Bac Giang (VNA) – As lychee orchards in full bloom paint red the hillsides of the northern province of Bac Giang, the lychee hub is drawing a growing number of visitors keen to experience the region’s summer harvest.
In key lychee-growing areas such as Luc Ngan and Tan Yen districts and Chu township, the atmosphere is vibrant as farmers harvest the fruit and tourism activities peak.
With its early-ripening lychees, Tan Yen is dubbed the “gateway to summer”. Since mid-May, communes like Phuc Hoa, Cao Thuong, Tan Trung, Hop Duc have welcomed both harvesters and tourists attracted by the lush, red-laden trees.
Tan Yen district has around 1,300 hectares of lychee cultivated mainly under VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards. Many households have opened their orchards to visitors, offering fruit-picking and on-site tasting, increasing the economic value of the crop.
According to local grower Tran Duc Hanh, GlobalGAP-certified practices not only improve fruit quality and market access but also appeal to tourists. His orchard has been prepared with signage and rest areas to accommodate visitors, including returning tour groups and foreign guests.
Tourist Nguyen Ngoc Anh from Hanoi said she was impressed by the orchard experience and the strict export standards applied to the fruit. With better promotion, the service could become an ideal summer destination, she noted.
To tap into this potential, Tan Yen district has worked with travel firms to create lychee-themed tours combining orchard visits, local specialities and historical sites such as Danh Temple and Phuc Son Pagoda. In the past two years, the locality welcomed nearly 10,000 tourists during the lychee season, generating around 3 billion VND (nearly 115,000 USD) in tourism revenue.
Visitors to a lychee orchard in Bac Giang (Photo: VNA)
Meanwhile, Luc Ngan district and Chu township remain the largest lychee hubs in terms of production and tourism. With over 17,500 hectares under cultivation, Luc Ngan has launched the “Luc Ngan Lychee – Vietnamese Fruit Essence” programme, while Chu town has introduced “Chu in Lychee Season” tours, including “A Day as a Farmer” experiences.
Garden Viet Cooperative in Thanh Hai ward has welcomed numerous domestic tour groups with packages ranging from 150,000–350,000 VND per person. Visitors can pick and taste lychees in the orchard, explore cultivation stories, enjoy lunch, camp, kayak, or sample regional dishes such as ant egg cake, colourful sticky rice, and roast pork.
Luc Ngan authorities are expanding tourism efforts by offering hospitality training for farmers, identifying orchards that meet quality standards, and developing new experiential tours. Communes like Thanh Hai, Giap Son, Ho Dap, Tan Moc, and Tan Son are being prioritised for community tourism development.
Each summer, Bac Giang welcomes not just the fruit harvest, but also a wave of visitors eager to explore its landscape and culture. Once a purely agricultural product, lychees are increasingly becoming a signature feature of sustainable tourism in the region./.
