HCM City — Bằng Lăng stork garden, an attraction in Cần Thơ City with great potential, should be more efficiently managed to help increase the number of tourists to the site, according to authorities.

The 15,000sq.m garden, located in Thốt Nốt District’s Thuận An Ward, is home to 150,000 storks of various types.

Nguyễn Ngọc Thuyền or “Bảy Cò”, the garden’s owner, said the garden was initially 3,600sq.m with most of the land used for rice crops.

In 1983, a flock of small storks flew to Bảy Cò’s garden to seek food. As another 10,000 storks with different sizes joined the flock the following year, Bảy Cò decided to buy more land, plant more trees, and build walls to protect from theft.

Now that Bảy Cò’s garden has attracted more local and international tourists, especially during holiday periods, it is important to offer quality and professional tourism services, Trần Huỳnh Anh, an official of Thốt Nốt District, said.

Cần Thơ City aims to upgrade the area’s infrastructure and build bigger roads that would allow cars, while preserving the garden’s green vibe, she said.

Several stations will be set up to let visitors have the best view and take photos of the storks while not disturbing their natural habitat, she added. 

The garden is listed in the district’s tourism promotion programmes to encourage travel agencies to launch more tours.

Bảy Cò said that he had learned more about developing ecotourism at the Bằng Lăng stork garden.

He has attended several courses on tourism and has visited similar gardens in neighboring provinces to exchange ideas, among other activities.

With a VNĐ1 billion (US$44,400) loan from authorities, he plans to expand the garden to attract more storks, launch a homestay service, and offer interesting experiences to tourists like rescuing injured and baby storks in the area. – VNS