Can Tho Tourism on Path to Become Key Economic Sector

Building and developing tourism products linked with destination brands plays an important role in drawing tourists and creating the tourism identity of Can Tho City. Being aware of this important requirement, over the past time, Can Tho has continuously built, renewed and positioned its destinations and distinctive tourism products, thus developing tourism to become a key economic sector of the city and affirm its position in the new period.

Cai Rang floating market, Can Tho City

Clear changes

On December 29, 2021, the Can Tho City Party Committee issued Resolution 10-NQ/TU on promoting tourism development in the new context; and the City People's Committee launched Plan 144/KH-UBND dated July 6, 2022 on implementation of Resolution 10-NQ/TU.

Accordingly, Can Tho is determined to carry out eight key tasks and solutions in a bid to turn tourism into a key economic sector by 2025, create quality, diverse and highly competitive tourism products and appealing destinations in the region and the country. By 2030, tourism will truly become a key economic sector, accounting for a high share of the city’s gross regional domestic product (GRDP) and driving other industries and fields to develop, speeding up the development of high-quality tourism, enhancing the comparative position of tourism with other localities in the country and in the world, increasing tourist spending and lengthening visitors' stay.

To reach the above goals, Can Tho City has focused on tapping local tourism potential and strengths, affirming its position and role as a tourism center of the Mekong Delta. The tourism market is increasingly expanding, with more diverse tourism products of higher quality. Tourism advertising and promotion has been reformed and focused. Cooperation in tourism development in important tourism markets has been deepened.

The tourism infrastructure system is strongly invested, particularly the rapid development of tourist accommodation facilities. In 2023, Can Tho City has 636 active accommodation facilities, with 10,500 rooms, an increase of 7.1 times and 4.9 times over 2004, respectively. The city is home to 66 travel businesses (23 outbound travel businesses and 43 inbound travel businesses), an increase of 4.1 times from 2004. It has 36 tourist areas and attractions, an increase of 3.3 times compared to 2004.

Besides, Can Tho is gradually forming a system of typical events and festivals at all levels to bring the city’s image to domestic and international friends.

In 2004 - 2023, Can Tho welcomed more than 71 million tourists, representing a year-on-year annual growth of 14%, including more than 28 million visitors using accommodation facilities, an average on-year growth of 16.7%. Total tourism revenue was more than VND34 trillion, an average year-on-year growth of 25.5%. These figures show that tourism is gradually becoming a key economic sector and a positive contributor to the city's growth.

River - garden ecotourism, a typical tourism product of Can Tho City

Further positioning tourism brand

Can Tho is developing many types of tourism, particularly locally strong MICE tourism (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) and river tourism. In the Can Tho Specific Product Development Project for the 2018 - 2020 period, with a vision to 2030, MICE and river tourism are clearly defined as main products, in addition to supporting types like ecotourism, craft village tourism, experiential agritourism, historical and cultural tourism. With this approach, Can Tho is focusing many resources to create a diverse tourism product system, bearing the mark and brand of river culture.

“Building, operating and developing Con Son community tourism brand” is a project led by the Department of Science and Technology, aiming to build and develop the collective brand of “Con Son community tourism” to optimally utilize advantages of indigenous tourism potential in the island. With this project, Con Son tourism will be methodically positioned through brand building and tourism quality improvement towards sustainable development.

Besides Con Son Islet, Cai Rang floating market and Thuan Hung rice paper making village are also being developed projects to position their brands. Specifically, Cai Rang Floating Market Culture Conservation and Development Project has been in place since 2016 with many contents oriented to preserve and promote the floating market culture associated with tourism development. It also aims to build Cai Rang floating market into a destination that appeals to domestic and international tourists, and gradually create a unique brand product for Can Tho tourism. Currently, the project is being adjusted and supplemented in the new phase. Meanwhile, the profession of making Thuan Hung rice paper (Thot Not district) was also recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage and oriented by the locality to be a key tourism brand. The village is expected to help preserve typical local products and gradually turn the craft village into an attractive tourist destination.

The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is working with the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism to build and develop local specialties and agricultural products with tourism and connect OCOP products to destinations and tourist attractions. This is also one of orientations of the Rural Tourism Development Program in new rural construction to 2025. The city determines to “promote sustainable tourism development on the green growth foundation, align with rural tourism development, OCOP products and indigenous cultural values and local strengths; deploy tourism advertising and promotion, build a network of destinations and typical rural tourism products associated with new rural construction.”

On this basis, Can Tho focuses on developing quality, diverse and distinct tourism products imbued with its unique identity, with experience and high added value; building and deploying pilot models for green, responsible and sustainable rural tourism development and gradually positioning the tourism brand for sustainable development.

By Huong Giang, Vietnam Business Forum