HCMC tackles tourist safety

HO CHI MINH CITY Ho Chi Minh City’s Department of Tourism is outlining plans to improve safety for tourists.

Saigon Times media reported the city will establish a “tourist help force”, a unit of Voluntary Youth Public Service that was formed in 2006.

VYPS attempts to improve safety for tourists mainly around attractions in districts 1 and 3, including the Notre Dame Cathedral, Post Office, War Remnants Museum, Ben Thanh Market, Reunification Palace, Pham Ngu Lao, Le Loi and Nguyen Hue streets, and Bach Dang Wharf.

The tourist help force will be similar to a scheme in Thailand where volunteers are recruited to assist police and keep and eye on tourists at popular spots.

The main problems for visitors are over enthusiastic street vendors, rogue taxi drivers and pick-pockets.  There are also snatch and flee thieves who ride motor cycles. The passenger grabs a hand bag or camera off the shoulder of  a tourist usually in crowded lanes close to markets and then makes a  fast getaway.

Despite efforts to improve security the government has not approved a plan to establish a tourist police force.

International arrivals in the city account for 50% of the total number of visitors to Vietnam annually, and posted an average increase of 9% per year in the 2011 to 2015 period, the report said.

Ho Chi Minh City tourism officials estimate that the southern city will attract 5.1 million international tourists and 21.8 million domestic tourists in 2016 circulating USD4.8 billion in revenue.

Last year, the city welcomed 4.6 million foreign visitors and 19.3 million domestic tourists, up 4.6% and 13% year-on-year, respectively. Tourism earnings reached over USD 4.1 billion, a 10% increase year-on-year.

The United States, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Malaysia, Australia, Russia, Singapore and France are among the city’s leading tourism supply markets.