Tourists are allowed to drive cars through Mong Cai Border Gate.

On October 29, according to information from the Mong Cai International Border Gate Management Board, Mong Cai City, Quang Ninh Province, preparations for the implementation of self-driving car tourism services between Mong Cai City, Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam and Dongxing City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China via Bac Luan 2 Bridge have been completed.

In particular, Mong Cai International Border Gate has arranged a service area and a system of 300 benches to serve the needs of tourists while waiting for immigration procedures. Traffic warning lines have been repainted at the control lines for exit and entry vehicles.

At the same time, proactively coordinate with Dong Hung Border Gate Management Board to advise the two localities to prepare plans and necessary conditions to soon put self-driving tourist cars into operation. With the characteristics of the border gate area importing and exporting many goods, the two units have prepared a plan to separate the flow between self-driving tourist cars and vehicles transporting import and export goods in a suitable, tight, convenient, and fast manner, avoiding congestion.

Chinese tourists drive through Mong Cai International Border Gate into Vietnam (Photo: Quang Ninh Newspaper).

Previously, in March 2023, the authorities of Mong Cai City and Dongxing City developed, proposed and were allowed to implement a plan to promote tourism development between the two localities. Accordingly, from October 30, Vietnamese tourists will be allowed to drive their own cars to Nanning City in China (600 km from Mong Cai City) and Chinese tourists can go deep into Ha Long City in Vietnam (150 km from Mong Cai City) through 2 border gates: Mong Cai International and Dongxing.

Self-driving cars for tourists through Mong Cai International Border Gate and Dong Hung Border Gate were piloted in 2016 and 2018. Specifically, in 2016, self-driving cars from China to Quang Ninh province were piloted with a narrow operating range only in Mong Cai City.

Each entry requires a minimum of 5 vehicles and a maximum of 20 vehicles per group. The total number of Chinese self-driving vehicles in Vietnam does not exceed 100 vehicles/day and no more than 3 days per license. After one year of implementation, there were 93 vehicles with 256 tourists from China passing through Mong Cai City. In the opposite direction, there were 38 vehicles with 110 tourists from Vietnam to Dong Hung City.

By 2018, the Central Government agreed to allow Quang Ninh province to expand the scope of Chinese self-driving cars to Ha Long City. At the same time, Vietnamese tourists driving to China can also go deep into Guilin City, Guangxi (about 600km from Mong Cai), with the route Dongxing - Fangcheng - Nanning - Guilin.

According to statistics, from June to November 2018, the Chinese side had 44 tourist groups entering Ha Long City by car (a total of 289 cars and 988 passengers). The Vietnamese side had 35 cars with 108 passengers entering China. After the COVID-19 outbreak, the above self-driving tourist car activities have been temporarily suspended until now .

Source: https://www.nguoiduatin.vn/quang-ninh-khach-du-lich-duoc-phep-lai-xe-o-to-qua-cua-khau-mong-cai-a633350.html