Turning the slowness of trains into a tourism product

Turn disadvantages into advantages

Sharing about the potential and solutions to promote tourism exploitation by train at the workshop on tourism product development cooperation organized by the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Binh Dinh province in Quy Nhon, Mr. Ha Trong Thang - Deputy General Director of Railway Transport Joint Stock Company said that railway has long been an indispensable part of the national transport system.

With outstanding advantages in safety, stability and the ability to transport passengers and goods in large quantities, railways play an important role in connecting regions and promoting socio-economic development. Especially in the field of tourism, railways bring unique experiences that other means of transport can hardly match.

Mr. Ha Trong Thang - Deputy General Director of Railway Transport Joint Stock Company, shared at the workshop.

“Traveling by train gives visitors the opportunity to admire the beauty of the country from a different, slow, and relaxed perspective. Visitors can see the lush green rice fields, majestic mountains, long coastlines, bustling cities and peaceful villages,” said Mr. Ha Trong Thang.

A representative of the railway transport industry also said that in 2025, the entire industry determined to "Innovate in thinking, be creative in working methods, turn disadvantages into advantages to create new products". Synchronously deploy many solutions to improve the quality of railway transport services.

Following the tourist trains “Da Lat Night Journey”, the train “Lareiner Da Lat – Trai Mat”, the train “Connecting Central Heritage” Hue - Da Nang, Hai Phong Food tour by train on the Hanoi – Hai Phong route, testing the luxury tourist train Sjourney… the company will soon organize the opening of the high-quality train “Hoa Phuong Do” on the Hanoi – Hai Phong route to celebrate the 70th anniversary of Hai Phong City Liberation Day…

In Binh Dinh, the 10km Quy Nhon – Dieu Tri railway is a branch line, with only one pair of passenger trains SE29 and SE30 (Saigon – Quy Nhon) running every day. Therefore, there is still excess train capacity, very suitable for organizing tourist train operations.

Mr. Ha Trong Thang suggested that Binh Dinh province and travel agencies should study the plan to organize 2-3 pairs of tourist trains running daily between Quy Nhon and Dieu Tri, with slow-moving and stopping points along the way for passengers to check in and take photos. Introduce and sell local OCOP products on the trains.

In the long term, the railway industry is ready to provide carriages currently in use on the national railway so that travel agencies can design and renovate the interior to suit the needs of tourists and the orientation of tourism businesses.

Leaders of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Binh Dinh province went to Dieu Tri station at dawn to welcome tourists coming by train to visit and relax.

“Effective exploitation of tourism by rail not only helps Binh Dinh welcome more tourists but also creates momentum for local economic development. I believe that with this close cooperation, Binh Dinh will become an attractive destination chosen by many tourists in the near future. Contributing to achieving the goal of welcoming 10 million visitors in 2025,” Mr. Ha Trong Thang emphasized.

Binh Dinh has many advantages to develop railway tourism.

Speaking at the workshop, Mr. Ha Van Sieu - Deputy Director of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, assessed that Binh Dinh is one of the localities with favorable conditions to develop railway tourism thanks to its strategic location on the North - South railway line, rich natural landscapes and many attractive tourist destinations.

Mr. Ha Van Sieu - Deputy Director of Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, shared at the workshop.

According to Mr. Sieu, Binh Dinh has Dieu Tri station - one of the largest stations in the Central region, playing an important role in railway traffic. Quy Nhon station is a branch of the railway, convenient for tourists to travel to the city center and to coastal tourist destinations.

“The railway passing through the coastal area is the basis for exploiting coastal sightseeing trains, combined with resort tourism. The beautiful beaches can be connected to the train station via the shuttle bus system. In addition, the Cham cultural heritage system and the sites associated with the history of Tay Son - Nguyen Hue are unmissable stops on the train journey to Binh Dinh”, a representative of the Department of Tourism pointed out.

Mr. Lam Hai Giang - Vice Chairman of Binh Dinh Provincial People's Committee, said that in order to promote the exploitation of railway tourism products, the tourism industry and the railway industry need to cooperate to develop railway tourism stimulus programs, and at the same time connect tourism service businesses to participate.

Regarding the province's tourism industry, Mr. Giang suggested continuing to promote links and cooperation with localities to develop trains or charter trains to attract tourists from Ho Chi Minh City, Khanh Hoa, Da Nang, Hanoi and other localities to Binh Dinh periodically to form products and chains of special railway tourism products to attract tourists.

Mr. Lam Hai Giang - Vice Chairman of Binh Dinh Provincial People's Committee, spoke at the workshop.

In addition, add more local products such as culture - art, cuisine, OCOP products... to the railway ecosystem to enhance the experience for domestic and international tourists on the train cars and trains. Build specialized products for the whole car and the whole train according to the requirements of tourists.

“It is necessary to encourage travel agencies to develop many new tourism programs associated with railways and local tourism identity so that tourists have more choices when taking the Binh Dinh tourist train. Further improve communication and promotion of traditional tourism products in general and railway tourism products in particular to attract tourists to Binh Dinh,” Mr. Lam Hai Giang emphasized.

Minh Thao

Source: https://doanhnghiepvn.vn/kinh-te/bien-su-cham-rai-cua-tau-hoa-thanh-san-pham-du-lich/20250331074658097