After an impressive recovery in 2023, Lao Cai tourism is continuing to focus on improving and renewing its image, making efforts to increase services, build new products... to achieve the goal of welcoming 8.5 million visitors in 2024.
"Running up" from the beginning of the year
In the first days of the new year 2024, Lao Cai tourism received a lot of good news with impressive numbers. During the three days of the New Year holiday (from December 30, 2023 to January 1, 2024), the locality welcomed over 155,000 visitors, an increase of 27% over the same period in 2023.
Total revenue from local tourists during this period reached about 467 billion VND, an increase of 9% over the same period in 2023. Hotel room occupancy rate in the whole province reached about 75%, especially in Sa Pa National Tourist Area reaching about 90-95%.
Sa Pa has just been named in the list of seven trending destinations in the world by the world's largest travel consulting platform TripAdvisor.
The article on TripAdvisor's homepage describes the town of Sa Pa, located in the mountainous northwest region of Vietnam, as colorful and incredibly beautiful, offering visitors a perfect oasis in the middle of a majestic mountain expedition, or a tour of impressive terraced rice fields.
The Gothic stone church in the town centre is a highlight in the shopping centre which includes many stalls and shops.
TripAdvisor suggests visitors enjoy Vietnamese or European food in the town center and not miss the exciting "love market" every Saturday night.
The reason why Lao Cai can attract a large number of tourists even though it is not the peak season is because from the beginning of the year, the province has organized many attractive and vibrant tourism events that still have a strong cultural identity.
On this occasion, people and tourists witnessed the Ceremony of Announcing the Decision and Awarding the National Intangible Cultural Heritage Certificate for "The art of making costumes of the Black Mong ethnic group in Sa Pa town;" Snow Festival and Cherry Blossom Experience Program at O Long Tea Hill (Sa Pa town); Bac Ha White Plateau Festival with the theme "Intoxicated by Winter..."
In particular, key tourist localities of Lao Cai all organized to welcome guests at the beginning of the year, creating an atmosphere to welcome the new year 2024.
During the Lunar New Year holiday (February 8-14), Lao Cai is expected to attract a large number of tourists. At present, to serve tourists during this time, Lao Cai is preparing to implement many cultural, artistic and sports activities that promise to bring impressive and joyful experiences at the beginning of the New Year.
Sa Pa town is building a number of cultural and tourism products with many attractive experience locations. On this occasion, the locality organized the construction of a check-in point called “Sa Pa-Quintessence Convergence,” creating a unique cultural space for tourists to take photos and experience when coming to Sa Pa.
The space “Sa Pa-The Quintessence of Convergence” arranges miniature landscapes simulating the majestic landscapes of Sa Pa such as: Muong Hoa Terraced Fields, Fansipan Peak... combined with the display of native flowers such as peach blossom, Sa Pa ancient peach, Hoang Lien rhododendron, Sa Pa apricot blossom...
Next to it are exhibition areas simulating traditional craft village activities of the people of five ethnic minorities: Mong, Dao, Tay, Giay, Xa Pho (traditional crafts of weaving, brocade patterns, making con balls, drums, etc.).
The center of the space “Sa Pa-The Quintessence of Convergence” will be the Dragon mascot (symbol of the Year of the Dragon) made of trees and flowers of the people of the majestic Sa Pa land. In addition, the largest ever pot of Tran Mong Sa Pa orchids, with 2024 blooming flowers, will be displayed on this occasion.
To serve tourists attentively, Lao Cai Provincial Department of Tourism has strengthened inspection, examination, supervision, timely detection and strict handling of organizations and individuals who do not ensure tourism business conditions, violations of the law, and control of service quality in the area.
Conquering the goal of welcoming 8.5 million visitors
In 2023, the number of visitors to Lao Cai in 2023 will reach more than 7 million, with revenue reaching about 22,000 billion VND, 1.5 times higher than in 2022.
The strong recovery of Lao Cai tourism in 2023 is creating momentum for the local "smokeless industry" to make a breakthrough in 2024, with the goal of welcoming 8.5 million visitors and generating revenue of over VND27,000 billion.
To realize the above goal, according to Director of Lao Cai Provincial Department of Tourism Ha Van Thang, in 2024, the province will overcome the situation of overlapping tourism products, creating differences in planning to build typical products in each locality.
Sa Pa continues to develop many unique tourism products with the highlight being the five-season festival: Spring Festival, Love Festival, Summer Festival, Autumn Festival and Winter Festival.
Each festival will have many outstanding cultural, artistic, sports and tourism activities.
Sa Pa expects the five-season festival to be a series of activities to effectively promote and advertise the Sa Pa tourism brand, creating new products for local tourism to attract and prolong the stay of tourists when coming to Sa Pa.
Lao Cai has determined to build Bao Yen district into a spiritual tourism center of the Northwest region and the whole country. The district has three national historical-cultural relics, seven provincial historical-cultural relics, and the Bao Ha temple relic complex, which annually attracts more than 1 million visitors to visit and worship.
Lao Cai city is oriented to become an attractive tourist area with high-end entertainment tourism products (casino, golf, amusement park, international MICE event center); a bridge of international tours with Yunnan (China) and vice versa.
In addition to developing typical tourism products in each locality, Lao Cai Tourism continues to promote tourism development linkages and promote domestic and international tourism; select new potential markets; target the Northwest, South-Central, Mekong Delta regions and especially provinces and cities such as Hai Phong, Quang Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City.
For the international tourist market, Lao Cai tourism especially prioritizes Chinese, Korean, and Thai tourists, targeting the Indian and Middle Eastern markets.
Along with that, Lao Cai will organize festivals, trade tourism fairs, and branded tours such as: International Tourism Fair in Lao Cai, Traditional Horse Racing Festival of Bac Ha district, "Golden" Tour of Two Countries - Six Destinations.
In particular, the Red River Festival, which Lao Cai is focusing on building, will become a highlight in the province's series of cultural and tourism events in 2024 and the following years.
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