In 2023, although there are still many difficulties, with continuous efforts, the Da Nang tourism activities made a strong recovery and achieved positive results. Tourism development orientations and strategies have been concretised by implementation plans, schemes and tourism development orientations, according to the proposed roadmap.

The Da Nang tourism industry organises major international events and activities to attract visitors. Tourists are visiting the Sun World Ba Na Hills tourist area. Photo: THU HA

According to a report from the Da Nang Department of Tourism, the total number of visitors served by accommodation establishments reached more than 7.4 million in 2023 (175% of the assigned plan), 2 times higher than in 2022, equal to 93% compared to 2019.

International visitors reached more than 2 million (reaching 397% of the assigned plan), up more than 4 times compared to 2022, equal to 62% compared to 2019 whilst domestic ones were more than 5.4 million (145% of the plan), an increase of 69% compared to 2022, equal to 113% compared to 2019.

Revenue from accommodation and travel services reached more than VND15,000 billion, an increase of more than 2.3 times compared to 2022 (exceeding plan), equal to 178% compared to 2019. This result shows that Da Nang is still the attractive destination for both domestic and foreign tourists.

The city's tourism industry is very interested in investing and renewing unique tourism products; successfully organising many international-scale festivals and events to stimulate demand, attract and serve visitors, thereby affirming the brand of Asia's leading festival and event destination.

As reported by Director of the Department of Tourism Truong Thi Hong Hanh, activities, events, tourism products and services are continuously organised, contributing to creating a vibrant and fresh atmosphere that attracts a large number of domestic and international tourists coming to Da Nang. Typical types of tourism of Da Nang such as MICE, golf, and wedding tourism are also products highly attractive to tourists.

Specifically, during the year, the tourism industry welcomed 98 MICE delegations with a total of more than 29,200 guests, including 39 domestic and 59 international delegations. Three 3 golf courses in Da Nang in the first seven months of 2023 welcomed 94,711 guests, up by 106% over the same period in 2022. When it comes to wedding tourism, a total number of guests attending wedding events combined with tourism stood at about 25,000 - 30,000.

In addition, the tourism industry is building up new tourism products such as piloting a plan to organise services, serving night tourism on Nguyen Van Troi Bridge and the east bank park at the foot of Nguyen Van Troi Bridge and a pedestrian section of on Bach Dang Street, signing an agreement between the Da Nang Department of Tourism and Hoa Vang District People's Committee on developing cultural and historical tourism products associated with community eco-tourism sites in Hoa Vang District; developing inland waterway tourism, promoting the value of historical and cultural relics to serve tourism development; forming an eco-tour combined with community tourism in Hoa Bac Commune.

In addition to building up new tourism products, the city’s tourism industry is also very interested in communication and promotion works. According to tourism professionals, diverse and positive communication is the most effective way to let tourists know about the city.

So far this year, the city's tourism industry has increased communication with many innovative and creative activities and forms such as through celebrities such as music stars, YouTube, bloggers, and entertainment artists; access to international markets through social networking platforms with large visits that match tourist trends in each market; the promotion of Da Nang tourism on social networking sites, newspapers, and radio at home and abroad; international cooperative communication and visual communication approaches.

Ms. Truong Thi Hong Hanh added that, last year, the city's tourism industry also stepped up promotion work in both domestic and international markets, especially promoting the opening of international flights; participated in fairs, welcomed domestic and international press and travel delegations to Da Nang for survey and supported with tourism businesses nationwide to attract more domestic tourists to Da Nang, and organised promotion programmes to introduce local tourist sites.

In particular, international market promotion activities have been strongly enhanced to seek customer sources such as in India, South Korea, Japan, Qatar and UAE, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and China.

Currently, the city has promoted the restoration and opening of 34 new routes to Da Nang, including 8 domestic and 26 international routes, frequency of 110-118 flights/day to Da Nang. From the beginning of the year until now, the city has welcomed 15 cruise ships carrying a total of10,580 visitors for fun and relaxing experience in Da Nang.

Based on the above-mentioned achievements, in 2024, the city's tourism industry will continue to effectively implement the plan to implement the project ‘Orientations for Da Nang Tourism Development by 2030, with a vision toward 2045, night-time economic development and inland waterway tourism projects in Da Nang, develop cuisine into a unique tourism product and key projects and plans for tourism development in districts, seek breakthrough solutions, boldly deploy a number of pilot activities to implement the aforementioned tasks. In addition, the industry also prepares more unique tourism products to meet the increasing needs of tourists.

Reporting by NHAT HA - Translating by A.THU