ABSTRACTTodayhuman life is improving, they not only need adequate material, but also needsto be satisfied spiritually as entertainment, recreation and tourism. Thereforetourism is one of the promising sectors. Vietnam tourism industry was bornlater than other countries in the world but its role is undeniable. Tourism isa clean industry, bringing large income GDP for the economy, tacklingunemployment for thousands of workers, contributing to spre?dthe im?geof Vietnam to the world. Moreover, Vietnam has a thous?nd-yearhistory, with an originally tradition?l culture, rich v?rietyof relics, l?ndsc?pesand m?nyother tourism resources, which are serious attraction for tourists. Duringthese past years, along with the renovation of the country, Vietnam Tourismgradually had been developed. “Vietnam is ? tourist’s p? radise,?ndI believe th?tit is the best tr?veldestin?tionin the world tod?y.
The country is a m?gicalmix of natural, cultural, and historical delights that appeals to emerging newtravelers who seek more than the usual replication of their own culture in afar-off land.” (Ross K.Dowling, PhD, Foundation Professor of Tourism, EdithCowan University Australia).
The research of tourism becomes urgent because ithelps people to have a complete and accurate look at travel in Vietnam. Thisarticle will outline the current situation of the tourism industry in Vietnamand offer solutions to help Vietnam’s tourism achieved new achievements, overcomelimitations, quickly develop the tourism to reach its true potential and rapidlyintegrate into the tourism of the regional and the world.RESEARCHPAPERFirstof all is Vietnam food culture. Vietnamese cuisine encomp?ssesthe foods and bever?gesof Vietnam, and features a combination of five fundamental tastes in theoverall meal1.E?chVietnamese dish has a distinctive fl?vor which reflects one or more ofthese elements. Tr?ditionalVietnamese cooking is greatly ?dmired for its fresh ingredients,minimal use of d?iryand oil, complementary textures, and reli?nce on herbs and veget?bles.With the bal?ncebetween fresh herbs and meats and a selective use of spices to re?cha fine t?ste,Vietnamese food is considered one of the he?lthiest cuisines worldwide 2.
Next, in Vietnam, there are numerous activities for ?dventuretourism which is a type of niche tourism involving explor?tionor travel to remote are?s,where the tr?velershould expect the unexpected. For example, Sapa, one of the most f?mousplaces for tours and holid?ys in Vietnam, has beenwell-known as a gre?tdestination for trekking tours. It is loc?ted in ?height of 1500 meters comp?red to se? level gre?t and h?sa wonderful mount?inr?ngecalled Hoang Lien Son which consists of Fanxipan Mountain, 3,143 meters height, the highest one in Vietnam3.Sapa privilege is a gre?tchoice for ?dventureand trekking tours bec?useof perfect we?therand clim?te.
With its stunning mount?ins,vill?gesand be?utifulValley which is called Muong Hoa, Sapa provides some thing for everyone.Thirdly, visiting Vietn?m,tourist can enjoy and rel?xnearby a se?.Vietnam se?tourism h?syet to make ?special appe?lto tourists.
M?rinetourism is becoming a str?tegicdevelopment of the tourism industry to t?ke advant?geof the l?ndscapeand ecology of coastal areas. With a coastline of over 3,000 kilometers,thousands of large and small islands, a series of white sandy beaches, bluewater coastline are favorable conditions for Vietnam’s sea tourism development.Beaches, bays of Vietnam travelers worldwide known as Ha long Bay, Nha Trang orDa Nang – My Khe beach was voted by Forbes Magazine as one of the most charmingbeaches 6 planets are saying the pull of the sea to Vietnam for domestic andforeign tourists. Along the coast of Vietnam has about 125 beaches favorablefor the development of tourism. Last but not least, culture and history is aattractive product of tourism in Vietnam.
The history of Vietnam may beunfamiliar for most visitors, with the exception of Vietnam war period.Vietnamese people, however, have a lot of reasons to be proud of theirhistorical heritage. Vietnamese are, in fact, one of the most ancientcivilizations in Asia. Did you know that the first Vietnamese kingdom wasfounded nearly five thousand years before Vietnam war happened? Ao dai – the traditionalcostume of Vietnam Ao Dai was once worn by both genders but today it is wornmainly by females, except for certain important traditional culture-relatedoccasions where some men do wear it. Ao Dai consists of a long gown with a sliton both sides, worn over cotton or silk trousers4.
These are 5 vital elements which make the tourism of Vietnam memorable.”Tenyears ago the tourism activity only attracted 250 000 people in 1990, though in2000 this has timed 9, that is 2 000 000 foreign tourists. The result of thefast pace of the Vietnamese economy and the huge growth rate 6.8 in 2003, hasencouraged the development of the country.” (“Tourism in Vietnam”, http://www.markedbyteachers.com/university-degree/business-and-administrative-studies/tourism-in-vietnam.
html) “As of 2013, the Vietnamgovernment has intended to invest no less than $94.2 billion towards itstourism infrastructure.” (“Vietnam’s tourism to be introduced at Travex Fair”, https://www.vietnamtravelblog.
info/vietnam-culture/vietnams-tourism-to-be-introduced-at-travex-fair.html) “Recently in 2017, Vietnamreceived 12.9 million foreign visitors, up nearly 30% compared to 2016 andserves more than 73 million domestic visitors.” (“Du l?ch Vi?t Nam sôi ??ngngày ??u n?m”, Retrieved 01 January 2018). For the first time, Vietnam is inthe list of countries which have fastest tourism growth in the world. Vietnamis ranked No. 6 in 10 destinations with the fastest growth rates in the worldby World Tourism Organization and ranked first in Asian of this speed5.
This is just one of many honors and awards among the world of tourism inVietnam in the past year. This shows that Vietnam’s tourism brand isincreasingly positioning in the international arena. Actually, Vietnam hasgradually changed through nearly 3 decades to achieves these titles as today.Firstly, government policy innovation, deep integration has created conditionsfor tourism development and the result of the propagation and promotion oftourism products of Vietnam. Besides, a lot of places were recorded as a worldcultural heritage by many world organizations such as the UNESCO and spread outtheir reputations all over the world. In addition, Vietnam is a well-knowndestination among budget travellers. Though the price is climbing monthly at adaunting rate, it is still much cheaper than travelling in other continents.
There is almost every price for every wallet: a 5 star resort in Da Nang willcost you an equivalent amount to a 3 star hotel near JFK airport. For lower endmarket, there are a plenty of hostels and guest-houses in most cities. Foodcosts even lower and street foods are among the best in the world. That says,even in biggest metropolitan areas like Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, you can getby a day with $15. Finally, after a series of terrorist attacks across thecountry like the US, Indonesia, safety is the top choice for the touristdestination of tourists. Vietnam which has a stable political situation as wellas good security has helped ensure more secure for travelers to Vietnam.Besidesthe positive aspects of the current tourism industry, it still exist manyshortcomings.
The most easily noticed bad point in Vietnam’s tourism that thequality of tourism products is not high, abundant, unique and bring culturalidentity of Vietnam. Many resorts are not untapped and invest properly.Promoting tourism abroad is limited, professionalism is not high, not enoughinformation provided to tourists and investors.
Planning, investment ininfrastructure and investment in tourist areas are unclear. Many investors aresmall, spread, asynchronous which can not make up the overall effect.Dilapidated vehicles, bad roads lead to traffic jams and waste a lot of time.Food hygiene is not guaranteed. Environment pollution is alarming. The majorityof tourists come to visit once and then not come back. Another cause also dueto the quality of labor in the tourism industry is still poor and extremely badservice.
The organizations and management in tourism are unstable. Staffs intravel industry do not have enormous amount of knowledge thus they make manyflaws. Experience in the tourism industry is not large.
Facilities compared tosome neighbor countries are obviously lower. Therefore, these things “giveVietnam a very bad reputation amongst travellers, and word-of-mouth marketingis the most powerful kind.” (“How would you improve tourism in Vietnam”,Retrieved 10 August 2009.https://www.travelfish.
org/board/post/vietnam/7154_how-would-you-improve-tourism-in-vietnam-)Infrastructureneed to be invested to develop towards modernization and professionalism.Tourism infrastructure, including transport systems, hotels, landmarks,… Poorinfrastructure caused international tourists uncomfortable when they are inVietnam. Along with the traffic congestion, traffic speed regulation which isnot justified on several travel routes makes competitiveness index ofinfrastructure in Vietnam low. Thus Vietnam needs to prioritize the developmentof infrastructure for tourism. The volume of investment in tourism must bereasonable and long term. Raising capital from both foreign and privateinvestors. Diversification of tourism products.
In addition to the normal formsof tourism such as sightseeing, learning the culture, history… Vietnam needs todevelop different types of tourism products as shopping, event promotions, typeof service and treatment, care health, beauty. Pushing up the market research,identifying the key market for each tourism products. Constructing qualitystandards of products, tourism services, strengthen inspection and the qualityof monitoring. Diversification of products which aims to the diversity tostimulate consumer demand of tourists. Strengthening and promoting Vietnamtourism promotion abroad.
Advertise Vietnam tourism to provide touristinformation to visitors on a regular basis. For this, Vietnam needs to learnskills outside the market demand, tastes of products and services of themarkets in the region and around the world. APEC conference and the event whichVietnam became WTO member are good opportunities to promote tourism. IncreasingVietnam’s presence at fairs, conferences, international seminars and holdingmany seminars to promote tourism in Vietnam. Hiring professional promotingcompanies of foreign to make, build offices, tourist information of Vietnam inthe foreign market. Vietnam also should enhance the quality of training humanresources and the competitiveness of Vietnam tourism sector.
Training toimprove the quality of human resources tourism is a decisive pivotal factor forraising the quality of products and services, enhancing the competitiveness oftourism, quickly make tourism in Vietnam become a key economic element. Humanresources must be developed in a systematic way in both quantity and quality.In addition to new training, the training in order to improve the quality ofthe existing workforce also needs to be emphasized. Staff’s management andsupervision of tourism must be in-depth training and professional inqualifications, language skills, informatics and understanding the law. Widelydisseminating is need for Vietnamese people to know about the role and thebenefits of tourism, the tourism development responsibilities of people, how tobehave, communicate with both foreign and local tourists.
Byanalyzing tourism in Vietnam has clarified its position in the tourism industryimplementation, achievements, limitations, causes and solutions that ourcountry’s tourism industry should pay attention to. Travel Vietnam to catch upwith the general trend of the region and the world to determine the views,vision, objectives and orientations breakthrough for Vietnam’s tourism sectorin the coming period. REFERENCES
