Thua Thien-Hue (VNA) – The centralcoastal region of Vietnam boasts huge tourism potential and efforts areunderway to turn this sector into a driving force of local development.

Plentifultourism advantages

The region, consisting of 11 provincial-levellocalities from Quang Tri to Binh Thuan province, has a favourable geographicallocation adjacent to the Central Highlands, which helps its localities maintainclose relations with Laos, northeastern Cambodia, northeastern Thailand andMyanmar. It is also a gateway to international shipping routes along theEast-West Economic Corridor.

The central coastal region has a 1,400km-longcoastline with a number of beautiful beaches comparable to similar destinationsaround the world, including Cua Viet, Thuan An, Lang Co, Cua Dai, My Khe, PhuongMai, Hon Gom, Nha Trang, Cam Ranh, and Mui Ne.

Many attractive bays listed on world rankingscan also be found here, such as Lang Co and Nha Trang. Among the numerouslagoons in the region, the Tam Giang-Cau Hai lagoon system, with a total areaof over 22,000ha in Thua Thien-Hue province, is one of the largest of its kindin Southeast Asia.

The local eco-tourism potential is as the regionis home to 14 nature reserves, the world biosphere reserve of Cu Lao Cham, andnine out of Vietnam’s 16 marine protected areas including the Hon Mun MarineProtected Area in Khanh Hoa province – the first to be established in thecountry.

Additionally, inshore islands like Con Co, CuLao Cham, Ly Son, and Phu Quy boast rich natural, historical and culturalvalues, making this region even more charming in travellers’ eyes.

Meanwhile, the central coastal region also ownsmany cultural and historical relic sites and world cultural heritage itemsnamed in UNESCO’s lists. Among the UNESCO-recognised heritages, Thua Thien-Hueis home to five (the Complex of Hue Monuments, Nha nhac – Vietnamese courtmusic, the woodblocks of the Nguyen Dynasty, the imperial archives of theNguyen Dynasty, and royal literature on the Hue royal architecture). The othersare Hoi An Ancient Town and My Son Sanctuary in Quang Nam province, and the artof bai choi in some provinces.

Efforts madeto fully tap potential

To help develop tourism, localities in thecentral coastal region have been active in attracting investment to transportinfrastructure, including road, waterway, railway, and aviationfacilities. 

Three of the six airports in the region areinternational ports of entry, namely Phu Bai in Thua Thien-Hue province, DaNang in Da Nang city, and Cam Ranh in Khanh Hoa province. This region now hasseven international seaports, while a network of new roads have also beenbuilt, connecting the localities with destinations across the nation.

From 2010 to 2016, the region attracted up to 65trillion VND (2.8 billion USD) to tourism infrastructure, and this figuresurpassed 92 trillion VND in 2017. Many big investors like theInterContinental, Banyan Tree Singapore, Sun Group, Vingroup, and FLC have cometo develop world-class resorts and entertainment areas.

The capacity of local accommodation facilitiesincreased from 44,794 rooms in 2010 to 104,402 rooms in 2017, almost 49 percentof which are three- to five-star rooms. The majority of these establishmentsare in localities with strong tourism like Thua Thien-Hue, Da Nang, Quang Nam,Khanh Hoa, and Binh Thuan.

With the huge potential, tourism has always beena key industry of the central coastal region, helping to create special tourismproducts for Vietnam.

Statistics show that the number of tourists tothis region has grown fast over the past few years. Rising by an annual averageof 13.3 percent from 13.2 million in 2010 to 34 million in 2017, they accountfor 39 percent of the total tourist arrivals to the country.

Tourism revenue in the region has increased 25.2percent annually to about 61.45 trillion VND in 2017. The same year, tourismcontributed 8.9 percent to the region’s GDP, compared to the nationwide rate of7.5 percent.–VNA