People benefit from community-based tourism

Cat Ba - illustration photo

Tourists will be able to enjoy interesting tourism services in Cat Ba island, Cat Hai district of the northern port city of Haiphong at any time of the year.

Visitors can enjoy Lan Ha Bay’s beautiful views and visit community tourist spots in Viet Hai, Xuan Dam, Hien Hao and Gia Luan communes with local residents acting as tour guides.

With this new model, local people receive direct income from tourist services, a much higher income than from pure agricultural production, said chairman of the Cat Hai District People’s Committee Bui Trung Nghia.

In addition, the model has promoted infrastructure development, increased job generation and cultural exchange and improved local people’s social awareness of maintaining border security and cultural preservation, he said.

He said Viet Hai commune was the most attractive tourist destination, due to its advantages of natural resources and the native culture and unexplored landscape of the core region of the world’s Cat Ba biosphere reserve.

To develop community-based tourist spots, Viet Hai commune has built farms for lucrative animals and wild animals that need to be protected, Vietnamese-style houses and environmentally friendly resorts offering traditional herbs for disease treatment.

Apart from Viet Hai, Cat Ba has other tourist sites for investment, such as Xuan Dam, Tran Chau, Gia Luan communes with models of traditional fruit trees – the province’s specialties.

Hoang Xuan Dung from Gia Luan commune said his family could earn between VND20-40 million ($1,000-2,000) each year from fruit and tourism services.

According to the Haiphong Tourism Department, Cat Ba is expected to receive 1.2 million tourists in 2011.