The stilt house of Pham Thi Sau's family in Lap Thang village, Thach Lap commune, Ngoc Lac district, is nearly 100 years old. (Photo: VNA) Thanh Hoa (VNA) – The central province of Thanh Hoa is making efforts to develop community-based tourism in its mountainous district of Ngoc Lac in a bid to preserve the traditional stilt houses of the local Muong ethnic people, which account for over 70 percent of the district’s population.
According to the local authorities, the district houses 1,465 stilt houses of the Muong ethnic community, including more than 700 in Thach Lap commune alone. Many of them date back some 100 years.
In Lap Thang, Thach Lap commune, Ngoc Lac district (Photo: VNA) Ngoc Lac has developed a 2021-2025 project to conserve such traditional value in association with the development of community-based tourism. As planned, Muong stilt houses in Lap Thang commune will open their doors for visitors in early 2022.
Pham Van Dat, Vice Chairman of the Ngoc Lac People’s Committee, said this type of tourism caters to tourists’ demand for experiencing and learning about cultural values of the local community. Ten stilt houses are getting ready for operation in 2022, he added.
To effectively implement the project, the district plans to increase its tourism management function, diversify tourism products and improve their quality, and step up related communications efforts.
It is striving to preserve some 400 traditional stilt houses and raise the total number to about 1,800 during the five-year period./.
