Ho Chi Minh City hospitality industry to see service overhaul, expansion
21/05/08 (GMT+7)
The director of Ho Chi Minh City’s Tourism Department, Dong Thi Kim Vui, spoke with Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberated Sai Gon) newspaper about its plans to develop the hospitality industry.
The tourism growth rate in the city has increased rapidly recently. However, the city has not caught up with demand. There’s still a lack of tourism products and services as well as infrastructure. Can you comment?
The city wants to develop the economy with a focus on services and the hospitality industry. So we have invested a lot in the tourism industry. However, we did not expect the great increase in the number of overseas tourists.
The growth rate of tourists coming to Ho Chi Minh City is currently 15%, but the investment growth rate in hotels is only 3.5%. We have invested in the industry with new projects, but most of them will not be ready until 2010.
Has the shortage of luxury hotels led to a room rate increase in Ho Chi Minh City compared to other cities in the region. Is this the main reason luxury hotels for the first months of the year had a lower occupancy rate?
We do have a shortage of luxury hotels. However, saying the price is higher here than other regional cities is not really true. It is because there is no worldwide standard of setting the number of stars for a hotel. I have been to many countries and have seen a large gap in the grading of stars. Even some five-star hotels in Europe are only equal to a three-star one in Ho Chi Minh City. The services and room requirements reflect the price difference. I think tourists are the ones who can comment best about this.
The occupancy rate at luxury hotels is mainly due to travel agents taking their clients to two-star hotels. In addition, this is the low season for tourism.
What are the strengths of the city’s tourism?
Ho Chi Minh City is the economic and cultural centre of the country. Though it does not have the advantage of scenes of great natural beauty or as many historic sites as other cities and provinces, it functions as a big entrepot for the country and region. Most tourists arrive at the city before transferring to other localities.
Because of this, the city is strengthening the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) market. This is the strength of the city. The city has built an international standard centre for exhibitions and fairs in District 7 which will open later this year.
In addition, the city has also built luxury hotels to serve the MICE market. The tourism revenue here accounts for 45% of the total revenue of national tourism. In the future, the city will focus on developing tourism in Can Gio District.
The city has many plans to develop tourism. What are they?
Ho Chi Minh City is developing tourism in districts 9, Can Gio, and Cu Chi. The city is also building eco – and forest tourism in Can Gio District. These plans are being conducted step by step and will be ready later next year. In addition, the completion of the route from Sac Forest to Can Gio at the same time will contribute to developing tourism in the area.
We are also thinking of promoting so-called leisure and medical tourism, which includes spa and health treatment services. We are encouraging investment in hospitals and healthcare services to develop the preeminent model in the region.
The project to expand the entertainment complex at the Cultural Historical Park in District 9 is also underway. The investment to build six metro routes will also contribute to the tourism sector.
The city also plans on building a walkway on Nguyen Hue Street and upgrading Bach Dang Port. However, these projects are still under study because they are related to other ongoing projects.
What do you think about the city tourism performance?
We are trying to do our best to serve tourists. After two years of launching the Tourist Guard Team, tourists’ security has improved and the number of beggars and peddlers pestering tourists has fallen. However, a macro policy is required to squeeze the sponge out. This situation is not unique to Ho Chi Minh City and is a big problem in other cities.
Public toilets are also a ‘headache’ for us. The East Asia Bank is piloting a model combining an ATM, a library, and public toilets in district 12. We will ask to replicate it in other places in the city if it succeeds.
To solve many of these problems, I think the Government should help tourism businesses by offering a tax incentive on imports and purchase buses with toilets for travel agencies to use.
This is a necessity and there is big demand. Not many travel companies, except Saigontourist, can afford cars due to the high cost.
(Source: Viet Nam News, URL:http://english.vietnamnet.vn/travel/2008/05/783879/)
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