Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism: Ho Thi Ky and Nguyen Thuong Hien food streets... are not deserted.

Ms. Dinh To Hoa, Deputy Head of Tourism Information Technology Department, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, informed about food streets at the press conference - Photo: THANH NHAN

In response to the press's question about the lack of visitors to the food streets of Ho Thi Ky, Nguyen Thuong Hien..., a representative of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism responded that according to statistics from the People's Committees of Districts 1, 3, 10 and Go Vap, the number of visitors to these food streets is increasing, not decreasing.

The representative of the City Department of Tourism also emphasized that the streets of Ho Thi Ky, Nguyen Thuong Hien, Hanh Thong Tay, etc. are specialized business and culinary areas, not night markets. On this occasion, the City Department of Tourism also provided more information about some difficulties in implementing the night-time economic model in the locality.

Accordingly, the synchronous coordination between the government, business units and people is still a barrier in developing night tourism. Because, to effectively develop the night economy, it requires the participation and mobilization of resources from the city government, departments, people and tourism workers.

According to the City Department of Tourism, currently some nighttime entertainment services have high-capacity sound and entertainment activities that take place all night long, causing significant impacts on tourists and local residents in the surrounding areas.

Tourism businesses are also not ready to invest in designing more products to effectively exploit these potentials, for example, organizing tours to explore Saigon at night with Vespas, motorbikes, or cyclos...

The lack of a city-specific art program is also a barrier to night tourism becoming a product that retains tourists, connecting and exploiting a series of sightseeing, shopping, dining, and enjoyment activities... as long desired.

In addition, the city's great advantage is that the Saigon River will be the highlight of night tourism activities with dinner services on the river, on cruise ships or overnight boats on the river that will attract more visitors.

However, some issues regarding piers, wharves, mooring areas, operating costs, etc. are still difficult problems for encouraging investment and developing this type of service.

According to statistics, international visitors to Ho Chi Minh City in the first 5 months of 2024 are estimated to reach more than 2.2 million, an increase of 31.7% over the same period in 2023. Domestic visitors are nearly 14 million, an increase of 1.6% over the same period, reaching 36.8% compared to the 2024 plan. Total tourism revenue is more than 76,000 billion VND, an increase of 13.9% over the same period, reaching 40% compared to the 2024 plan.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/so-du-lich-tp-hcm-pho-am-thuc-ho-thi-ky-nguyen-thuong-hien-khong-e-20240523180927017.htm