80 companies of Vietnam tour join HCMC Tourism Festival

Over 80 companies of Vietnam tour from 24 provinces and cities will attend the Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Festival 2011, to introduce and sell their products and services at 150 stalls.

This was revealed yesterday by the city Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism which will officially open the festival from April 7-10 at 23-9 Park in District 1.

During the festival, the best and most prestigious Vietnamese tourist brand names voted by customers will be honored by the organization board.

The festival will also feature various cultural and musical activities and an exhibition of beautiful photographs of the Saigon markets, Dalat flowers, Mui Ne Beach, Phu Quoc Island and Hai Phong City.

Source: SGGP

Unique wood houses in Ho Chi Minh City

Designed with northern, southern and central architectural styles, each house is decorated differently. The row of wood houses in District 2, Ho Chi Minh City is very special.
Running for over 1km along the Saigon River, totaling around 8 hectares, over 30 families, mainly artists, have created a “village of artisans” in mid-Saigon. These houses are made by rare wood, with architectural styles of many regions in Vietnam, for example the house of Muong people in the north, the house of Hue people, charnel-house of the Central Highlands, etc.

Pointing to a house in Hue style, painter Hoai Huong said seven years ago, he and a group of artists traveled around Saigon to seek a peaceful place to build artistic houses. They chose the current place, which was a vast rice field at that time.

Huong said at his painting exhibition, a girl looked at his landscape paintings and said that this was the house of Muong people, that was the house of the Central Highlands, etc. but they were only in paintings.


Hearing the girl’s opinion, Huong thought of building a village of artistic houses. He discussed the idea with his friends and implemented the project to build wood houses.

He bought rare wood such as ironwood, ebony, etc. from the mountainous region to build the first house in three years. So far, six houses have been completed and some are under construction.

“The architecture and decoration of each house is different and they imitate the ancient architecture styles of Vietnam. There are houses on stilts, wood houses, brick houses, etc.” Huong said.

Each house shows the taste and personality of its owner. Hoai Huong’s house is in Hue-style, with a big room in the middle, which is surrounded by four smaller rooms to make a square. These rooms are linked by corridors, running along a fish pond. Along the pond are willow trees, rock-gardens and bamboo trees. In front of the gate is a gate house for passers-by.

If Hoai Huong’s house is a square block in the style of Hue’s wood houses, painter Bach Truong Son’s house dubs the style of Muong people’s house on stilts. The house has big stilts, low roof and a space in the middle for common activities.

There are houses with southwestern architecture. These houses are made of wood but the floor is as not high as northern houses. The kitchens are the most important places in these houses.

“Many people visit this area to learn how to build wood houses in ancient styles. In the future, I and other artists living in this area will open training courses for children and those who like painting and architecture,” Huong said.

Ba Be National Park recognised as Wetland of Int’l Importance

The Ba Be National Park in the northern mountainous province of Bac Can has been named on the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands List as a Wetland of International Importance.

The biodiverse 10,048-ha park is home to 1,268 species of flora and fauna. The site earlier was recognised as an ASEAN Heritage Park in 2004.

As summarised by Marian Gwilliam, Regional Assistant Advisor for Asia-Oceania, Ba Be National Park supports the only significant natural mountain lake in Vietnam. It is the most important wetland in the country's protected area system because it is the only site that has a natural lake surrounded by a mountainous karst ecosystem.

Ba Be National Park is the third Wetland of International Importance in Vietnam, joining the Xuan Thuy National Park in Nam Dinh Province and Bau Sau in the Nam Cat Tien National Park across the provinces of Dong Nai, Lam Dong and Binh Phuoc.

According to Director of the Ba Be National Park, Nong The Dien, the decision will mean that the site will join an international network of wetlands that are important for the conservation of global diversity.

The Convention on Wetlands - known as the Ramsar Convention - is an intergovernmental treaty that embodies the commitments of its member countries to maintain the ecological character of their Wetlands of International Importance and to plan for the "wise use", or sustainable use, of all of the wetlands in their territories.

Vietnam first participated in the Ramsar Convention in 1989.

Vietnam tour need investment for River tour services

Companies of Vietnam tour are calling for the HCMC tourism authority to spend more time and money to develop highly potential river tours after the first river tour service was launched in late January.

More river tour routes are being explored, such as those between Bach Dang Wharf and Can Gio Biosphere Reserve, the city’s Cu Chi District that is home to the landmark Cu Chi tunnels, and neighboring Binh Duong Province.
The first Saigon River tour service which also begins at Bach Dang Wharf in District 1 takes in Ham Long Artisan Village in District 2.

Nguyen Thi Khanh, deputy chairwoman of the Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Association, said the Cu Chi tour would take in Ben Dinh, Ben Duoc and Mot Thoang Vietnam Tourist Park, and some pagodas and old houses in Binh Duong. However, it would be hard to develop this route if the city did not add more places of interest and invest in new wharf infrastructure.
The same problem is faced by the proposed Bach Dang-Can Gio route.

“Those river tour routes have potential for development but cash will be needed to develop them,” she said.
The director of a travel service center said chances for developing river tour services in the city were small due to the low vertical traffic clearance of some bridges. There are a number of bridges with a half-a-meter vertical clearance, preventing tourist boats from passing.

“The clearance of Binh Loi Bridge and some others is low. In the inner city, the Tau Hu Canal is not yet dredged, making it impossible for travel firms to arrange tours for visitors in the canal that meanders along the East-West Highway,” he said.
According to him, the Vietnam travel sector needs financial support and investment from the city government to develop river travel services and thus enrich the city’s tourism products.

“We need better products to sell to our customers. The city can launch new river routes but they will not be attractive unless services and transportation are improved,” he said.
Khanh of the tourism association said the product development department of the association was reviewing all the problems faced by the sector.
Some tour operators told the Daily that the newly opened river tour between Bach Dang Wharf and the tourist village in District 2 had not got a positive response.

Source: The Saigon Times

International visitors to Vietnam in February and 2 months of 2011

International visitors to Vietnam travel in February estimated 542,671 arrivals, increasing by 21.6% over the same period last year. Total international arrivals in the first 2 months reached 1,049,095 representing a 19.5% growth the same period last year.

	Jan. 2011	Feb. 2011 (estimate)	Accrued for 2 months of 2011	Feb. 2011 vs. Jan. 2011 (%)	Feb. 2011 vs. Feb. 2010 (%)	2 months 2011 vs. 2 months 2010 (%)
Total	506,424	542,671	1,049,095	107.2	121.6	119.5
By means of transportation
By air	412,424	453,471	865,895	110.0	128.7	124.3
By sea	4,000	4,200	8,200	105.0	102.4	91.1
By road	90,000	85,000	175,000	94.4	93.9	101.7
By purposes of trips
Tourism	300,176	325,603	625,779	108.5	121.1	114.2
Business	67,926	92,534	160,460	136.2	117.8	101.4
Visiting relatives	104,054	92,254	19,308	88.7	122.1	152.8
Others	34,268	32,280	66,549	94.2	138.8	154.0
By countries and territories
China	76,358	114,748	191,106	150.3	165.4	139.0
South Korea	51,794	50,703	102,497	97.9	114.5	117.4
USA	46,800	49,787	96,587	106.4	103.1	108.4
Japan	45,085	47,747	92,832	105.9	129.9	130.4
Australia	40,779	26,748	67,527	65.6	112.8	116.3
Taiwan	26,316	36,560	62,876	138.9	107.9	108.1
Cambodia	21,577	24,992	46,569	115.8	144.1	142.8
France	18,964	20,817	39,781	109.8	108.5	113.7
Thailand	19,194	17,269	36,463	90.0	103.1	104.3
Malaysia	17,554	18,109	35,663	103.2	126.5	122.9
Others	142,003	135,191	277,194	95.2	110.5	113.2