Ha Long Bay in Quang Ninh (Photo: VNA) Quang Ninh (VNA) – With high per capita income and anincreasingly synchronised infrastructure system, the tourism hub of Ha Longcity in the northern province of Quang Ninh has become an attractive investmentdestination for many real estate and resort investors.
Ha Long is a must-go place for those who spend holidays in Vietnam, inparticular Quang Ninh province, as it is home to Ha Long Bay, a World NaturalHeritage Site, which was recognised by the United Nations Educational,Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). Ha Long Bay has been named oneof the seven natural masterpieces of the world.
With its strength, Ha Long has a lot of opportunities to grow into a leading tourismhub of the Southeast Asian region.
In the 2011-2016 period, the GDP growth of Quang Ninh province was 1.5times higher than the country’s average, reaching 10.1 percent in 2016. Thelocality has recorded a per capita income of over 4,050 USD, which enabled itto stand in the list of the country’s top localities having highest per capitaincome.
Under the province’s planning to 2030, Quang Ninh has set to become oneof the three economic locomotives of the northern region along with Hanoi and theport city of Hai Phong. It also targets a per capita income of 8,000 USD-8,500USD in 2020 and 20,000 USD in 2030.
In the recent five years, Quang Ninh in general and Ha Long in particular have attractedmany domestic real estate giants, including Vingroup, Sungroup, Bim, and FLC,with some outstanding projects, including the 6.5 trillion VND Ha Long OceanPark of Sungroup, the 7.5 trillion VND Van Don airport, which is designed toserve 2 million passengers per year, and Vinpeal of Vingroup.
Foreign firms have also shown their interest in Ha Long city, includingWyndham and Starwood of the United States. The Wyndham Legend five-star hotel has217 rooms and Sehraton Halong Bay provides 330 rooms and apartments.
These real estate facilities have mostly focused on resort and hotel segments,looking to prepare for welcoming the increasing number of tourists to theprovince and Ha Long.
Last year, Ha Longwelcomed 6.3 million tourists and earned 7.7 trillion VND (over 338 millionUSD) in revenue, respective increases of 14 percent and 65 percent from theprevious year. About 2.7 million of the visitors were foreigners, ayear-on-year growth of 16 percent.
The number oftourists to this city also increased sharply from the outset of 2017,surpassing 660,000 during the Lunar New Year holiday alone – up 15 percent fromthe same period last year.
The municipaladministration said it has worked to diversify and improve tourism products,upgrade infrastructure, and better tourism workers’ capacity. The sense of responsibilityof local residents and service providers has also been improved.
Ha Long also helpedto organise some activities of the Ha Long-Quang Ninh Tourism Week, the Yen Tucherry-yellow apricot flower festival, Ha Long Carnival, the festival of TranQuoc Nghien Temple, and a spring flower festival, thereby creating interestingtourism products.-VNA
VNA
