Fifteen tour guides battle it out for top award

Fifteen tour guides have gathered to compete in the final round of the second National Tour Guide Competition held in Hanoi on August 15.
Fifteen tour guides have gathered to compete in the final round of thesecond National Tour Guide Competition held in Hanoi on August 15.

The 15 shortlist contestants were selected from 50candidates from 14 cities and provinces nationwide. They have performedin a range of categories, including video tape dubbing, questions andanswer session, and foreign-language speaking contest.

Tour guide Huynh Cong Hieu from the Saigontourist won first prize,worth 5 million VND and a tour package for two people to the Republicof Korea . He also won the best dubbing award thanks to hispresentation on Hoi An Town.

Runners-up Nguyen HongNguyen from Hanoitourist and Nguyen Quynh from the Saigontourist won 4million VND cash prizes and a trip for two people to Malaysia andSingapore .

Vice general director of the VietnamNational Administration of Tourism Nguyen Manh Cuong said thecompetition aimed to honour tour guides and reward those who excelled attheir job, helping contribute towards improving the Vietnamese tourismindustry./.

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