Vinpearl set to shine brighter on Hon Tre

What a pearler: Vinpearl’s investors believe the new upgrades will make Hon Tre a leading regional resort

Le Khac Hiep, chairman of the management board of Hon Tre Tourism and Trading Company, the project’s investor, told Vietnam Investment Review that the expanded resort is likely to be completed in the next three years.
The project’s investors, a group of Viet Kieu (overseas Vietnamese) from the Ukraine, believe that the additional facilities will turn Hon Tre, which is still a relatively deserted island, into one of the finest resorts complexes in the region, like Indonesia’s Bali or Singapore’s
Sentosa.
Hon Tre island is about seven minutes off the coast of Nha Trang by motorboat, 450km north of Ho Chi Minh City, and a two-hour drive from Dalat in the Central Highlands.
“Work has already begun on land clearance and infrastructure construction,” said Hiep.
He said the four-star hotel would offer reasonable prices that middle-class Vietnamese could afford, while the five-star bungalow complex, stretching over 40ha along the beach, would be designed for foreign tourists.
The entertainment complex will include a 150ha golf course, 200 villas in the Dam Gia area, and a food court with diverse restaurants and bars. Other facilities for sailing and water sports are being constructed in the northeast part of the island. A 3.5-km cable-car system connecting the island with the mainland will be completed next year.
Last week, Accor, one of the world’s largest hotel and tourism groups, announced that it won the management contract for Vinpearl Resort & Spa.
The current resort, which includes 500 rooms and three large swimming pools, is being re-branded to Accor’s luxury hotel name, Sofitel.
Sofitel Vinpearl is the fifth Sofitel in Vietnam, joining the famous Sofitel Metropole Hanoi, Sofitel Plaza Hanoi, Sofitel Dalat Palace and Sofitel Plaza Saigon.
Patrick Basset, chairman of Accor Asia, said the company plans to launch three more Sofitel hotels – Sofitel Hue, Sofitel Phan Thiet and Sofitel Ha Long. “Vietnam has the fourth largest Accor hotel network in Asia,” he said.
Basset said Accor’s revenue in Vietnam rose more than 30 per cent, while profit growth reached over 45 per cent in the first quarter of this year, thanks to a booming tourism industry, which climbed by 45 per cent during the same period.
Investors in the Hon Tre Tourism and Trading Company also have another major project in Hanoi, Vincom Towers, which is one of the largest trading centres and office buildings in the capital.
With a total investment of VND600 billion ($38 million), Vincom Towers opened last year.