Vietnam rep office opens in Japan

THUA THIEN-HUE Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Nam and Danang are planning to set up a joint representative office in Japan the first office to promote tourism to specific provinces in Vietnam.

Saigon Times media quoted Thua Thien-Hue province’s Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism deputy director, Nguyen Quoc Thanh, saying the province was joining neighbouring Quang Nam and Danang to open an office that would specialise solely on promoting the three provinces.

The scheme has gained support from organisations in Japan, investors, travel firms and Vietnam Airlines in the hope it will put the central provinces firmly on the tourism map in Japan.

“We want to open the office soon since Japan is among the most important markets for us,” he said.

Quang Nam attracted 2.4 million visitors, last year, Danang 1.77 million and Thua Thien-Hue 1.5 million.

Thua Thien-Hue province has 128 km of coastline, 22,000 ha of lagoons and over 200,000 ha of forest. There is an extensive complex of imperial tombs and temples in Hue. The province capital city Hue is best known for its ruined Imperial City that is now a World Heritage site.

Quang Nam is home to three world-renowned attractions – UNESCO World Cultural Heritage sites Hoi An Ancient Town and My Son Sanctuary, and the Cu Lao Cham UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve.

Danang is Vietnam’s third largest city, and is located on the eastern sea coast, midway between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and the largest city of central Vietnam.

The city is a the main gateway for travellers exploring ancient cities such as Hoi An and the Imperial capital of Hue.

For the first eight months of the year, 482,358 Japanese tourists travelled to the country increasing 12.1% during the same period last year.