ANTD.VN - A decade ago, Sun Group started building a cable car to Fansipan, the roof of Indochina. Along with other changes in Sa Pa's infrastructure, the cable car is considered a milestone that has helped the tourism of the foggy town to rapidly change.
In October 2023, the New York Times published an article affirming that the strong development of the cable car system over the past decade has shown a spectacular transformation of Vietnam's economy and tourism industry. In particular, Sa Pa with a cable car route connecting to the highest mountain in Indochina is one of the vivid illustrations.
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| Fansipan cable car is considered a milestone that helps Sa Pa tourism change rapidly. |
Fansipan Cable Car - a milestone of change
Sa Pa was once known as the "summer resort capital" of Indochina, and was especially loved by the French, who continuously invested in building nearly 300 villas and large-scale resorts, according to 1920 data.
With a glorious starting point, Sa Pa also experienced a turbulent history, when it was devastated by war and forgotten by time until the early years of the 21st century. In the early 2000s, each line of cars on winding roads brought tourists back to Sa Pa, but that also led to the appearance of many resorts, tourist attractions, and "quick-fix" tourist activities. Without proper investment, a land rich in potential for climate, landscape and cultural identity of 6 ethnic groups living together like Sa Pa is at risk of "aging" before becoming famous, when the whole year it only welcomes less than 1 million visitors and the tourists stay no more than 2 days.
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| Building a cable car line at that time was considered by many experts to be too risky. |
Central, provincial and local government leaders have called for the joint efforts of large, capable and responsible investors to change Sa Pa tourism. Many names appeared in Sa Pa 10 years ago, and one of them was Sun Group. In November 2013, Sun Group started construction of a cable car line connecting the foot of the mountain to the top of Fansipan, a project that many experts at that time considered too risky and impossible. But just over 2 years later, in February 2016, the cable line was completed, with 2 world records.
At the same time as the cable car was launched, the Noi Bai - Lao Cai expressway was inaugurated. Sa Pa was reborn. According to statistics, in 2013, Sa Pa only welcomed 720,000 visitors, with a revenue of 576 billion VND. At the end of 2016, the Fansipan cable car contributed to bringing Sa Pa tourism to 1.2 million visitors for the first time. And in 2019 (before Covid), the number of visitors to Sa Pa reached more than 3.2 million, with a revenue of 9,335 billion VND, 16.2 times higher than in 2013. In the first 9 months of this year alone, the number of tourists to Sa Pa reached about 2.7 million, equal to 140% compared to the same period in 2022; it is expected that by the end of this year, the town will welcome over 3.5 million visitors, with a revenue of more than 12 trillion VND.
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| Sun Group offers a series of experiential projects that act as a must-see for tourists every time they come to Sa Pa. |
After the cable car route, a series of experiential projects have been added to Sa Pa by Sun Group, from the Sun World Fansipan Legend tourist area with a complex of spiritual works on the mountain top, the most modern mountain train in Vietnam, the largest rose valley in Vietnam, Ban May capturing the cultural beauty of Sa Pa's ethnic groups... and festivals and events all year round. In particular, Sun Group has also promptly brought into its ecosystem of projects in Sa Pa the first international 5-star hotel - Hotel de la Coupole Mgallery Sa Pa. The products, services and experiences that this group brings to Sa Pa have all played a role as a must-see destination for domestic and foreign tourists when coming to the foggy town.
According to the representative of Sun World Fansipan Legend, in the last 3 months of 2023, the number of international visitors conquering the roof of Indochina accounted for 40-50% of the total number of visitors to the tourist area. Many new tourist markets such as: Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan (China), India... have chosen Fansipan as their favorite destination.
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| Korean tourists on top of Fansipan |
Mr. Yong Sung Ok, regional director - Southeast Asia of one of the leading travel agencies in Korea, said that Korean tourists love the mountains of Vietnam and especially Sa Pa because of the cable car route on Fansipan. He also added that many Korean tourists compare the beautiful landscape of Fansipan to what they imagine a paradise to be.
“Awakening Sa Pa, beautifying Sa Pa and developing Sa Pa sustainably”
Mr. Tran Xuan Binh - Deputy Director of Lao Cai Department of Tourism said that by the end of October 2023, Lao Cai tourism industry, attracting over 460,000 international visitors, is one of the provinces with impressive recovery rate. He also specifically mentioned the attraction of Sun World Fansipan Legend when currently up to 50% of the total number of visitors to the tourist area are international visitors.
Mr. Binh shared: “The attractiveness of the resort is affirmed in 3 aspects, which are the system of works and tourism products of international standards based on the respect for indigenous culture. Second is the initiative of Sun World Fansipan Legend in coordinating with the local government of Sa Pa, Lao Cai Department of Tourism in promoting, advertising, and connecting potential international tourist markets. Especially in recent years, international awards have been continuously recognized as honors and proof of Sun Group's efforts. This is a huge plus point to attract international tourists and elevate the resort on the world tourism map."
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| Sa Pa and Sun World Fansipan Legend have been recognized worldwide, with a series of prestigious awards. |
The appeal of Sa Pa tourism in general and Sun World Fansipan Legend in particular has also been recognized by the world, with a series of prestigious awards such as "World's Leading Cultural Tourist Attraction" by World Travel Awards (WTA) for two consecutive years (2019, 2020); "World's Leading Natural Scenic Destination" (2020). This year, the resort continued to be voted "Asia's Leading Destination" at Asia Award Singapore or "Asia-Pacific's Leading Spiritual Complex" in India.
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| Hotel de la Coupole – Mgallery Sa Pa |
As for Hotel de la Coupole – Mgallery Sa Pa, in the first year of its launch, it was honored by WTA as “World’s Leading Design Hotel”, “World’s Iconic Hotel” and has continuously “won” many international awards in recent years.
From cable cars to high-quality, high-class tourism experiences imbued with local culture, the journey that Sun Group has marked over the past 10 years, since the start of the Fansipan cable car line, is a journey full of pride, as Mr. Trinh Xuan Truong, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairman of the People's Committee of Lao Cai province said at the 10th Anniversary of the construction of the Fansipan cable car line on November 19, 2023: "In the past 10 years, Sun Group has done 3 things for Sa Pa: Sun Group has awakened Sa Pa; Sun Group has beautified Sa Pa and Sun Group has developed Sa Pa sustainably".
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