HCM City (VNA) – Quang Ninh and Ha Giang hosted promotionalevents in Ho Chi Minh City on July 17 to boost the number of tourist visits to thetwo northern provinces.

In its event, the northeastern coastal province of Quang Ninh introduced local support policiesand solutions to stimulate tourism to travel agencies and tour operators fromsouthern cities and provinces.

Vu Anh Thu from the provincial Department of Tourism gave anoverview of popular attractions in Quang Ninh, notably the World’s NaturalHeritage Ha Long Bay, the Complex of Yen Tu Monuments and Landscapes, and the QuangNinh Museum.

Now visitors can easily reach Quang Ninh by air, sea andland with the launches of Van Don International Airport, Ha Long internationalcruise ship terminal and expressways connecting Hanoi and Ha Long city, Thusaid, adding that travel time from Hanoi to Ha Long was reduced to about an hour and a half.

The province is emerging as an attractive destination for internationalMeeting, Incentive, Conference and Event (MICE) tourism, according to local officials. The province has been making many efforts to lure strategicinvestors, both at home and overseas, to invest in its tourism and hospitalitysectors.

Thu revealed that Quang Ninh will offer free admission totourists to the Complex of Yen Tu Monuments and Landscapes, Quang Ninh Museumand Ha Long Bay on National Day (September 2) and several other public days.

With 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, Quang Ninh boasts great potential for sea-based tourism development

The northeastern province 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. In 2019, British travel magazine Rough Guides included Vietnam’s Ha Long Bay in its selection of the 100 most beautiful places to visit next year. In the Rough Guides to the 100 Best Places on Earth, the magazine describes “the scattering of limestone pinnacles jutting out of the smooth waters of Ha Long Bay”, around four hours east of Hanoi, as an “incredible sight”.Most recently in 2020, Ha Long Bay was named amongst the 50 most beautiful natural wonders on Earth selected by US-based magazine Insider.

Meanwhile, the Ha Giang event aimed to promote tourism inthe southern and Central Highlands localities.

To revive the tourism industry, the northern mountainous province is pressing aheadwith preparation for a host of major events this year, promising travellerswith various exciting experiences, such as festivals promoting local terracedfields and Tam Giac Mach (buckwheat flower).

Several hotels from Ha Giang took the occasion to signagreements with travel agencies and tour operators from Ho Chi Minh City tofoster tourism cooperation./.