Hanoi tourism sector eyes Western Europe, Belarus tourists

The capital city’s tourism sector has launched a number of promotion programmes to attract tourists from Belarus and five Western European countries – Germany, France, the UK, Italy and Spain.
The move comes after the Government granted one-year visa exemptions for tourists from Western European countries and five years for Belarus, as heard at a conference in Hanoi on July 23.
Chairman of the Vietnam Tourism Association Vu The Binh revealed that tourists from the five Western European countries all consider Hanoi their primary destination when visiting Vietnam.
As such, the Government’s visa exemption policy presents a good opportunity for the capital to build new high-quality tourism products, he said.
Businesses asked the tourism sector to host more art performances such as puppetry, “ca tru” ceremonial singing, “cheo” (traditional operetta) and circuses to entertain visitors.
Meanwhile, the municipal Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism should hold similar programmes at the Thang Long Imperial Citadel, Van Mieu (the Temple of Literature) and Quoc Tu Giam (Vietnam’s first national university).
Deputy Director of the Ho Guom tourism company Do Mai Huong said other destinations such as Ha Long, Da Nang and Quang Binh are pushing ahead with tourism product development.
Therefore, if Hanoi is not quick to create high-quality products, visitors will flock to these vicinities, she noted.
Tourist agencies and service suppliers should collaborate on promotion programmes, Director of the Newstartour Company Luong Duy Ngan recommended.
The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Vietnam Tourism Association ought to work with airlines to reduce air tickets prices, experts said.
They also advised launching agency promotion campaigns and ask them to open new tours with reasonable prices.
The Vietnam Tourism Association, in particular, has been encouraging businesses to join the drive and popularising the visa exemption policy to target markets..