Strive to start from zero
At the award ceremony held in Manila, Philippines on the evening of September 3, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism (DTC) of Quang Nam province was the only representative of Vietnam to be nominated and surpassed many excellent candidates in the region such as Bali (Indonesia), Sabah (Malaysia), Sarawak (Malaysia) and Luang Prabang (Laos) to win the title of "Asia's Leading Local Tourism Management Agency".
Responding to Lao Dong Newspaper, Mr. Phan Thanh Hong - Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Nam province - said that this is a great evaluation and encouragement from the international community for the tourism industry of Quang Nam, especially when the COVID-19 pandemic occurred, bringing tourism to zero.
“In the past 2 years, from the end of 2022 to now, the province's tourism industry has implemented many solutions such as stimulating tourism, creating new products, persistently following the direction of green, sustainable, environmentally friendly tourism, helping Quang Nam tourism recover very quickly. In the first 6 months of 2024, the total number of visitors and tourist accommodation reached 4.6 million, an increase of 18%, social income from tourism reached 9,095 billion VND" - Mr. Hong said.
Also at the WTA Awards ceremony, Hoi An - Quang Nam was honored to receive the title of "Asia's Leading Cultural City Destination" for the 5th time, including 4 consecutive years of winning the award (2019, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024). This affirms the world brand and special attraction of Hoi An - Quang Nam to international tourists.
In the category of resorts and hotels, a 5-star resort in Quang Nam - Hoiana Resort & Golf (in Duy Hai commune, Duy Xuyen district) was also honored as the winner of the category "Asia's Leading Complex Resort".
The first locality in the country to issue a set of green tourism criteria
According to Mr. Phan Thanh Hong, Quang Nam is the first locality in the country to issue a set of provincial green tourism criteria (from 2022), including 6 areas, for the following types: Hotels, homestays, eco-resorts, community-based tourism destinations, travel agencies and sightseeing spots.
This set of criteria was developed with the support of the Swiss Sustainable Tourism Programme (SSTP), referring to the criteria of 25 international criteria sets and adjusting them to suit local practices.
According to Mr. Tran Thai Do - investor of Silk Sense Hoi An Hotel, the unit was certified to meet green standards according to the Quang Nam Green Tourism Criteria at the end of 2022 and became the first plastic waste-free hotel in Vietnam in September 2023.
Not to mention business efficiency, just customer satisfaction with environmentally friendly products and services is a success. Staying at Silk Sense, guests will not only stay in a comfortable room but also participate in the hotel's zero plastic waste activities to spread the message of environmental protection - Mr. Tran Thai Do shared.
“Up to now, 25 tourism businesses in the fields of accommodation, tourist attractions, and travel agencies have been granted green tourism certification by the Provincial People's Committee at levels 2/3 and 3/3 of Ngoc Linh ginseng leaves. In addition, nearly 100 tourism units have also signed a commitment to practice and apply the province's Green Tourism criteria during their operations. Thereby, spreading green tourism models, contributing to positioning Quang Nam as a green destination on the tourism map of Vietnam and the world" - Mr. Hong said.
World Travel Awards (WTA) was established in 1993, is a prestigious award recognized worldwide and is considered the "Oscar of the Tourism industry".
The award is held annually to honor outstanding destinations, tourism management agencies, quality tourism service providers, including many categories such as Airlines, hotels, resorts, travel companies, tourist destinations...
