A view of Ha Long Bay, a UNESCO-recognised World Natural Heritage of Vietnam (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNS/VNA) – Vietnamese Assistant Ministerof Foreign Affairs Pham Sanh Chau attended a workshop with representatives ofIndonesian tourism authorities to discuss ways to promote tourism and shareexperiences of developing tourism at UNESCO World Heritage sites in Bali on July30.
Vietnam and Indonesia had many similarities interms of nature, history and social and cultural traits, giving the twocountries the ideal conditions to enhance tourism cooperation, officials agreedthe meeting.
Chau said that beforearriving in Bali, he had only been aware of its beautiful white sandy beaches,but had come to realise that Bali was a cradle of Hindu culture with therespected traditions and values.
“Bali has an age-oldculture attached to Hinduism,” he said. “Visitors are impressed by the manyimpressive statues and temples and carved rich in culture.”
He pointed out some ofthe problems Bali faced including traffic jams, a lack of shopping malls, andinadequate tourism products and services.
Chau suggested thatlocal authorities should invest more in water sports, shopping malls andinfrastructure. “Bali has huge potentialthanks to its beautiful landscape and diversified culture. The tourism industryshould be promoted more effectively to attract more tourists and increaserevenue," he said.
Sharing experience fromdeveloping tourism at UNESCO World Heritage sites in Vietnam, he saiddevelopment and heritage conservation needed to be balanced.
“Proceeds from tourismare spent on staff who work at the sites and on conservation work. We focus onpreservation, and never sacrifice heritage sites for development. We targetsustainable development and protecting traditions.”
“When we repair heritagesites, we work with professional experts from foreign countries to keep thesite as intact as we can. For example, to repair the Hindu temples at theUNESCO-recognised My Son Sanctuary in Quang Nam province, we asked Indianexperts to help us preserve the Hindu characteristics and Italian experts tosupervise the work.”
His remarks werefollowed by a Q&A session.
Dewa Ayu Laksmiadi, a representative from theBali Government Tourism Office, said last year Bali received 4 million foreigntourists, mainly from China, Malaysia, the Republic of Korea, Japan andAustralia. The Tourism Ministry had set a target of attracting 7 millionforeign tourists to Bali next year, she said.
Laksmiadi said every year, Indonesia’s tourismindustry sends delegates to attend international events in Vietnam, such as theVietnam International Travel Mart (VITM) in Hanoi and the International TravelExpo (ITE) in Ho Chi Minh City.
She expected more tourists from Vietnam to visitIndonesia and vice versa.
Iwayan Wiranata, head of the Jatiluwih TourismVillage Management Board, said he appreciated the development of the Vietnamesetourism industry.
Jatiluwih Rice Terrace which is very similar tothe terraced fields in Vietnam was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site in2012 and is a famous tourist destination featuring breathtaking views of theterraces running from the mountains down to the coast.
“I think we can learn a lot from Vietnam’stourism development,” he said.
“Vietnam also boasts beautiful terraced fieldsand beaches, but we still want to invite Vietnamese people to come and discoverthe unique culture and traditions of Bali.”-VNS/VNA
Vietnam and Indonesia had many similarities interms of nature, history and social and cultural traits, giving the twocountries the ideal conditions to enhance tourism cooperation, officials agreedthe meeting.
Chau said that beforearriving in Bali, he had only been aware of its beautiful white sandy beaches,but had come to realise that Bali was a cradle of Hindu culture with therespected traditions and values.
“Bali has an age-oldculture attached to Hinduism,” he said. “Visitors are impressed by the manyimpressive statues and temples and carved rich in culture.”
He pointed out some ofthe problems Bali faced including traffic jams, a lack of shopping malls, andinadequate tourism products and services.
Chau suggested thatlocal authorities should invest more in water sports, shopping malls andinfrastructure. “Bali has huge potentialthanks to its beautiful landscape and diversified culture. The tourism industryshould be promoted more effectively to attract more tourists and increaserevenue," he said.
Sharing experience fromdeveloping tourism at UNESCO World Heritage sites in Vietnam, he saiddevelopment and heritage conservation needed to be balanced.
“Proceeds from tourismare spent on staff who work at the sites and on conservation work. We focus onpreservation, and never sacrifice heritage sites for development. We targetsustainable development and protecting traditions.”
“When we repair heritagesites, we work with professional experts from foreign countries to keep thesite as intact as we can. For example, to repair the Hindu temples at theUNESCO-recognised My Son Sanctuary in Quang Nam province, we asked Indianexperts to help us preserve the Hindu characteristics and Italian experts tosupervise the work.”
His remarks werefollowed by a Q&A session.
Dewa Ayu Laksmiadi, a representative from theBali Government Tourism Office, said last year Bali received 4 million foreigntourists, mainly from China, Malaysia, the Republic of Korea, Japan andAustralia. The Tourism Ministry had set a target of attracting 7 millionforeign tourists to Bali next year, she said.
Laksmiadi said every year, Indonesia’s tourismindustry sends delegates to attend international events in Vietnam, such as theVietnam International Travel Mart (VITM) in Hanoi and the International TravelExpo (ITE) in Ho Chi Minh City.
She expected more tourists from Vietnam to visitIndonesia and vice versa.
Iwayan Wiranata, head of the Jatiluwih TourismVillage Management Board, said he appreciated the development of the Vietnamesetourism industry.
Jatiluwih Rice Terrace which is very similar tothe terraced fields in Vietnam was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site in2012 and is a famous tourist destination featuring breathtaking views of theterraces running from the mountains down to the coast.
“I think we can learn a lot from Vietnam’stourism development,” he said.
“Vietnam also boasts beautiful terraced fieldsand beaches, but we still want to invite Vietnamese people to come and discoverthe unique culture and traditions of Bali.”-VNS/VNA
VNA
