Communication campaigns and various promotions are the measures being taken in the northern coastal province of Quang Ninh to promote tourism.

A corner of Ha Long Bay (Source: VNA)

Secretary of the provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the People’s Council Nguyen Xuan Ky said that the locality’s major task is to recover and develop tourism and services as soon as possible.

Foreseeing the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the tourism sector, in February Quang Ninh developed a plan to rebuild the industry after the epidemic. Once the disease is basically under control in Vietnam, the locality is ready to kick-start tourism again.

On May 16, the province will hold a ceremony at FLC Halong Bay Golf Club & Luxury Resort to kick off the summer holiday and the Ha Long-Quang Ninh Tourism Week.

During the week, numerous activities will be held, including a One Commune-One Product (OCOP) fair, the Mong Cai cultural and cuisine festival, and cultural and cuisine events in Uong Bi.

This month, tourists entering the province via Van Don International Airport will be offered free tickets to Ha Long Bay and the Yen Tu relic site.

The People’s Council will also allow an extension of the existing free bus route from the airport to Ha Long Bay to Yen Tu relic site in Uong Bi city.

Secretary Ky asked the tourism sector and localities to implement effective measures to ensure absolute safety for visitors and increase the quality of products and services.

The Tourism Department was requested to intensify connectivity with other localities nationwide to promote tourism and enhance domestic tourism routes by opening more domestic flights to fully tap the potential of Van Don Airport.

Co To, Van Don and Mong Cai, which are famous for their beautiful beaches, were urged to organise events to boost sea tourism.

The top priority is to build a promotional campaign to spread the message of Quang Ninh being a safe, friendly and attractive destination to visitors, Ky emphasised.

On May 1, provincial authorities starting allowing tourists back to Ha Long Bay, the Yen Tu historic relic and landscape site, Quang Ninh Museum, the provincial library, Tra Co – Mong Cai national tourism site, beaches, hotels, accommodation establishments, restaurants, coffee shops and golf courses.

Van Don International Airport officially reopened to commercial flights on May 4, starting with those to Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Phu Quoc and Nha Trang.

According to the provincial Department of Tourism, Quang Ninh expects to welcome up to 4.9 million visitors in 2020.

Quang Ninh is endowed with natural advantages for sea and island tourism. It has a coastline of more than 250 kilometres and more than 2,000 islands and islets which account for two-thirds of the total number in Vietnam.

It is home to popular destinations such as Ha Long Bay, Bai Tu Long, Ha Long Bay National Park and some islands.

In particular, Ha Long Bay literally “descending dragon bay”, was twice recognised as a World Natural Heritage site by UNESCO in 1994 and 2000.

The bay spans 1,553 square kilometres and includes 1,969 islands of various sizes. It features thousands of limestone karsts and islets in various shapes and sizes. The limestone in the bay has gone through 500 million years of formation in different conditions and environments.

The geo-diversity of the environment has created biodiversity, including a tropical evergreen biosystem, oceanic and sea biosystem.

In 2018, Ha Long Bay made it into the top 15 Instagrammed global cruise destinations based on a survey of 1.8 million posts tagged on various ships and ports by travel cruise site SeaHub.