In the current context of the rapid development of accommodation services in Da Nang over recent times, it is high time for the city authorities to take even more effective measures to standardise such services for the sake of their sustainable growth.

It is a need to ensure the sustainable development of accommodation establishments in the city

According to the municipal Department of Tourism, Da Nang is now home 79 4 and 5- star hotels providing 15,402 rooms in total, accounting for 43% of the city’s total rooms, ranking 2nd nationally after Ho Chi Minh City.

In addition, there are 102 3-star hotels with a combined total of 6,682 rooms, nearly 5,390 1 and 2 star hotels with 11,748 rooms in total, plus a sum of 1,285 rooms in luxury apartments and villas, and 46 homestays offering a total of 498 rooms.

According to the municipal Socio-economic Development Research Institute, the city has seen an upward trend in the number of accommodation establishments of different types and sizes.

However, the hike in the number of accommodation establishments also reveals some shortcomings negatively affecting business performance, and causing an unfair competition in terms of room rates and other related issues.

The most noticeable issue is that the rapid growth of the 1 and 3-star hotel segment led to the fact of supply exceeding demand in the low tourist season.

The room occupation rate reported at 4 and 5-star hotels has always been much higher than that of lower-class hotels during both peak and off seasons.

The reason for this issue seems to be that most of the lower-class hotels are built in a hasty and spontaneous way, along with unsuitable market orientations, and ineffective management, and shortage of business experience. Besides, the imbalanced distribution is another matter.

A boom in the number of hotels along some coastal streets has negatively affected the transportation system, parking areas, and water supply, drainage and wastewater treatment systems.

Ms Truong Thi Hong Hanh, the Deputy Director of the Tourism Department revealed that the tourism industry is focusing on developing a project to ensure the sustainable accommodation development by 2025 and 2030.

By 2020, the total number of rooms at tourist accommodation establishments in Da Nang is expected to reach 40,610.

Of this, rooms in 4 and 5-star hotels are 14,538, accounting for 35.8% of the total, whilst those in 1-3 star ones are 21,147, making up for 52%.

By 2025, the total number of tourist accommodation rooms is predicted to hit 74,435, and by 2030, this figure is likely to reach 109,051.

In particular, tourist accommodation development priority is given to the districts of Ngu Hanh Son, Son Tra and Hai Chau, along with coastal areas, inner-city areas, and major streets.

Functional bodies will exactly identify the level of the tourism development and types of tourists, hereby offering the suitable types of accommodations to satisfy the demand of visitors.

Also, under the project, effective solutions will be adopted to enhance the quality of tourist accommodation services, extend visitors’ stay periods, and enhance human resource training.