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Vietnam Open Tour News & EventsSATURDAY 05 SEPTEMBER, 2009 |
 More options for travelers to Vung Tau For many, beaches in the coastal resort town of Vung Tau, some 150 kilometers from HCMC, are familiar getaways. Thanks to its location, it is where people, especially from HCMC, can find a place to escape work and noise and unwind on a weekend. For years, Vung Tau has been a favorite destination for locals from neighboring provinces. It is estimated that 90% of the visitors to the resort town are Vietnamese vacationers. This can be seen in festival or holidays occasions, when the beaches are often full of vacationers. For that reason, hundreds of hotels on main streets and numerous inns on narrow alleys are open to cater to the accommodation demands of travelers. The Imperial Hotel, located on Thuy Van street that stretches along the famous Back Beach, is poised to open in the coming days. This is the first-ever five-star hotel in the city, targeting high-end vacationers and business travelers and contributing to diversify the accommodation segment to entice expatriates. As its name suggests, the Imperial Hotel reflects glorious architecture from the past and the luxury and prosperity of life in western countries. Here is the Victorian Era. The hotel has seven floors with 144 rooms named after palaces and imperial family names. Standing in gray against the blue sky, the hotel's design makes guests feel cozy with yellowish light covering dark red facilities, recalling a nostalgic time. It seems an exaggeration to say The Imperial Hotel is a gallery, but it is something like that. There are some 3,000 paintings hanging throughout the hotel. Guests can contemplate the pictures on ceilings, from the lobby, from the corridors and inside their rooms. Most pictures are reproduced and feature the daily life of western ladies in the past, legendary characters or landscapes featuring a certain period in time. Unlike other hotels in the city, the five-star hotel is designed with an overpass crossing Thuy Van street so that guests can walk from their rooms to the private beach without worrying about traffic on the road. The hotel is also designed for helicopter landing on the fourth floor. Sven A. Saebel, general manager of The Imperial Hotel, says the helicopter service is still waiting for approval and will be ready next year. In another highlight, the open-air garden is where vacationers can indulge themselves on the crystal like water of two swimming pools, or relax in two Jacuzzi pools nearby. Sports nuts can play a one-hole golf course or work up some sweat on the tennis court. As night falls, the green garden sparkles under torch light where guests can have dinner or taste barbecue while the Filipino band fills the air with song. From the garden, guests can follow a narrowed staircase leading to the spa section, where they can relax with health recovering services or stop in at the fitness center. Besides three ball rooms in which the largest can accommodate 600 people, the hotel has four restaurants serving seafood, international and Chinese dishes. The hotel's general manager says the hotel is scheduled to open next year, but it is rolling up its sleeves to finish the project sooner than expected to welcome ladies who come to the resort town to vie for the Mrs. Vietnam Pageant 2009 trophy on September 15, which is organized by Ciat Advertising and Trade Fair Joint Stock Company. The winner of the competition will go to the Mrs. World Pageant 2009, which is also organized in Vung Tau on September 26. The five-star hotel says in the early stage of opening it will offer rooms at US$168 per night on the weekend, inclusive of breakfast and seafood barbecue for two, and US$125 per night during the week. For more Information, contact The Imperial Hotel at 159-163 Thuy Van street in Vung Tau City, tel: 064 3628888. VietNamNet/SGT Specialties of Yen Tu Mountain
Locals prepare fresh bamboo shoots picked on Yen Tu Mountain in the northern province of Quang Ninh. However, for those looking for a more gentle ascent, a gondola is also available and allows for a great birds-eye view of the mountain. Yen Tu attracts thousands of visitors and pilgrims each year thanks to its breathtaking natural beauty and relic areas relating to the Vietnamese King Tran Nhan Tong (1258-1308). The third emperor of the Tran Dynasty came to the area after his abdication and began a new life as a Buddhist monk. He also founded the Truc Lam Zen School, the first Vietnamese Buddhist Zen institution. During the Yen Tu Festival in spring, hundreds of the area’s inhabitants journey up the mountain’s steep rock steps, slopes and perilous pathways to sell local specialties to visitors. They sell many of the natural resources found in the mountain’s forests including bamboo shoots, mushrooms, and medicinal herbs. In particular, tourists visiting Yen Tu Mountain will notice a plethora of bamboo-shoot sellers on the way to Giai Oan Spring. Those who sell the shoots, medicinal leaves, roots, lingzhi mushrooms and other plants and herbs begin their workday early in the morning when the first visitors sets foot on the mountain. Yen Tu bamboo shoots are normally packed in bags and sold for VND10,000-20,000 (US$0.60-1.10). They are also preserved and packed in jars to sell to tourists and many local restaurants feature them in their menus. The shoots release a distinct flavor if they are boiled and eaten with salt and sesame seeds and it is said that bamboo grown high on the mountain is tastier than that grown at the foot. Locating the shoots in the forest is difficult work, however, and can take up to a week. But the hard work is worth the effort and locals can earn up to VND10 million ($560) from selling forest products during the Yen Tu Mountain festival. Treasures of Tre Islet
Boats transport tourists to Tre Islet in Kien Giang Province. The island is 30km west of Rach Gia, a provincial town, and takes two hours to reach by boat. It spans an area of about 400 hectares, with a length of 3.5km and width of around 2km. Its highest peak is 395 meters above sea level. Residents on Tre Islet are mainly fishermen, while others process seafood or grow produce. Chen (Bowl) Beach in the northwest of the island is among a treasure-trove of scenic locations. It is located in a small bay with gentle waves and is about 2km long. It is considered the cleanest and most beautiful beach of Tre Islet because of its pristine condition and stunning coastline. Along the shore are several large round rocks which look like bowls with their bottoms facing up. Visitors can sit on these “bowls” to fish or rest after swimming in the sea. From Hon Tre Town on the island, it takes about 20 minutes to reach Chen Beach by boat. Tourists can also get there by taking a 45-minute motorbike trip. If taking this option, visitors will pass a mountain and can stop at several orchards to sample or purchase a wide variety of fruit. The owners of these orchards are hospitable and often give tourists good deals when buying the fruit. Other highlights of Tre Islet include Dua (Coconut) Cave and a beach called Ha Ba (Sea Monster) Tail. Dua Cave is a small gulf where coconut trees grow along the coast. Here, tourists can swim at a beautiful rocky beach and visit a fishing village. Ha Ba Tail is a more rugged area of the island. Here, tourists can swim or dive to catch oysters on the rocks. A favorite local activity is to eat the oysters raw with the juice of lemon. The main specialty of Tre Islet is the fresh local seafood. Visitors can enjoy shrimp, crab and squid or grilled oysters. From Tre Islet, visitors can also take tours to other nearby islands. VietNamNet/Thanh Nien Phu Quoc islanders asked to approve massive tourism plan Phu Quoc Island will become an economic and eco-tourism hub by 2030, according to a plan unveiled at a meeting this week.
Phu Quoc Island will become an economic and eco-tourism hub by 2030. Ngo Quang Hung, director of the institute, said under the proposal, Phu Quoc would become an international, commercial and service centre and tourist destination. The institute has planned key functional areas including urban, forest protection, tourism and transportation areas on the island and foresees a five-fold population increase to 530,000 people from the current 100,000 people. Nearly 40,000ha will be reserved for urban areas including the three main areas - Duong Dong, An Thoi and the science urban area, which will be expanded to 3,570ha, 677ha and 537ha respectively. About 3,700ha will be allocated to tourism development, with about 1,600ha for transport infrastructure. The tourism areas lies along the island's best beaches including Thom, Cua Can, Vung Bau, Dai, Rach Tram, Rach Vem and Ong Lang beaches, which are described as "the golden land" of the island. Other projects would include ports, industrial parks, golf courses and a casino. Phu Quoc is the largest island in Viet Nam with an area of 59,300ha with two towns, Duong Dong and An Thoi, and eight communes. It is known for its pristine beaches and forests. Phu Quoc is also called the Emerald Island because of its natural treasures and tourism potential. VietNamNet/Viet Nam News TRAVEL IN BRIEF 4/9 Locals to enjoy cheap luxury stays Six of HCM City’s 12 five-star hotels will for the first time offer a discount of 50 per cent for local guests between September 1 to October 31, under the promotion "One Day to Stay in 5-Star Hotels". La Quoc Khanh, deputy director of HCM City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said: "The travel demand of Vietnamese people is increasing. We want to make the people familiar with luxury facilities and woo them to stay there." Motorbike convoy heads to Thailand The HCM City-based Viking Travel and Media Company on Wednesday kicked off a motorcycle tour of 17 Harley motorbikes for local and foreign tourists from HCM City to Thailand. A group of 21 Vietnamese in HCM City and five foreigners living and working in Thailand joined the six-day tour. The travellers are scheduled to go to Bangkok and Pattaya and meet with representatives of the Harley Club there. Their itinerary will also take in destinations in Thailand. The travellers are also surveying destinations in Viet Nam to prepare for another motorcycle tour which is expected to take travellers to Laos, Cambodia, Viet Nam and Thailand in October this year. The company will also receive another group of riders from Cambodia to Viet Nam in December. Peace Boat visits Da Nang The Peace Boat brought 770 crew members and passengers from 16 countries, including 462 from Japan, to Tien Sa Port for a one-day visit to Da Nang on Tuesday, marking its 67th trip around the world. In Da Nang, the tourists took part in a cultural exchange programme organised by the city’s Youth Union. They were introduced to Vietnamese cuisine and traditional dress-making, and visited Ha Market, Champa Museum, My Son Cham Tower Complex and Hoi An. Explore Ha Noi by tramcar Hoan Kiem District has asked permission from the Ha Noi municipal authority to provide tours of Ha Noi’s old quarter and Hoan Kiem Lake by tramcar. The project by the Dong Xuan Joint Stock Company would put 12 tramcars into operation later this year. The battery-powered cars will have from 5-12 seats priced VND10,000 to 30,000 each, depending on the tour. Dong Xuan will supply two tours by tramcar. The first tour will include historic commercial streets in the Old Quarter and the old Dong Xuan market. The tour will start from Dinh Tien Hoang Street and travel down Hang Dao, Hang Ngang and Hang Khoai streets toward Dong Xuan market. The second tour will bring visitors to other old streets like Ma May, Hang Bac, Hang Bo, Hang Hom, Hang Trong, and to historic structures like the Ngoc Son Temple, Kim Ngan communal house and the Temple of Le Kings. If everything goes smoothly, the company will put 20 more tramcars into use in 2010. Cruise ship visits southern region Saigontourist Travel service welcomed on September 2 around 1,250 tourists on board the cruise ship Costa Allegra. The cruise tourists then took a city tour of HCM City and visited the Mekong Delta city of My Tho. Costa Allegra, which made port calls to the northern province of Quang Ninh and the Central coastal city of Da Nang on August 30, left HCM City on Wednesday afternoon. Saigontourist said Costa Allegra was scheduled to visit Viet Nam again next Monday and on September 21, bringing some 3,000 passengers to HCM City and Da Nang. VietNamNet/Viet Nam News Time for Vietnamese travel firms to step up Arriving in Schezuan province on August 30 to launch tourism promotion activities, the Vietnamese delegation discovered that officials and travel firms from five other countries were present there to do the same thing. As the global economy is recovering, countries in the world are trying to push up tourism promotion campaigns to attract tourists to their countries. And the competition to attract tourists has become stiff. The stiff competition Deputy Director of the Market Department under the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism Nguyen Thanh Huong said that Thailand Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has announced the master marketing plan for 2009-2010. The plan focuses on the marketing activities to be carried out on Internet and social media, targeting nearby markets and neighbouring countries and new markets as well. Khun Supawan Teerarat from TAT has revealed that the agency has discovered a new trend: Vietnamese companies are organising more and more conferences, meetings in This has prompted Thai travel firms to launch new tourism products to attract these travellers. On August 25, Thai agency representatives flew to the three biggest cities of Prior to that, the Malaysian tourism promotion agency also came to Vu The Binh, Director of Travel Department under the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), said that the competition to ‘scramble’ for tourists has become fiercer and that only those with reasonable and effective promotion campaigns will succeed. Success will come if Ngo Hai Anh, a representative from Malaysia Airlines, said that Anh said that in other countries, airlines always cooperate with travel firms, shop and hotel chains to promote tourism. Moreover, they also receive the support from the Government to attract more tourists. According to Nguyen Van Tinh, Senior Official from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, besides the roadshow in five big cities of Kai Marcus Schröter, who has been living in Any promotion activities, he said, need to be carried out under a well-designed and long-term programme. The advertisement campaigns need to be carried out in the right places, at the right time and with reasonable frequency. He does not think that money is a big problem for Ha Yen - VietnamBridge HCM City to hold expo for Indochina tourism HCM City’s Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism will work with tourist agencies to hold an international tourism investment conference, which will present Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam as destinations, on September 30 and October 1. The Tourism Investment Conference 2009 (TIC) will be a chance for cities and provinces in the country to introduce their major tourism projects to more than 100 international investors. The exposition will focus on developing tourism for the three countries, presenting tourism investment opportunities in “Three Countries, One Destination,” and creating a stable tourism development strategy. The organizers hope the conference will open effective cooperation opportunities between the state and private travel firms. Tran The Dung, deputy director of Young Generation Travel Company, said service providers, such as accommodation, restaurant, yachts and transportation, in Sapa, Ha Long, Hue and Hoi An have offered five to ten percent discounts compared with last month to attract local visitors during the off-peak season. VietNamNet/SGGP Truoi Lake arouses curiosity Truoi is a famous name in the central city of Hue with Truoi Mountain, Truoi river, Truoi village, Truoi people and also Truoi Lake in Loc Hoa commune, Phu Loc district, Thua Thien-Hue province. A hydroelectric work built in 1996, Truoi Lake makes a strong impression with its crystal blue water and poetic surroundings.
Reaching the wharf, which is about 100 meters from the embankment, tourists can board a 15-20 seat boat to start the excursion. These boat tours can be hired for VND200,000-250,000 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. After sailing around for 30 minutes, tourists may get lost in the fascinating wilderness with the murmur of streams ahead and the hundreds of rocks emerging out of them. Here, tourists can take a bath or sit on the rocks for fishing. All daily worries and stresses will surely drift away with the flowing water. After that, tourists can explore the forest at the foot of Thanh Long Mountain to enjoy the wildlife. The forest is home to many species of seasoned trees and wild animals. On the way back to the wharf, tourists should not miss Truc Lam Bach Ma Pagoda nestled on the peak of a hill to contemplate its elegant architecture as well as to find tranquility for the soul. Tourists must first conquer 172 stones step to reach the pagoda but the panoramic view of Truoi Lake is worth the sweat. VietNamNet/SGT Subterranean reverence
The entrance of Nhi Thanh Grotto in Lang Son A little way inside the front gate are steps leading up to Tam Giac Pagoda, which is perched on a hillside and surrounded by trees and shrubs. Tam Giac venerates the Sakya Mouni Buddha and the Chinese philosophers Confucius and Laozi, and there’s a big altar inside for the devout to do the same. It’s from this point that Tam Thanh diverges from your run-of-the-mill Buddhist temple. More steps lead down from the pagoda to the amazing Nhi Thanh Grotto, a deep cave whose discovery is officially credited to Ngo Thi Sy, the governor of Lang Son Province from 1777 to 1780, and a famous poet and scholar to boot. At the mouth of the cave, a carved dragon and tiger look as if they are guarding the entrance. High up opposite the orifice is a statue of Ngo Thi Sy, which he ordered to be carved into the rock at the same time as the cave was enlarged. To enter Nhi Thanh Grotto requires crossing a pool fed by a stream that flows through the cave and makes the air inside feel fresh and cool. The main chamber turns and twists its way for half a kilometer past stalactites and stalagmites in abundance, and has many alleys leading off into pitch black darkness. Concrete bridges and a well-hewn path make the going easy, and there is a large space half-way in that receives natural light from an opening high above. Along the way, fish can be heard swimming in the stream and their tails seen flashing as the piscine troglodytes break the water’s surface. Also inside the cave are stone steles inscribed with a score of writings by renowned thinkers of the past. Nhi Thanh Grotto is a wonder of nature. It emanates a certain something that other caves lack and should not be missed by anyone visiting Lang Son, close by the Chinese border. News for Tuesday 01 September, 2009
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