Soc Trang Enhances Tourism Potential

Soc Trang Province in the Mekong Delta has a great potential to develop tourism. By effectively exploiting this advantage, the province has gradually turned tourism into a key economic sector.
There are eight historical heritage sites at national level and 20 sites at provincial level in the province, among which the most famous are Doi Pagoda, Dat Set Pagoda and Kh'Leang Pagoda. In addition, Soc Trang is also well-known for a number of tourist sites such as Tan Long Stork Garden, Bon Mat Pagoda, La Han Pagoda and many traditional craft villages of bamboo and rattan products and Pia cake. With more than 70km coastline and a number of islands, the province has many advantages to develop the marine economy including coastal tourism. Apart from King people, Soc Trang is home to ethnic minorities of Kh'Mer and Chinese Vietnamese who have unique festivals such as Ooc Om Boc festival, Ngo boat racing festival, Nghinh Ong festival and Coconut festival. In the recent years, the province has effectively exploited many types of tourism such as culture tourism combined with religious festivals, eco-tourism, homestay tourism and craft village tourism.
Nguyen Tanh, the director of the Soc Trang Province's Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said that unique festivals of Kinh, Kh'Mer and Chinese Vietnamese, attractive architecture style of pagodas, interesting performance arts of Kh'Mer people and traditional craft villages of Pia cake, Chinese sausage and glass paintings are the most attractive tourism products of the province. At present, Soc Trang has enhanced exploiting those advantages based on the policy on diversifying investment resources in tourism. The province has created many favorable conditions for travel agents and local people to take part in the tourism sector. In the first six months of this year, the total number of tourists to Soc Trang was 327,421, equal to 56 percent of annual plan, with 3,218 people being foreign tourists. The number of tourists who stay overnight in Soc Trang was 52,994 people, among which 3,218 people come from foreign countries, equal to 47 percent of annual plan. The revenue from tourism totaled VND39, equal to 50 percent of the plan, marking an increase of 18.2 percent from the same months of last year.
In the first six months of this year, Soc Trang tourism sector recognized five hotels to meet standard and granted four certificates for domestic tourist guides. In addition, the province took part in the 7th Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Festival to advertise the province's tourism sector. At the festival, the province won the third prize for standardized pavilion. At an international agricultural fair for the Mekong Delta opened in Soc Trang in 2011, the province launched five projects including a tourist site in Song Phung Commune, Ho Be Eco-tourist Site in Vinh Chau District, Cu Lao Dung Salt-marsh Tourist Site, An Lac Thon Tourist Site and an express train route from Tran Khe to Con Dao to attract investors inside and outside the province. The province has installed seven direction signs which show the way to local tourist sites.
According to Nguyen Tanh, Soc Trang Province is striving to develop infrastructure system, improve service quality and strengthen human resources to serve tourism development. The province has made plan on cooperating with other provinces to promote tourism. Especially, under assistance of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the province is implementing the project on promoting Ooc Om Boc festival and Ngo boat racing festival to meet national level.
With such a good opportunity, Soc Trang Province is focusing on applying necessary methods to improve the image of the tourism sector through improving qualifications for people who are working in the tourism sector. With enormous efforts, Soc Trang tourism sector will see a strong development in the future.