That is the opinion of Mr. Cao Tri Dung - Chairman of Da Nang Tourism Association when talking about the story of sustainable development for the tourism industry in particular and Da Nang economy in general.
According to Mr. Cao Tri Dung, Da Nang is planned to have world-class tourist areas. Based on the resources, infrastructure, existing service systems, and the planning approved by the Government, Da Nang must call for and have the support of investors with enough scope, size, determination, and thinking to form a system of outstanding and innovative products and services...
Tourism must be the mainstay
* Over the past 15 years, Da Nang has made a leap forward in tourism development, from a place with poor infrastructure to one of the most attractive destinations in the country. In your opinion, what are the key factors that have helped Da Nang tourism achieve these achievements?
- Mr. Cao Tri Dung: Over the years, Da Nang has not only contributed to the number of visitors but has also become one of the tourism brands associated with Vietnam , in terms of resources, infrastructure, service systems, service work, and destination environment.
There are three key factors that help Da Nang achieve this success. First of all, Da Nang possesses rich and attractive tourism resources, supported by a strategic location, which is a very convenient flight destination for countries in the region. Major markets such as China, India, Japan, Korea, etc. are all easily accessible, with Southeast Asia alone taking only about 2 hours to fly. Da Nang's infrastructure system is developed synchronously and completely; the service system is diverse and high-class. Along with that is a unique culture and friendly people.
Second, the breakthrough thinking of local leaders over many periods has turned Da Nang into a destination capable of developing sustainable tourism based on available resources combined with attracting investment in infrastructure development.
Third, attracting investors, especially large investors with the ability to change the face, to soon form a synchronous infrastructure system as well as high-quality services has created breakthrough capacity for the destination. Thanks to that, it creates a product ecosystem that can be said to be on par with and surpass many other locations in the region. Visitors coming here for a week or two weeks are not bored, there are still enough attractive experiences for visitors to choose from.
* Tourism has developed remarkably, becoming a key economic sector of Da Nang. How do you evaluate the spillover effects of tourism on Da Nang's socio-economic development?
- Tourism is a comprehensive economic sector with a wide spread, affecting many industries and fields. Not only does it contribute greatly to the city's annual GRDP, but it also creates stable and sustainable jobs for the people. The labor force and the population of Da Nang in recent years have strongly supported the development of tourism because of its general spread to many industries, fields as well as the community of people and businesses.
This is a very important industry when we have experienced economic shocks. Of course, the industry that can be most affected by shocks is tourism. But looking at the positive side, the clearest proof is that in Da Nang, after three years of the pandemic, the industry that recovered the fastest, earliest and supported the city's economy the most is tourism.
Not only Da Nang, many other destinations also consider tourism as a pillar in economic recovery and development, most notably Thailand. This country has used tourism as a driving force to create a spillover effect to promote other businesses.
* Countries are trying to recover the tourism industry after 3 years of the pandemic, leading to fierce competition for destinations. In your opinion, what should Da Nang do and what direction should it take for sustainable development to avoid the risk of falling behind?
- If we ask the question of having new products, having large projects…, actually, Da Nang has done very well in this. Over the years, Da Nang has always introduced new projects and new products to the market.
Destination must be new, but we must base on the overall market. For new markets, it is completely possible to use existing products. For repetitive markets, we must have new products, but new does not mean having to create something completely new, but can renew the old. Like Ba Na Hills or Da Nang Downtown, for example, those are typical examples that always have breakthroughs and novelty.
Based on existing resources, infrastructure, service systems, and planning approved by the Government, Da Nang must call for and have the support of investors with enough scope, size, determination, and thinking to form a system of outstanding and innovative products and services according to that planning.
Ba Na Hills can surpass Malaysia's Genting
* Da Nang has recently had new shows at Da Nang Downtown, Ba Na Hills and soon the scale of Ba Na Hills will also be raised to a new level. In your opinion, can Da Nang become a model for world-class tourist areas?
- It is not a matter of whether or not this is a very big direction of the city in tourism development and is included in the general planning of the destination. Da Nang will have a world-class Ba Na Hills tourist area, aiming to surpass Genting (Malaysia) because Ba Na is closer to the airport, more convenient to travel, and has more beautiful scenery even though the area is not as large.
Back to your question, why does Da Nang need a large, high-class tourist area? We all see that, over the past years, despite its great appeal, the types of services and accommodation facilities are not enough, so Da Nang has missed out on exploiting a larger number of visitors to Ba Na. Obviously, having a large-scale tourist area will create a driving force for Da Nang tourism.
Ba Na has long been identified as a tourist development spot of the city, not just when businesses joined in. Ba Na, along with Bach Ma, Tam Dao, and Da Lat, are all destinations that the French have long sought to invest in as a resort.
When building a large-scale tourist area, it is necessary to aim for sustainable development based on the spirit of three pillars. First, economic sustainability, attracting more visitors, creating more jobs, increasing revenue for the budget. Second, sustainability in cultural values, consistent with the unique characteristics of Ba Na destination. Third, harmony with the environment. And Ba Na has done these things very well. We believe that Ba Na Hills will develop to its full potential, achieve a worthy position and contribute more to the economy, society and tourism of Da Nang.
* In reality, there is always a conflict between conservation and development. How can we harmonize large-scale projects while aiming for sustainable development, sir?
- The sustainable development factor has always been affirmed in the policies of the Party and State, from the Central to the local level, in the national tourism development strategy to 2030, vision 2045. Tourism projects need to aim to promote the beauty of nature, harmonize with nature, balance benefits and this is a very difficult problem. It is necessary to understand that if resources are not exploited and exploited properly, they will forever remain resources, it is difficult to turn them into attractive tourism products to enhance the destination brand, attract more visitors, and increase income for people.
In fact, large investors will have very strong commitments and always have to protect the brand, when they operate a chain of destinations, it is impossible to lose the image. But if they hand over to some small investors, they must be successful, then they will continue; if not, they will give up halfway.
Therefore, we still support the "leading cranes" and the big "eagles" who have a long-term commitment to create high-class projects, enhance the destination brand, create many socio-economic values, and help the business community and people benefit together. And those are the factors that create sustainable tourism development for each locality.
Ha Khanh
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/thien-duong-giai-tri-dang-cap-the-gioi-se-la-dau-keo-cho-du-lich-da-nang-185240817104020645.htm
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