Hanoi (VNA) – Hanoi is working to make abreakthrough in tourism development this year by creating new and distinctiveproducts to attract more domestic and international visitors, according to themunicipal Tourism Department.

The capital city welcomed 208,000 visitors, including 38,000international arrivals, during the three-day New Year holiday, from December31, 2022 to January 2, 2023.

It hopes to attract about 22 million tourists in 2023, rising17.6% from last year, with 3 million foreign arrivals (doubling the figure in2022) and 19 million domestic visitors (up 10.5%). It also targets an increaseof 28.2% in tourism revenue to about 77 trillion VND (nearly 3.3 billion USD).

To that end, Hanoi will step up new types of tourism such asadventure tourism, experience tourism, helicopter tours, hot air balloonservice, and virtual reality travel. It will promote MICE (meetings,incentives, conferences, exhibitions) and golf tourism while hosting more nationaland international cultural, sports, political, social, and festive events, thedepartment told a meeting on January 5.

Night-time tourism products will continue to be renewedthrough the organisation of a wide range of activities in the pedestrian zonessurrounding Hoan Kiem Lake, the ancient Son Tay Fortress, Thien Quang Lake, andThong Nhat Park. Besides, the Tourism Department has been cooperating withtravel companies and destinations, especially relic sites, to design night andexperience tours that capitalise on traditional values.

Notably, night tours of the Thang Long ImperialCitadel and support activities are now available. A night tour for foreignvisitors to this UNESCO-listed heritage site was also launched on January 4.

Thedepartment noted it will work with localities, departments, and sectors to pilotsome agricultural and rural tourism models; boost community-based tourism incraft villages and the areas home to ethnic minority groups such as Ba Vi,Thach That, Quoc Oai, Chuong My, and My Duc districts; and upgrade existingtourism products at relic and heritage sites and craft villages.

Inaddition, the city will enhance tourism partnerships with other localities nationwide and hold more promotion activities in foreign markets likeNortheast Asia, Europe, the US, and India.

Director of the Tourism Department Dang Huong Giang saidHanoi will strive for comprehensive tourism development, in terms of bothquantity and quality of services and visitors, in 2023 so that the sector cantruly recover and help the city maintain its role as a major tourism hub ofVietnam./.