TRAVEL IN BRIEF 5/2

New tours for foreigners during Tet
HCM City tour operators are launching special tours for foreigners to experience the Tet (Lunar New Year) holidays.
Ben Thanh Tourist, in collaboration with the department of Vietnamese Studies and Vietnamese Language for foreigners of HCM City's University of Social Science and Humanities, is hosting a one-day celebration at Rural Waterways.
The tour, which will start every day from February 14 to 19, includes a visit to a southern family to prepare a special meal for Tet, and includes ostrich riding at Vinh Sang Farm in Vinh Long Province.
The programme on An Binh Islet will offer a chance for foreigners to mix with local people by making lunch, cakes and jams, which are often used during Tet. The tour is US$39 per person for groups of 10.
Saigontourist Travel Service Co. has launched a tour during which foreign tourists learn to make banh tet (traditional sticky rice cake) with a local family in the Mekong Delta's My Tho City. This tour, from saturday to 13, will also take guests to flower markets and ornamental plant gardens in the Mekong Delta.
Saigontourist is also offering a half-day tour every day from February 14 to 17 which takes in Tao Dan Flower Market and Thien Hau Temple in downtown HCM City and includes an hour ride in a cyclo around "Chinatown" in District 5 and a visit to a family to experience Tet, including authentic food.
Foreign tourists flock to Viet Nam
Viet Nam welcomed some 416,000 foreign visitors in January, a year-on-year increase of 20.4 per cent, according to figures released by the Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT). The biggest increase, 94 per cent, was reported by the Chinese tourist group of 59,000 visitors, followed by tourists from Australia (26.3 per cent), Canada (24.3 per cent), South Korea (21.1 per cent), and the US (9.2 per cent).
Also in January, many foreign sea liners have selected Viet Nam as their destination, including Voyages of Discovery with 900 tourists on board, the Spirit of Discovery with 800 visitors and the five-star Costa Classica with 2,000.
With thousands of foreign tourists flocking to Viet Nam during the Lunar New Year, VNAT hopes to welcome between 4.5-4.6 million international visitors this year, up by 18-21 per cent compared to 2009.
Da Nang resort set to open
The 187-room Life Resort Da Nang on Bac My An Beach will officially open on March 20, the Life Resort Management announced.
The opening marks a resurgence of development on this storied stretch of coast between Da Nang and Hoi An. While many of the major chains have plans on hold during the recession, one major 18-hole golf course has opened in the past year, and a second is nearing completion.
Life Resort Da Nang will include nine categories of accommodations, from 67 superior rooms and 91 deluxe rooms to suites and villas and one grande presidential suite. The resort will also feature the 1,400sq.m Nang Spa, with 10 treatment rooms, a fitness centre, tennis courts, a resort pool, conference facilities and several food and beverage outlets, including the 300-seat Senses.
Kiteboard competition round ends
The third round of the 2010 Kiteboard Tour Asia (KTA) concluded at Mui Ne Beach in Binh Thuan Province after four days of tough competition ended last Sunday.
Winners among 70 outstanding athletes from 19 countries including China, Russia, the US, Columbia, Thailand, Spain, Singapore, South Korea, Germany and Viet Nam.
Neil Godbold, KTA executive director, said Mui Ne has good weather and facilities for the sport and a large number of sports lover.
The first and second rounds of the tour were held in the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong. The next round of the tour will take place in the Philippines, and the finals will be in Thailand in late February.