Developing smart tourism ecosystem

Smart tourism is an inevitable trend in the digital age. The development of information technology has completely changed the way tourists access and share information, requiring the tourism industry to make rapid and appropriate changes.

Launch of smart travel application software Sapa Tour.

Active participation in digital transformation to attract tourists is demonstrated through a series of tourism activities and products in many localities across the country.

In Hanoi, places such as the Thang Long Heritage Conservation Center, the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum, the National History Museum, and the Hoa Lo Prison Relic have organized many online exhibitions and sold electronic tickets, creating favorable conditions for tourists. In Ho Chi Minh City, the application of 3D technology in providing information and promoting tourism has been promoted with the most notable product being the smart interactive tourist map with virtual tour guide feature at destinations that are highly appreciated by tourists.

Many other localities such as Quang Ninh, Da Nang, Ninh Binh... also promote the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, 360-degree virtual reality technology (VR 360), payment by scanning QR codes... contributing to promoting tourism development. Along with that, in recent times, many large-scale seminars and discussions on smart tourism have been organized to raise awareness of relevant agencies, departments and sectors about smart tourism in order to have effective implementation methods.

Despite positive changes, according to experts, developing smart tourism in Vietnam still faces many difficulties. Currently, Vietnamese tourism businesses are mainly small and medium-sized enterprises, retail businesses, and limited in capital, so investment in technology applications is fragmented and unsynchronized.

It is not difficult to see that in the current online tourism market, international branded online travel companies are monopolizing the market share. Currently, there are only about 10 Vietnamese businesses operating online tourism. Besides the issue of competition, domestic tourism businesses also face many difficulties such as: Information technology infrastructure (including telecommunications networks, modern equipment, etc.) in many localities is still patchy, not properly invested, and lacking in synchronization. We also do not have much experience in international competition in the online tourism sector, because tourism still leans towards traditional methods; human resources serving smart tourism are both lacking and weak, failing to meet the increasing needs of tourists.

Fundamental solutions need to be implemented quickly to remove bottlenecks, so that tourism can be truly smart. It is necessary to allocate adequate funding for investment in machinery and technological infrastructure, creating a foundation for smart tourism to develop sustainably and synchronously. In order to operate a modern technology system, training human resources to serve the smart tourism ecosystem also needs to be focused on because high-quality human resources will participate in operating, using, and creatively deploying new technology applications, updating new trends faster.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said that the above difficulties will be focused on resolving in the next phase of the project "Applying technology of industry 4.0 to develop smart tourism, promoting tourism to become a spearhead economic sector"; perfecting the smart tourism ecosystem, meeting the increasingly high demands of the market will create momentum for Vietnam's tourism to accelerate, soon becoming one of the spearhead economic sectors, actively contributing to the industrialization and modernization of the country in the new era.

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