Da Nang (VNA) – Da Nang is luring filmmakers keen to shoot in the central coastal city, and spurring local tourism in the process, a municipal official has said.
Blessed with beaches, rivers and mountains, the city is aware of the importance of promoting its image to attract foreign visitors, Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Tran Chi Cuong told Lao dong (Labour) Newspaper.
According to the official, the second Da Nang Asian Film Festival, slated for July 2-6, is expected to connect cinema sectors of regional countries, and show Da Nang’s readiness to support producers and directors to shoot there.
Da Nang is following in the footsteps of other locales like the central province of Quang Binh, and Quang Ninh and Ninh Binh provinces in the north, where Hollywood movie 'Kong: Skull Island' was filmed, he said.
Due to budget issues, the city has just invested in documentaries to promote its tourism, yet to place orders for making romantic movies that feature its natural beauty as a backdrop.
Cuong further explained that apart from production costs, the movies need funding for the communications work, which should not be sourced from the State budget.
Therefore, for the short term, the locality is investing in promotion activities, which, he said, should match the culture, nature and economic conditions of the city itself as as well as the central region.
Da Nang hopes to receive more attention from film producers and directors, and become a film location in the time ahead, the official continued, noting its pristine landscapes would satisfy the rising trend of healing tourism.
Cuong stressed that after speeding up to meet growing tourism demand, the city is working to ensure its balanced, sustainable development.
The total number of visitors to Da Nang in 2023 was estimated at more than 7.4 million, doubling the 2022 figure and equivalent to 93% of the figure in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, the municipal Department of Tourism reported.
Of them, the total number of international visitors was more than 2 million, a four-fold increase year-on-year and equivalent to 62% of the 2019 figure.
Meanwhile, domestic holidaymakers to the city amounted to 5.4 million, an increase of 69% compared to 2022 and equivalent to 119% of the number in 2019.
Total revenue from accommodation, catering and travel services is estimated at 28 trillion VND (1.2 billion USD), a surge of 67% compared to 2022 and equivalent to 133% of the figure in 2019.
Da Nang has identified five key product groups to optimise the city's potential and advantages, including high-end cruise tourism, cultural and historical tourism; MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) tourism, urban tourism, and ecotourism.
Along with Phu Quoc island in the southern province of Kien Giang, Da Nang is also proving to be one of Vietnam's outstanding destinations for wedding tourism.
Since the beginning of 2024, the city has been continuously chosen as a wedding destination by super-rich Indian families.
Not only attracting international visitors, wedding tourism is also becoming a trend that many domestic celebrities are interested in.These positive signals show the great prospects of this potential market segment.
The tourism hub in central Vietnam, which was designed as a destination of MICE events, has a target of hosting 8.4 million visitors in 2024./.
