Hanoi eyes tourism breakthrough in 2023

Hanoi is working to make a breakthrough in tourism development this year by creating new and distinctive products to attract more domestic and international visitors, according to the municipal Tourism Department.

The capital city welcomed 208,000 visitors, including 38,000 international arrivals, during the three-day New Year holiday, from December 31, 2022 to January 2, 2023.

It hopes to attract about 22 million tourists in 2023, rising 17.6% from last year, with 3 million foreign arrivals (doubling the figure in 2022) and 19 million domestic visitors (up 10.5%). It also targets an increase of 28.2% in tourism revenue to about 77 trillion VND (nearly 3.3 billion USD).

To that end, Hanoi will step up new types of tourism such as adventure tourism, experience tourism, helicopter tours, hot air balloon service, and virtual reality travel. It will promote MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, exhibitions) and golf tourism while hosting more national and international cultural, sports, political, social, and festive events, the department told a meeting on January 5.

Night-time tourism products will continue to be renewed through the organisation of a wide range of activities in the pedestrian zones surrounding Hoan Kiem Lake, the ancient Son Tay Fortress, Thien Quang Lake, and Thong Nhat Park. Besides, the Tourism Department has been cooperating with travel companies and destinations, especially relic sites, to design night and experience tours that capitalise on traditional values.

Notably, night tours of the Thang Long Imperial Citadel and support activities are now available. A night tour for foreign visitors to this UNESCO-listed heritage site was also launched on January 4.

The department noted it will work with localities, departments, and sectors to pilot some agricultural and rural tourism models; boost community-based tourism in craft villages and the areas home to ethnic minority groups such as Ba Vi, Thach That, Quoc Oai, Chuong My, and My Duc districts; and upgrade existing tourism products at relic and heritage sites and craft villages.

In addition, the city will enhance tourism partnerships with other localities nationwide and hold more promotion activities in foreign markets like Northeast Asia, Europe, the US, and India.

Director of the Tourism Department Dang Huong Giang said Hanoi will strive for comprehensive tourism development, in terms of both quantity and quality of services and visitors, in 2023 so that the sector can truly recover and help the city maintain its role as a major tourism hub of Vietnam./.