Rebuild and renew tourism products

From the early days of 2022, many tourist attractions in Can Tho city have reopened to welcome tourists, after a long period of hibernation. For example, Son islet (Binh Thuy District Can Tho city) begins to welcome guests with many popular activities such as visiting fish rafts and gardens, making folk cakes with the locals, trying home-grown cuisine on the islet in the middle of the Hau River, listening to Don Ca Tai Tu (traditional music of Southern Vietnam) and so on. The people on Son islet focus on creating open more activities to celebrate Vietnamese Lunar New Year in the countryside with the experience of making jam, wrapping Tet cakes (Cylindrical glutinous rice cake), scooping ditches to catch fish, etc.

At the tourist garden houses in Phong Dien district, the atmosphere is cooler and the landscape is more vivid because this is now the fruit-laden season which is suitable for sightseeing, relaxation, taking pictures in the orchard. In particular, My Khanh Tourist Village has built new products such as colorful flower gardens, charming landscapes, etc. Ong De Tourism Village attracts tourists with a large film studio.

In addition, many large hotels and resorts in Can Tho city such as Mekong Silt Ecolodge, Can Tho Ecolodge, Casa Eco Mekong Resort, Cantho Eco Resort, Hieu'S Cottage, TTC, Con Khuong Resort… are busy decorating, preparing to welcome tourists on Tet holiday. Furthermore, they also build many products suitable to the taste of tourists.

Ninh Kieu Wharf at night

Can Tho focuses on developing the night-time economy in association with tourism

The project of developing the night-time economy in Vietnam has been approved by the Prime Minister in Decision No. 1129/QD-TTg, of which Can Tho is one of 10 provinces and cities selected to pilot the model. On this basis, Can Tho also promotes the development of the night-time economy associated with tourism, in order to create more products in tourism activities and attract more tourists.

According to a survey conducted by officials and tourism experts, overnight activities in Can Tho have focused mainly on food, accounting for 50% of the market share, but the income from this business is still modest and unstable. Therefore, Can Tho city needs to have orientations to diversify entertainment services and increase revenue. The survey results also show that people and tourists also want to have more experience activities, namely street festivals, sunrise viewing areas near Hau river, cultural activities, areas selling regional specialties, street food, and so on.

Mr. Vu Chan Hung, Chairman of Can Tho Tourism Association said: “For many years, Can Tho has not planned a night-time economic development area. An area for overnight economic development will contribute to promoting local economic development, especially creating jobs for many people, and also creating momentum for tourism to develop in a new direction. However, in order to develop the night-time economy, we must have specific plans and focus on two options.

Firstly, it is necessary to build and improve infrastructure, organize cultural, artistic, and culinary activities… at the expected location of the embankment of Hau river, the embankment of Bung Xang lake, and Hai Ba Trung pedestrian street. Accordingly, in need of public-private cooperation, the locality will bid to find suitable investors.

Secondly, the city must stick to the pilot plan of night-time business and service activities in Ninh Kieu district, based on the available infrastructure and services. Ninh Kieu district has a plan to develop night-time economic areas at several specialized routes, such as De Tham and Tran Phu streets for food; Nguyen Trai and Nguyen Viet Hong fashion streets, etc. However, the activities are spread out and there are not many entertainment services on tourism.

Sharing the same opinion, Mr. Nguyen Minh Tuan, Deputy Director in charge of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Can Tho city added: “the city’s tourism has a lot of potentials, but the development has not been commensurate in recent years. The average length of stay of tourists in Can Tho is about 1.5 days, while visitor spending is still low. One of the reasons identified is that the tourism product system of Can Tho is still monotonous, lacks differentiated products, and additional services, especially night-time activities and so on. Therefore, Can Tho tourism has not developed commensurate with the position and development potential of the central city of the Mekong Delta.

Urgently resume flights and transport in Can Tho city

Mr. Le Tien Dung, Director of the Department of Transport of Can Tho city said: “up to now, Can Tho International Airport has restored 4/11 domestic routes after 3 months of suspension due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. In general, from the middle of October 2021 up to now, there have been 183 flights in the Can Tho International Airport with a total of more than 35,730 passengers, which seems to be still modest compared to the pre-pandemic period”.

The reactivated routes include Can Tho - Con Dao, Can Tho - Phu Quoc, Can Tho - Hanoi, Can Tho - Da Nang, and vice versa, currently operated by Vietnam Airlines, Bamboo Airways, Vietjet, and Vasco.

In addition to aviation, after receiving instructions from the Ministry of Transport, the Department of Transport of Can Tho city has also resumed road transport to 16 provinces and cities including An Giang, Bac Lieu, Binh Dinh, Quang Ngai, Ca Mau, Lam Dong, Tra Vinh, Long An, Binh Thuan, and Dong Nai, Tay Ninh, Hau Giang, Kien Giang, Binh Duong, Tien Giang and Ho Chi Minh city with a frequency of 50% of the total number of vehicles.

According to statistics, from October 23rd, 2021 to January 1st, 2022, 5 bus stations in the city of Can Tho operates more than 2,800 trips, transporting over 18,000 passengers.

Since the passengers and people in Can Tho city are still afraid of the Covid-19 pandemic, the current transport volume has not reached the desired level. Compared to the social distancing period, the number of people positive to Covid-19 increased slightly. However, this does not pose a threat. Each bus route from Ho Chi Minh City to Can Tho city and vice versa only has 10-12 passengers. As for air transport, the number of passengers is relatively stable,” said Mr. Dung.