Bac Giang develops tourism amid safe adaptation to COVID-19 pandemic

An aerial view of Khuon Than sport and ecotourism urban area in Luc Ngan district (Photo: VNA)

Bac Giang (VNA) – The northern province of Bac Giang will focus on implementing solutions to tourism development this year while applying flexible measures to keep the COVID-19 pandemic under control, Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism Tran Minh Ha has said.

The provincial tourism development steering board will spare no efforts to complete work on the West Yen Tu spiritual tourism complex by 2025, as well as recognise 11 community-based tourism sites in line with orchard areas and agro products, raising the total to 20. They include seven in Luc Ngan and one each in Yen The, Son Dong, Luc Nam, Viet Yen and other localities holding huge potential.

The board aims to attract investment to finish the construction of five golf courses and at least one five-star hotel and resort.

Suoi Mo waterfall ecotourism site in Bac Giang (Photo: VNA)

The northern province expects to welcome about three million visitors, earning 3 trillion VND (131.78 million USD) from tourism and creating jobs for 6,000 workers in the field.

The tourism development steering board will support investors, especially in terms of land clearance for efficiency of tourism development projects approved by the provincial People’s Committee, along with calling for investment in future projects in 2022 and coming years.

Authorities of districts and Bac Giang city are asked to build incentives for community-based tourism this year and take the initiative to zone off land lots for capable investors in major tourism projects.

They are also requested to check on progress in site clearance and support investors as well as carry out COVID-19 prevention and control measures so as to resume and ensure safety of tourism activities in the new context, contributing to local socio-economic development.

Bac Giang province is to promote the ‘Vietnamese travel Vietnam’ programme, calling on officials, civil servants and citizens to visit and explore tourist attractions in the province, in the spirit of Bac Giang people travel Bac Giang and the country at large, once the pandemic is brought under control.

The tourism development steering board has proposed that the People’s Committee to earmark 55.8 billion VND (2.45 million USD) to carry out projects facilitating tourism development, such as to improve the province’s gymnasium; repair historical and cultural relics, particularly sites related to the Yen The uprising (1884 - 1913); and invest in the culture and exhibition centre project.

It will keep an eye on progress of a luxury hotel and shopping mall in Bac Giang city. The project being carried out with its investment adjusted up to more than 1.16 trillion VND (51 million USD) from just 468 billion VND (20.56 million USD).

At the same time, local leaders will keep watch on progress of the Viet Yen golf course worth 1.21 trillion VND (53.15 million USD); and the Bac Giang golf course and resort being built at the cost of 739 billion VND (32.46 million USD).

Of note, the People’s Committee of Bac Giang province has allowed the Vingroup conglomerate to conduct a survey and build a development plan in the area of Nham Bien mountain in Tan Lieu and Tien Phong communes in Yen Dung district and Dong Son commune of Bac Giang city.

The FLC Group, another major investor, has surveyed and devised a plan to build the Khuon Than sport and ecotourism urban area in Luc Ngan’s Kien Lao commune, and another in Huong Son commune of Lang Giang district.

Bac Giang tourism bore the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. An estimate of 400,000 people travelled to the northern province in the year, posting a year-on-year plunge of 60 percent. The province's revenues from tourism stood at 137 billion VND (6.02 million USD), slipping 65.4 percent compared to the figure in 2020./.