Peak tourist season in Da Nang runs until September while September onwards is low season for domestic tourists in the city. Hence, the city has focussed on enhancing marketing campaigns to promote its destination in addition to offering incentives to attract international tourists from major source markets, thereby bringing some positive signals to the city’s tourism sector.

Da Nang has conducted its tourism promotion programmes in major source markets for its international visitors. In the photo: Da Nang’s tourism businesses are meeting with their Japanese partners during the recent destination marketing campaign in Japan.

Mr. Nguyen Son Thuy, the Director of the Indochina Unique Tourist Company Limited stated that the city will see a significant decrease in domestic tourists during low season as their children have entered the new academic year. Besides, some Northeast Asian countries like South Korea and Japan have reopened to tourism but some of their airlines are not ready to resume their international flights.

Thailand and Malaysia are the two Southeast Asian contries with regular international flights while other source markets such as the Philippines and Indonesia do not have a clear plan for international flight operations . Meanwhile, India is set to operate international flights to Da Nang from October, 2022, thereby helping fill gaps in overseas visitor volume in the city.

Mr Thuy remarked that India is considered as a large and potential source market for international visitor arrivals by the Indochina Unique Tourist Company. Therefore, the heed has been paid to launching stimulus packages to attract Indian travellers, Mr Thuy added. Indian partners forecast that Da Nang will be put on the map as a booming destination for travellers from their country after non-stop flights between Da Nang and India are operated.

In fact, the number of source markets for international visitors to Da Nang is now still quite limited and modest. The city is still looking forward potential source markets for overseas visitors that will reopen to mass tourism. As a result, Da Nang has taken advantage of its opportunities to promote its destination in some foreign countries in an attempt to lure international tourists back.

Recently, the Da Nang Department of Tourism has worked with the Mikazuki Hotel Group to promote the city’s tourism in Kisarazu City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan. The focus has been on introducing the city’s open-door policy for tourism, seeking cooperation with Japanese partners, as well as introducing the city’s new tourism products. Furthermore, importance has been attached to grasping the changes in Japanese travellers' habits due to the COVID-19 outbreak in a bid to lure them back to Da Nang.

Mrs Tan My Hanh, the Director of the Asian Companion Travel said that holiday resorts in travel destinations are in high demand from Japanese travellers who  have a habit of booking their trips early.

She also highlighted the important role of the city’s tourism promotion program in Japan in drawing visitors from this country back.

The city will continue taking action to retrieve MICE tourism by issuing support policies for MICE (Meetings-Incentives-Conferences-Exhibitions) travellers in a bid to attract more visitors both at home and abroad in 2023.

Incentive policies for the first 100 MICE delegations with about 30,000 people in total to Da Nang will come into effect in January and will end in late December 2023.

The support policies for MICE tourists will focus on organizing welcoming ceremonies and presenting souvenir gifts for MICE tourists, and offering tourist attraction tickets, along with assistance and consultancy, and more.

Between August 2022 to December 2023, the city is expected to welcome its first 15 to 20 international MICE delegations with about 5,000 people in total from Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea and other countries.

As for international delegations of 50 people, welcome message for them will be displayed on the LED screen of the Da Nang Airport and an arts program will be held to welcome them. A separate area will be arranged for these delegations in order to make it easier for them to conduct the procedures for entry into Viet Nam upon arrival on the Da Nang Airport.

Da Nang has welcomed many large MICE delegations thanks to its incentives offered to them. In the photo: An international MICE delegation arrived in Da Nang in late September, 2022. Photo: THU HA

Between February 21 and August 1, 2022, the municipal Department of Tourism provided support and consultancy for 31 domestic MICE delegations with nearly 15,600 guests, including 7 delegations of 700 guests or more, 9 ones of 300-700 guests and 15 others of over 100 guests after incentive policies for the first 100 MICE delegations to Da Nang came into effect in February, 2022.

Da Nang has welcomed its first international MICE delegation of 558 visitors from PT Gajah Tunggal Tbk., an associate company of Giti Tire and the largest Indonesian tire manufacturer. Arranged by Dong Travel Agent, the Indonesian guests  visited Da Nang from August 29 to October 16.

Mr Do Trong Hau Deputy, the Director General of the Da Nang International Terminal Investment and Exploitation Joint Stock Company (AHT) said that the Da Nang Airport is willing to work with the municipal Department of Tourism to organize welcoming ceremonies for MICE delegations in a bid to increase tourist arrivals in the city.

Mr Nguyen Xuan Binh, the Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Tourism said that the implementation of incentive policies for MICE travellers to Da Nang that has been piloted in the city since 2020 is a highlight of the city’s tourism strategy to drive the recovery of domestic tourism in the context of COVID-19.

Mr Binh called for support from international travel agents to help Da Nang rebuild its international tourism as international flights to the city are resumed and Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia see postive signs of their tourism recovery.

Reporting by THU HA – Translating by H.L