Sep
29
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The boom of the Cambodian tourist industry
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We are less than four weeks of the tourist high season in Southeast Asia and Cambodia is optimist to continue its growing boom as an international destiny. The government expects an increase of 15 % in foreign visitors – about 3 million persons entering to the Kingdom of Wonder as it is called in the official tourist promotion. It is already gone the time when Cambodia was avoid as a black stain in the Indochina peninsula, with tourists passing in their planes from Bangkok to Saigon wondering how Cambodia would look like.
A group of Japanese tourists see Angkor Wat in early August 2012.
The tourist development has been also a progressive process. In the beginning foreign visitors came only to the Siem Reap Province, mostly in flights from Bangkok, seeing the temples, while staying in what was then a silent Siem Reap town without nightlife. Phnom Penh was the second stage of that growing as much as the city developed its infrastructure and, although its chaotic traffic – that becomes rather a fun for many -, the city of the four faces, as it was called in the past, has more attractions than what it is imaginable.
Then Cambodia became in the spam of few years a country for either backpackers or more exclusive visitors. Some of its small main towns began to resemble authentic cities: Battambang, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville, casinos were built at its borders as guardians, becoming a direct form of foreign investment and job generators. The natural other time unexplored Cambodian beaches and islands got the attention of national and foreign investors to create from luxury resorts to nightlife streets.
In the middle of those too unexpected attractions discovered by the free walking of foreigners through the country, the best part of Cambodia is its people. Many foreigners started to settle in the country, not those of NGOs or workers of international agencies, but the most diverse kind of persons from the five continents, especially living in the main Cambodian urban areas. One wonders why an European wanted to set in a country like Cambodia and many would answer that they fall in love with the country, that is at the end its people, their culture, their way of being and seeing things with a calm and simple way of enjoying life.
Every year, between November and April, the number of visitors seems to increase and it becomes the spring time of hotels, restaurants, tuk-tuks, casinos, archaeological sites, tourist agencies and business in general. During the tourist high season (THS) 2011-2012 the Ministry of Tourism reported the entrance of 2.88 million foreigners, first to Siem Reap Province and second to the Cambodian capital. It produced earnings for 1.9 billion US dollars, meaning the 12 % of the GDP.
Just to compare how tourism became one of the leading sectors of the Cambodian economy, 118,183 persons arrived to Cambodia in 1993 - it was the year when a new Cambodian constitution was being written and we had an stagnant economy. The number of entrance doubled in 1995 with 219,680 and it is easy to guess that most of them were humanitarian volunteers and workers. In 2000 we see the second big increase with 466,365 and we are already at the start of an economic rehabilitation: 2004 with 1,055,202, then 2007 with 2,015,128 and last year with 2,881,862, so we expect more than 3 million this time.
During the first semester of 2012, the Ministry of Tourism reported that most visitors to Cambodia arrived by land and water ways in 51.6% (905,773 persons) and it is thanks to the improvement of land transport connections with Vietnam, Laos and Thailand. The second way was by plane to the Phnom Penh and Siem Reap international airports (850,879 persons, 48.4 %).
Although many Cambodians prepare for European visitors, in reality it is Vietnam the first provider of tourists for the Kingdom with a share of 21.5 % during the first semester of this year. The second tourist provider was South Korea (12.9%), China (8.6 %), Laos (5.9%) and Thailand (5.2%), which fluctuates according to the political tensions between both countries. In conclusion, Asians are the first tourists and US citizens made the 6th group of visitors during the first six months of the year (5.2 %), followed by another Asian, Japan (4.9%), France (3.4%), Australia (3.3%) and U.K. (3.3%).
It stimulates the economy, of course, creating hundreds of job positions for the growing young Cambodian population. It includes the development of infrastructures and a more universal mentality as soon as Cambodians meet with people from very far cultures. But we see the constructions of hotels, resorts and everything prepare to foreign visitors, while a lack of many other conditions for this people that is rated as so cute by foreigners: Still much to do in education – there is a very reduced number of public universities and most of them centered in the capital. Public health attention continues to be poor in a general view and poverty stays out of the look of tourists passing through the wonderful tourism path.
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Sep
29
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Increasing Russian visitors to Vietnam
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Representatives of a number of local travel firms and high-class hotels attended the tourism fair Leisure 2012 in Russia as the Eastern European nation has emerged as a potential market for Vietnam’s tourism industry.
The enterprises included Saigontourist, Huong Giang, Focus Asia, Anh Duong, Hyatt Regency Danang Resort and Spa, Mui Ne Bay and Ocean Villa.
State management agencies such as the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, and tourism promotion agencies of HCMC, Danang and Binh Thuan also joined the event, which took place last week.
Nguyen Van Khoa, general director of Mui Ne Bay Resort, said that Russia is a huge potential market and the number of Russian tourists coming to Vietnam is expected to increase sharply in the near future.
“Many Russian travel firms have introduced Vietnam to their clients. Russian vacationers currently account for around 40% at our resort and the figure will increase further next season,” Khoa told the Daily on Wednesday.
Pegas Touirstik, one of the Russian firms offering tours to Vietnam, is the most active firm in promoting new destinations and it received excellent feedback from customers at the fair.
The firm only entered the Vietnamese market 12 months ago but its impressive growth is heartening. The enterprise sent 50,000 visitors to Vietnam during the previous travel season and the number is expected to double for the peak season from November to early next year.
Tran Chi Cuong, deputy director of Danang City’s Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said the agency met some Russian travel firms on the sidelines of the fair. The companies insisted they were very keen to bring their clients to the central coastal city.
“We also met leaders of Pegas Touristik. The company promised to double the Russian tourist numbers to Danang,” Cuong said.
Hoang Thi Phong Thu, chairwoman of Anh Duong Co. Ltd., said Russian partners are eyeing new destinations such as Con Dao and Phu Quoc after launching flights to Cam Ranh and Danang. In Cam Ranh, Russian firms have plans to use Boeing airplanes to carry more tourists rather than Airbuses.
However, Russian partners at the fair complained about the lack of Russian-speaking tour guides. If Russia is seen as one of the key markets, manpower training is necessary to meet demand, Thu said.
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Sep
29
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Danang concentrate in hotel development
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Since it is key to the central region and home to multiple beautiful beaches and tourist destinations, Danang is becoming attractive to local and foreign tourists and investors. This explains why hotel and resort development there is at full throttle.
Hotels mushrooming
Two years ago, there were only two five-star hotels in Danang, namely Furama and Hoang Anh Gia Lai. Now, the city has six more hotels of same standard.
The three-star hotel segment also has an additional 10 facilities, while the number of four-star hotels has doubled from two to four. Overall, Danang now has 40 hotels of three to five stars.
It seems the city’s tourism property sector has not felt the impact of a slowdown in the real estate sector. While many hotel projects in other tourist cities have been put on hold or moving at a snail’s pace due to financial distress, investors in Danang have been pressing on with their projects. This is evident in the fact that many hotels and resorts have been up and running along the coastal road connecting Danang and Quang Nam in recent years.
Resort projects are in close proximity along the 10-km coastline, especially the area in Danang. Apart from the large projects such as Hyatt Regency, Vinpearl, Life Style, and Fusion Maia that are in service, workers at other seaside hotel and resort projects are busy putting the finishing touches on these projects.
According to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Danang, there are currently 58 four-to-five-star hotel projects under development citywide, with total registered capital of US$3.4 billion. In addition, a host of small hotels are being built along some streets in the downtown. The pace of hotel construction in Danang is faster than the rest of the country.
At present, it is very difficult for investors to find good locations or coastal sites for new projects, said the tourism department. Therefore, the city has shifted the focus from calling for investment into new hotel projects to accelerating work on the ongoing projects.
Insufficient rooms for majority
Some travel businesses said hotel development in Danang is heating up, but if there was no good planning, it would lead to a hotel room redundancy while types of guest rooms suitable for most tourists would fall short.
In Danang, the domestic market still accounts for a majority of tourist arrivals. Domestic tourists often choose coastal resorts of around three stars. However, most of the coastal resorts are luxurious.
Local and international visitors who can spend several million dong for one-night stay at luxury hotels are in the minority. It is predicted that this segment would not grow significantly in the next few years. This explains why even during peak seasons, the five-star resorts are hardly full.
One of the segments that should be promoted in Danang is coastal hotels affordable to the majority of tourists, said Cao Tri Dung, director of Vitours Travel. “Currently, Danang lacks coastal resorts of three stars or so, with room rates of US$40-50 per night. Tourists have great demand for such rooms, but travel agencies cannot find,” said Dung.
Another problem faced by Danang and other tourist destinations is many investors, especially small ones, lack a clear vision. Seeing the number of tourists coming to the city increasing, they eagerly spend money building hotels, leading to small hotels mushrooming.
For example, on Pham Van Dong Street alone, there are more than 10 small hotels. In some other routes, small hotels are going up but the market has limited share for these projects.
A business in Danang told the Daily that now is a good time to buy a small hotel in the city’s downtown. Many investors are offering hotels of a few dozen rooms, which are only crowded during tourism events such as the International Fireworks Competition or during the peak tourism seasons.
“Since they lack thorough market research, these businesses can hardly earn profits. If you want to buy some, I can take you to a few places,” said the source.
According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, since early 2012, Danang, Quang Nam, Khanh Hoa, Quang Ninh and Binh Thuan have recorded high tourism growth. In particular, tourism revenue in Danang surges sharply, earning the city the third highest tourism revenue of all localities nationwide, only after the two biggest cities Hanoi and HCMC.
According to the tourism department of Danang, in the first eight months of the year, more than 1.87 million tourists arrived in the city, up 8% year-on-year. Total revenues from tourism are estimated at VND4.09 trillion, up 29%. The figure is expected to hit VND5.5 trillion by the year’s end.
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Tourism investment is for Binh Phuoc province
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29/09/2012 09:48:41
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The image of Vietnamese culture in Belgium
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29/09/2012 09:46:04
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Plan of improve tourism in Dalat
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29/09/2012 09:36:36
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Children like to play with bears
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29/09/2012 09:31:50
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Hanoi host the 11th f Promoting Tourism in Asia meeting
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29/09/2012 09:27:38
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Hello Oktoberfest
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29/09/2012 09:22:24
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New Hanoi International film festival comes
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29/09/2012 09:19:49
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Vietnam National Library honors to get books from India envoy
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29/09/2012 09:17:35
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More than 20000 books were introduced readers
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29/09/2012 09:14:53
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