During his meeting with leaders of the Da Nang Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism (DCST) on Wednesday afternoon, the municipal People's Committee Vice Chairman, Mr Nguyen Xuan Anh, stressed the need for the department to create long-term investment strategies for the sustainable development of local culture, which is considered to be the spiritual foundation of society.

Between January and August, a wide range of cultural, sporting and tourism events were held in the city.  Amongst them were large-scale events such as the Da Nang International Fireworks Competition, the Asia-Pacific Robot Contest 2013, the Da Nang International Marathon Competition 2013, and the Da Nang Songwriting Contest.  These helped to promote the tourism image of the city to both domestic and foreign visitors. 

International visitors enjoying a city tour by cyclo

In addition, local museums and art performances have achieved remarkable success over the past 8 months.  For example, the Da Nang Museum has added to its collection a total of 153 valuable documents and objects and 25 historic photos which are now all on display.  Furthermore, the Museum has held a variety of exhibitions which have introduced significant issues to its visitors.  During the 8-month period, the museum received over 29,000 visitors in total, a 3.5-fold increase compared with the same period in 2012.

As for the local tourism sector, the number of tourist arrivals to the city has risen by 23.5% year-on-year to hit an estimate of over 2.3 million during the 8-month period, fulfilling 77% of the year's target. 

In detail, the number of foreigners rose by 15.3% year-on-year to an estimated 500,000, achieving 70.9% of the year's target.  Meanwhile the domestic visitor total has increased by 26% year-on-year to an estimated 1.8 million, representing 78.9% of the year’s target.  As a result, the city’s tourism sector is estimated to have earned over 5,300 billion VND in revenue, a 30.7% year-on-year increase, fulfilling 82.3% of the year’s target.