The short visit of American billionaire Bill Gates to Da Nang earlier this month has demonstrated that the central city can meet the standards of high-profile guests.

Bill Gates and his girlfriend Paula Hurd (centre) pose for a photo with Vietnamese tea master Hoang Anh Suong (right) and a Buddhist nun after a tea ceremony on Ban Co Peak in Da Nang on March 6. (Photo courtesy of Hoang Anh Suong)

After the visit of Microsoft’s founder, the keywords "Bill Gates", "Danang, city in Vietnam", and "Danang" have surged significantly, according to Google Trends.

According to Director of the city Department of Tourism Truong Thi Hong Hanh, the province highly values the impact of famous figures on promoting tourism and hopes to attract other renowned people in the future, following Bill Gates's visit.

“Da Nang is becoming a destination of choice for ultra-rich tourists and famous individuals. It is being selected for tourism, and filming game shows and movie projects,” she said.

In particular, Bill Gates's trip to Da Nang has demonstrated that the city meets all the requirements of high-profile tourists who have strict demands for quality accommodation, services, distinctive culture, and a safe and friendly atmosphere at their destination.

The successful organisation of this visit has indicated the city’s potential for developing unique tourism products based on the core values of culture, heritage, history and nature.

Apart from Bill Gates, famous figures who have visited Da Nang recently include Indian tycoons, and celebrities Lee Joon Gi, Lee Je Hoon, and Kim Yoo Bin from the Republic of Korea (RoK).

Their presence has brought significant brand recognition to Da Nang, contributing to positioning the city on the world tourism map, thereby increasing the media effect on social media platforms and attracting many other international visitors.

"This encouraging signal demonstrates the effectiveness of Da Nang’s tourism development direction," Hanh said.

She said that the top concern for high-profile tourists is safety and privacy, alongside unique experiences. They do not want to publicly disclose their travel itineraries, in order to freely explore and experience the destination.

Therefore, Da Nang always places great importance on ensuring the quality of services and human resources at tourism-related establishments, while also preserving the destination's brand.

Keenly aware of the impact of famous individuals, the city's tourism authority has connected with some of them to promote the destination through various channels such as television, travel corporations, entertainment companies, airlines, festivals, and public events.

Specifically, the authority has collaborated with IHQ, a Korean television channel, to film the travel show Travely featuring sports influencers such as Cho Eun-bi, Kim Hye-lin and Kim Ah-ryong.

Besides, rapper Kim Yoo Bin, former member of the famous girl group Wonder Girls, has been featured in promotion programmes on culture, tourism, cuisine and people that have been carried out by the department in collaboration with South Korean television station SBS.

Da Nang has also enhanced its tourism reputation domestically through collaboration with producers of Vietnamese reality series 2 Ngay 1 Dem (2 Days 1 Night), Hanh Trinh Ruc Ro (Vibrant Journey), and Muon An Phai Lan Vao Bep (To Eat, You Must Enter the Kitchen) to film at the city.

The department will continue to connect with event organisers and hotels to gather information regarding plans for welcoming celebrities. Additionally, they will further promote the city through various communication channels.

According to the Statistics Office of Da Nang, in the first two months of 2024, the city welcomed 1.1 million tourist arrivals, an increase of 23.3% compared to the same period last year. Among them, foreign visitors were estimated at 370,000, a 26.5% increase compared to the same period.

The trend of employing international famous figures to promote travel destinations is a tested approach that has a real impact on people’s travel decisions.

This approach has proven to be effective, as exemplified by American celebrated singer Taylor Swift and K-pop megastar BTS.

A Harvard Business School study showed that celebrities have a "significant" impact on tourists' travel decisions, helping generate sales that are 4% higher than those of competing destinations.

Source: VNA