Hue city to install free wifi

The Hue city People’s Committee has agreed to provide the former imperial city with free wireless internet (wifi) signals to help complete the municipal infrastructure and attract more tourists.

Relevant local agencies will survey and select tourist sites and public places such as train and bus stations, and boat wharves to outfit with wifi equipment.

The equipment installation will have to meet urban aesthetic and technological standards, operate at high speed, and ensure information security.

The city will learn from the experience of installing wifi services in Hoi An ancient town in Quang Nam province.

Mekong Sub-region mayors to discuss tourism cooperation

Mayors of the cities from the expanded Greater Mekong Sub-region will arrive in HCMC to discuss tourism cooperation, product enhancement and youth tourism promotion. The organizing committee of the International Travel Expo 2012 (ITE 2012) said leaders of Phnom Penh (Cambodia), Vientiane (Laos), Yangon (Myanmar), Kunming (China), Bangkok (Thailand), HCMC and Jeju and Busan of South Korea will attend a special conference from September 12 to 14 on the occasion of the expo. The conference will find ways to translate into reality the joint statement for tourism cooperation signed between the tourism ministers of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam at ITE 2011. Apart from mayors and tourism officials, each city will have 10 travel firms joining the event. The conference will focus on promoting tourism images of the cities to lure more international tourists from key markets. The event will also introduce potentials and connectivity in investment and product development of the expanded Greater Mekong Sub-region through specific cooperative projects. According to the organizing committee, HCMC expects to sign a memorandum on tourism development cooperation with Phnom Penh, Vientiane and Yangon on the forthcoming occasion. Tour operators will also sign deals to develop tourism products. Moreover, the development models of tourism product development projects will be introduced at the conference to garner comments from officials and businesses. ITE is an annual national tourism expo in HCMC. The event this year themed “Four nations – One destination” will take place from September 13 to 15 at the Saigon Exhibition & Convention and Center in District 7. The organizer expects to welcome 200 international tour operators from 30 nations and territories. Some 150 enterprises participated in last year’s event. Within the framework of the expo, many cooperation programs to develop tourist destinations have been signed between Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia over the past time.

Female artists ‘add colour’ to Ho Chi Minh City exhibition

Female artists ‘add colour’ to Ho Chi Minh City exhibition The International Women’s Artists Council (INWAAC) opened its 10 th exhibition in Ho Chi Minh City for the first time from June 21-27. The exhibition titled ‘Her presence in colours’ is a chance for domestic artists to introduce and promote Vietnamese culture and tourism to international friends. Artist Dang Thi Duong, who co-chairs the exhibition, said 212 women artists, sculptors and lecturers in fine art from 23 countries and territories around the world will be involved in the exhibition. Themed, “A new direction”, the exhibition reflects a new way of expressing the insights and views of female artists to other cultures around the world. It is an opportunity for visitors to examine the beauty of compassion and humanity, the challenges women face in daily life and their concerns about society, Duong said. Nguyen Thi Quang Vinh, who is a member of the Vietnam Fine Arts Association, was the first Vietnamese artist to be invited to attend the INWAAC exhibition in Australia in 2004. She said that through the medium of colour, women artists express a unique view of the world, with their gentleness and concept of love, happiness and peace and their awareness of the role they play in the new era. Vietnamese culture, its beauty spots and craft villages will also be featured at the exhibition, which will leave international friends with a strong impression of the country. First established in 1999 in Bangkok , the INWAAC is a non-governmental organisation funded by voluntary contributions from its members. Malaysian artist Yuen Chee Linh, one of the INWAAC’s founders, has been busy linking up with branches of the organisation in other countries such as China , Japan , the US and Vietnam. INWAAC’s goal is to have a closer contact with women artists around the world, to share their insights into life and foster creativity in this new age of cultural development and global cooperation.

EWEC Trade and Tourism Fair

EWEC Trade and Tourism Fair

The 2012 International East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC) Trade and Tourism Fair will be held at the Da Nang Fair and Exhibition Center from 17 to 21 August. Many enterprises from the EWEC countries of Viet Nam, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar and others from Japan, the U.S.A, South Korea and China will take part.

They will showcase their products and services in more than 300 booths. The displays will include electronics, industrial and agricultural machinery and equipment, chemicals and fuels, agro-forestry and aquatic products, handicrafts, textiles and garments, fashion accessories, leather and footwear, building materials and furniture, information technology, real estate, tourism and projects calling for investment.

Several seminars including EWEC and Investment Opportunities and Solutions to Develop Logistics Services and Tourism and Administrative Procedure Reforms in the EWEC have been organized and there will be musical performances every evening.

Businesses from the four EWEC countries with displays featuring socio-economic and cultural development will be exempt from booth rental fees. Other domestic and foreign trade promotion organizations and associations will receive 50% discount. Advertising rates for live broadcasts on the Da Nang Radio and Television (DRT) will be halved.

Over 1.8 million foreign tourists visit HCMC

Over 1.8 million foreign tourists visit HCMC Ho Chi Minh City has welcomed more than 1.8 million overseas arrivals so far this year, up by 10 percent against the same period last year. The City’s Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism announced the figures on June 20. The turnover from tourists in the first six months of this year has reached 34,000 trillion VND, a 15 percent year on year increase and 50 percent of this year’s planned target. The City’s plans to promote tourism and improve domestic tourist products have now come to fruition. In addition, it intends to work closer with Southeastern and Southwestern provinces and cities to develop local tour services. The City has also been creating a safe, friendly and civilised environment to enable the tourist industry to thrive.

Community-based tourism in Men mountain village

Community-based tourism in Men mountain village

(TITC)_Located in Thanh Nua commune, Dien Bien district, Dien Bien province, Men mountain village has been known as a community-based tourist destination, attracting a large number of domestic and int’l visitors to come.

From Dien Bien Phu city, following the Highway 12 to the North about 6km, visitors will see the Men village. From a distance, Men village looks like a pretty picture with back leaning against mountain, facing the vast plains. Standing out from the green of trees and the blue of sky is traditional stilts houses of the ethnic Thai Den. Besides fresh air, cool, green and clean environment, Men village has also been known by its beautiful scenery.

There are more than 110 households with 500 inhabitants who are all Thai Den (Black). They live mainly based on growing rice, crops, cattle-breeding and traditional brocade embroidery. In the recent years, villagers have been joining hands to develop community-based tourism model integrating with civilized lifestyle and cultural tradition of local community. Thanks to the clear awareness of local people in community-based tourism development, Men village has become one of attractive destinations of domestic and int’l visitors.

Besides weaving and traditional brocade embroidery, the Thai Den still preserves traditional stilt houses architecture and their own daily customs. The stilt house has two floors, in which the upper is used for daily living of host and guests and the remaining for weavers, farming utensils, timber, firewood…

Aiming to ensure tourist service quality standard, the villagers have enhanced infrastructures such as toilets, water tanks as well as built a cultural house with traditional architecture to serve local community activities.

Visiting Men village, tourists will not only have a chance to enjoy natural landscapes of the North West but also to experience local daily activities and special foods.

With above efforts, Men village has been becoming an attractive, being worthy of a typical community tourism village in the economic and cultural development of Dien Bien province. 

Learning about Thai ethnic culture in Che Can village

Learning about Thai ethnic culture in Che Can village

(TITC) - Che Can village is located in Muong Phang commune, Dien Bien district, Dien Bien province, about 40 km to the northeast of Dien Bien Phu city. The peaceful space makes it an ideal place for people who want to keep away from noisy atmosphere of city.

Che Can village is home to nearly 100 black Thai ethnic households. Thanks to advantageous location near Pa Khoang lake and Muong Phang historical relic, local people have developed community-based tourism combining cultural, historical and ecological tourism. Currently, Che Can village has become a characteristic community-based tourism site and attracted a large number of visitors every year.

One of Che Can’s unique features is architecture of traditional stilt houses. According to concept of Black Thai people in Northwestern region, stilt houses are usually located in high, dry and airy places putting back to mountains and facing rivers, streams or fields. The stilt houses are equipped necessary equipments as televisions, refrigerators… to improve life quality of people and serve visitors. Local people also invested to build a cultural stilt house with traditional architecture to display instruments, introduce information on history, culture of the village and organize community activities.

Apart from traditional architecture, Che Can also attracts visitors by specific festivals (Xen ban, Kin lau no festival…); exquisite folk songs, dances (Thai folk song, khan pieu dance…); diversified culinary culture (sticky mountain rice, grilled fish, chicken…) and unique traditional games (to ma le, to ma hap, to phai, tu lu…)
In addition, aiming to impress visitors, Che Can village has established an art team including 12 members to perform Thai songs and dances in festivals and in welcoming guests in the cultural stilt house.

Although Che Can village has promoted community-based tourism in a few recent years, it has achieved certain successes and become a specific community-based tourism site in Dien Bien province. In the future, Che Can would be a must-see destination in the journey to visit the historical relic and scenic landscape complex of Muong Phang.