Over 800-year-old banyan tree in Da Nang’s Son Tra Nature Reserve has emerged as one of the city’s must-see attractions for visitors from both home and aboard during their tours to the namesake peninsula.

The over 800-year-old banyan tree

In particular, over recent years, the ancient tree has become attractive to adventure and ecotourism lovers worldwide.  In addition, many foreign environmental researchers, along with students from the biological and environmental sciences faculties in overseas universities, have made field trips to the peninsula to do research into this tree.

Since the start of this year, the peninsula has welcomed about 2 million domestic and foreign visitors in total, 90,425 of whom visited the famous banyan tree there.

In 2014, the magnificent tree was the only one in the city to have officially recognised as a national heritage tree by the Viet Nam Heritage Tree Council under the Viet Nam Association for the Conservation of Nature and the Environment (VACNE).

To be recognised, the tree was required to meet rigorous criteria relating to its age, the process of growth, and any connection with historical or cultural features of the area where it grows.

The banyan tree, which is one of Viet Nam’s oldest, measures about 22m in height, about 10m in circumference, and its 26 eye-catching rootlets are each 25m long.

The Management Board of the Son Tra Peninsula and Da Nang Tourism Beaches has taken many protective measures to promote the conservation of the heritage tree and ensure its sustainable growth in the future.

Currently, employees from the Board are on duty on workdays at the site of the tree to manage the already-established parking area nearby, as well as remind visitors not to carve illegally on the tree and throw litter there.

During his recent visit to this old tree, a local man from Thanh Khe District underlined the need to establish a public toilet, and put some benches where people can sit to relax or sightsee.  

Mr Nguyen Duc Vu, the Deputy Head of the Board, vowed that, next year’s focus will be on creating more public utilities to satisfy the increasing demands of those visiting the banyan tree.

Greater efforts will be made to publicise the cultural, historical and scientific values of the heritage tree to people at home and abroad.