VietExplorer2020

Hanoi’s hotel industry continued to improve in the first quarter of 2023 as domestic and international travel to Vietnam and the city increased, according to research and consulting firm Savills Vietnam.  International visitors at a relic site in Phu Xuyen District, Hanoi. Photo: Hoai Nam/ The Hanoi Times The consulting firm said international visitors to Vietnam increased by 2,900% year-on-year to 2.7 million in January-March. Meanwhile, Hanoi received 5.9 million visitors in the first quarter of this year, up 110% year-on-year. The number of domestic visitors reached 4.9 million, up 75% year-on-year, while international arrivals reached 979,000, an increase of 5,900% compared to the first quarter of 2022. There were 10,260 hotel rooms available in Hanoi, including 17 hotels with five stars, 18 with four stars, and 31 with three stars. Savills Vietnam experts said this supply increased by 1% quarterly and annually. The occupancy rate increased by 35 percentage p...

The annual 2023 Traditional Festival of Hat Mon Temple is scheduled to be held from April 23 to 25 in Hat Mon Commune, Phuc Tho District, Hanoi, promising to attract a large number of locals and visitors. The procession of floating cakes to worship Trung Sisters will be held this year at Hat Mon Temple’s Traditional Festival. Photo: Trong Tung The festival’s highlight is the floating cake and incense offering procession to commemorate the 1980 anniversary of the death of Hai Ba Trung or Trung Sisters (43-2023). According to Nguyen Quoc Thang, head of the management board of Hat Mon Temple Relics, the ritual of offering floating cakes to the Trung Sisters on their death anniversary, which falls on March 6 of the Lunar Calendar, dates back about a thousand years. “The most delicious and beautiful plates of floating cakes prepared by exemplary local households are offered to the Trung Sisters. Meanwhile, for a few days before the date, local people will refrain from ...

The last fortnight has seen major cities across the country excitedly prepare to welcome Christmas, with festive elements found around almost every corner. Primary schools and nurseries can be heard blaring out traditional Christmas songs to welcome arriving students, shopping centres have launched a range of promotions to lure in customers looking to buy gifts, and many businesses and residential buildings have put up an array of festive decorations to mark the occasion. Whilst these aspects of the holiday season have become more prevalent during December in Vietnam over the last few years, many traditional aspects of the festivities have so far failed to emerge in the way Vietnamese people celebrate the holiday. Indeed, it is common for many local people to think that Christmas Day is actually on December 24th as opposed to December 25th as this date coincides with the end of the Christmas sales. I recall one year seeing staff hurriedly removing festive decorations at Royal City ...

Youth plays a substantial role in shaping formal bilateral relations. Marking 50 years of relations, many programmes are held to offer opportunities for young people to practise international communication skills, learn about bilateral relations, and demonstrate their roles in enhancing Vietnam – Japan ties. At the event titled “MIG – Model International Government 2023”. Photo: Dong Vy The History for Everyone – History and Culture Club of the High School for Gifted Students, Hanoi National University of Education on April 16 held an event creating a playground for young people to have the opportunity to experience, learn more about the hottest issues of each country in the world as well as understand the main happenings. everywhere on a global scale. It is the most important event in the active season of the club in Hanoi. With the mission of building a useful playground for pupils and students; help them access, learn and accumulate life skills, useful experiences re...

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc. Photo: MPI Within the framework of the 12th Vietnam-France decentralized cooperation conference taking place from April 13-16, in Hanoi, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc appreciated the conference’s activities to strengthen cooperation between localities of the two countries. According to Deputy Minister Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc, currently, Vietnam is implementing the National Strategy on green growth, accelerating economic restructuring, innovating the growth model, with environmentally sustainable development and social justice. In that context, the potential and opportunities for cooperation between Vietnam and France in the coming time are huge. Along with that, Vietnam encourages and prioritizes attracting quality, focused foreign investment in association with the implementation of policies to support enterprises to promote investment in science and technology, improve prod...

The other three are Bhutan, Singapore, and Timor-Leste’s Ataúro Island. Wanderlust recommended these destinations as well worth visiting if tourists are after an eco-friendly escape. By putting local businesses at the heart of tourism, Quang Nam is proving sustainability starts at home. The province takes advantage of its strengths and pays a lot of attention to the environment.  Therefore, environmentally-friendly tourism products which provide travelers with new and interesting experiences get priority. Visitors can take tours to coconut forests, use organic products, and visit restaurants limiting plastic waste. Reaching Hoi An Ancient Town, visitors can mingle with a green space. Typical tourism products in Hoi An City are cycling around the ancient town and paddling boats along the Hoai River. Recycled and eco-friendly products, such as essential oils, shampoos, and toothbrushes, are recommended souvenirs. Rice fields and coconut forests outside the city will help t...

A Vietnamese cultural, culinary space is opened in Israel’s Netanya city on April 16. Photo: VNA A Vietnamese cultural, culinary space was organised by the Vietnamese Embassy, in Israel’s Netanya city on April 16, VNA reported. The space is expected to popularise the beauty of the Southeast Asian country’s cuisine, culture and tourism while bolstering business cooperation and people-to-people exchanges of the two countries. According to the Vietnam News Agency correspondent in Tel Aviv, attending the event’s opening ceremony were Vietnamese Ambassador to Israel Ly Duc Trung and Netanya city Mayor Miriam Feirberg-Ikar. There are also representatives of the City Council, the City Hotel-Tourism Association; along with hundreds of guests from the diplomatic community, the business community, the Vietnamese community in Israel, international friends who love Vietnamese cuisine. Ambassador Ly Duc Trung said the space will hold several activities monthly, including seminars, ...