As part of their working visit to Russia, some of Da Nang’s leaders and the Vietnamese Embassy in Russia organised a tourism promotion programme in Moscow on Monday. 

In his opening speech, the Da Nang People’s Committee Chairman, Mr Van Huu Chien, noted that his city is an economic, cultural and social hub in the central region and highlands with a very favourable geographical position.  He added that Da Nang, one of the most dynamic cities in Viet Nam, is focusing on promoting the development of commerce and services, especially tourism.

Chairman Chien addresses the event (Photo: vov.vn)

The city leader said that Da Nang welcomed over 3 million tourists last year, 750,000 of them foreigners.  The number of Russian visitors arriving in the city, however, remained low at just 4,000 in 2013.  The main reasons were thought to be that there is no direct flight between Da Nang and Russia, and that the beach services in Da Nang are not as good as those in Nha Trang, Phan Thiet, Binh Thuan and other localities.  For those reasons, this first-ever tourism promotion in Russia is considered very important for attracting a larger number of tourists to the city from Russia.

At the event, participants watched a documentary film which showed Da Nang’s potentials for tourism development.  They included the 60km-long beach, the city’s favourable position of being close to the three World Cultural Heritage Sites of Hue Citadel, Hoi An and My Son Sanctuary, and being the Pacific gateway for the East-West Economic Corridor.  In addition, the participants were introduced to the popular tourist attractions, entertainment areas, fascinating cultural and arts performances, large-scale events, museums, hotels, resorts, and international flights in Da Nang.