

Statistics from Anh Duong Company showed this travel firm, along with its partners, brought nearly 156,000 Russian tourists to Vietnam in January-September, up 50,000 year-on-year.

Vietnam fails to attract repeat visitors

A recent report from the EU-funded Environmentally and Socially Responsible Tourism Capacity Development Programme points out some of the reasons only 6% of international tourists return to Vietnam a second time.

After surveys of major destinations in Vietnam, including Sapa, Ha Long Bay, Hue, Danang and Hoi An, it was determined that the rate of repeat visitors was disappointingly low. Most second-time visitors were people who came back to Vietnam for work, or were overseas Vietnamese coming to visit relatives. A small number of second-time visitors were from neighbouring countries.

The report also showed that Hoi An and Danang had the longest duration of stays out of the five destinations surveyed. The average duration of stay for international tourists in Hoi An and Danang was 4.5 nights, compared to 2.5 nights in the other cities. Moreover, 22.8% international tourists and 31.3% domestic tourists preferred to stay in 3-star hotels, and only 12.4% international tourists and 6.1% domestic tourists wished to stay in 5-star hotels and resorts.

Many experts have voiced the opinion that the country should focus on the luxury end of tourism development because many of the common complaints by visitors, such as traffic and crime, will take more time to correct.

The report listed the first reason for the relatively low-quality of tourism services as being poorly-planned investment in the sector. While many travel companies are quick to reap the quick rewards from newly-acknowledges heritage sites, they often do not plan thoroughly and their products are not considerate of real tourist demands.

Also, the products offered to visitors to Vietnam are largely similar across the country, lacking, in visitors' eyes, authenticity and creativity. And, while Vietnam has poured money into tourism fairs without reaping much reward, little market research or PR work has been done.

Many of those asked said that Vietnam was a good destination for exploration, but did not consider the country a good place for leisure travel.

Bac Lieu offers ‘cyclo’ service to tourists

Cultural authorities in the Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu announced Monday that the province has launched a ‘cyclo’ service that takes tourists to many places of interest throughout its capital city.

The service is offered by the Culture and Tourism Center of Bac Lieu City – the provincial capital.

A team of 20 cyclos will take travelers on sightseeing tours to the city’s attractions typical of the Mekong Delta’s tourism, according to Nguyen Vu, vice director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.

In Vietnam, cyclos are used to refer to bicycle taxis that are a sort of pedicab having one or two passengers in a seat in the front and the driver pedaling in the rear.

The tourist attractions include Hung Vuong Square, home to a huge stylized “don kim” (a traditional musical instrument); the newly renovated edifices of “Cong Tu Bac Lieu” – or sons of the opulent families living in the province in the early 1900s who were famous for their generous money spending habits; and the Ho Nam Ecotourism Complex.

Other scenic spots are Nha Mat Manmade Sea Tourism Complex, the largest in the delta, the commemorative complex dedicated to ‘Don Ca Tai Tu’ (southern traditional music), and Cao Van Lau – a revered composer of the genre.

‘Don Ca Tai Tu’ was recognized by the UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity late last year.

Bac Lieu Province, located in southern Vietnam, is one of the genre’s cradles.

Tour guides will be present at all the tourist attractions, Vu, the vide director, said.

He added that the cyclo drivers have received training in communication and customer service.

All the 20 vehicles will be mobilized to carry contestants of the ongoing Miss Vietnam 2014 beauty pageant on a parade around the city, which will be held tomorrow, November 5.

American pop star Kelly Clarkson, who won the first season of the renowned singing competition American Idol in 2002, is slated to perform at the finale of the pageant, which is scheduled to take place on December 6 at Vinpearl Phu Quoc Resort on the southern island of Phu Quoc in Kien Giang Province.

Bac Lieu is the hometown of Dang Thu Thao, the current holder of the Miss Vietnam title.

Vietnam attends World Travel Market expo

The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sport co-ordinated with Vietnam Airlines to organise Vietnam’s booth at the World Travel Market (WTM), held in London, UK, from November 4-6.

Under the framework of the expo, Vietnam’s travel agencies and hotels presented tourism products in order to promote an image of Vietnam as “safe, friendly, and attractive” to international friends. The booth also promises to open up new opportunities for tourism in Vietnam and exchange experiences of tourism development with countries over the world.

During the three-day event, the National Administration of Tourism, Vietnam Airlines, travel agencies, and relevant local authorities are introducing some of their new services, including tours through Son Doong - the world’s biggest cave - and Dong Van Karst Plateau Global Geopark, as well as seaplane tours of Ha Long Bay.

These sights are predicted to become new magnets for European tourists in 2015, joining other popular hotspots including Hanoi, Sapa, Hue, Da Nang, and Hoi An.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Vietnamese Embassy in the UK will also conduct a press briefing to promote Vietnam's tourism.

Last year, WTM 2013 was attended by nearly 50,000 key tourism players from around the globe and had an estimated transaction value of US$3.5 billion. It is hoped that participation in this year’s WTM will reap positive benefits for Vietnam’s tourism industry.

In recent years, the UK in particular and the European market in general have been key markets for tourism to Vietnam. In 2013, the country welcomed more than 1 million European tourists, accounting for 14 percent of all international visitors, a 24 percent increase from 2012. There were more than 170,000 tourists from the UK visiting Vietnam in the first 10 months of 2014, increasing 13% compared to that of the same period in 2013.

World Travel Market (WTM) is one of the leading tourist events worldwide, gathering a large number of buyers, sellers, and popular brands in the tourism industry to introduce products, seek partners, sign contracts, and more. It is a unique opportunity for the whole global travel trade to meet, network, negotiate and conduct business.

This year’s fair features over 100 events taking place over 4 days. In addition to exhibitions, and meetings between tourism organizations and travel companies around the world, the event will also feature conferences and seminars with governmental representatives and experts in global tourism development, responsible travel, cruise tourism, and announcement of World Travel Awards.

Vietnam Airlines announces preferential program

Vietnam Airlines in coordination with Vietnamese travel agencies have launched the preferential program to Japan package.

Accordingly, from now till March 31, 2015, tourists will be able to book a four day one night package to Japan with just a cost of VND 26.59million.

To package holiday lasting from 5 days, it will cost VND 27.5million and six day and 5 night tour costs as of VND 33.3million. Seven day and six night tour will be VND 36.9million.

These prices include air ticket, tax, travel fee, accommodation, transportation, travel insurance, visa and tour guide…

Further information, people can visit website www.vietnamairlines.com