A graduate came up with an idea after completing a bike trip around Việt Nam.

That was to start a tourist accommodation centre in Đà Nẵng where people could cook, wash up and clean up for themselves.

In spite of it being a self-service centre, Phan Mai Thiện Tâm has some students working for her.

She understands them well because she was once a student herself.

After graduating from college and working at a bar in Hội An, Phan Mai Thiện Tâm decided to start out on her own.

Tâm, 24, got the idea to start a homestay service after going on trans-Việt Nam and trans-ASEAN bike trips

With her own money, she rented a full house in an alley on Hoàng Diệu Street in Đà Nẵng.

Tâm and her friends decorated the house in a freestyle manner and called it "An Nhiên House".

The two-storeyed building, which is isolated from most of the noise in city’s downtown area, offers three rooms for short vacationers in Đà Nẵng.

“We intentionally set up a self-service at An Nhiên-Homestay so that guests can feel like they are at home. Visitors can share kitchen, washing machine, bathroom and dining room with the hosts at their price,” Tâm said, adding guests could put whatever they want for using these services.

“I don’t care how much they pay for what they use during their stay here, I just offer them a homely space when visiting Đà Nẵng, a free and relaxing time.”

Tâm, known as Hạ Di on her Facebook, said she started the business to do something that made her feel free and helped others feel the same.

The three-storeyed building, which was rented from a family living far away from Đà Nẵng, has seven rooms, including double-rooms for couples and family rooms for four people with prices of between VNĐ300,000 and 400,000 each day.

“I founded the service as my favourite start-up businesses, allowing tourists to explore real life in Đà Nẵng. Visitors can design a vacation that helps them immerse with locals and enjoy local cuisine. They can also cook their meals with fresh fish and farm produce from a market near An Nhiên Homestay,” Tâm said, adding that the home has two rooms where four-member families or a group of six could stay.

She said guests themselves clean the rooms, wash their clothes and cook their food.

“It’s like their home. They come and go as they like. Security in the living quarter is quite good, and the home is a registered business,” she added

Tâm said the An Nhiên Homestay can host 20 visitors at a time in its seven rooms.

She said she does not spend much time at the house, because guests do everything themselves.

The Đà Nẵng native also employs students to take care of the house, offering them free accommodation.

“I’ve studied in college and understand the difficulties of students living away home. I employ them to work at the house as a chance for them to practise a vocation and pick up some life skills before graduating from college,” she said.

“Students also get a little money from my home service’s profit every month, and that should help them with small expenditures, since accommodation at the house is free,” Tâm said.

Hippy house

Tâm has opened a new homestay service on Mai Xuân Thưởng Street in Thanh Khê District near the city’s bus station and airport, offering six rooms that can accommodate 30 travellers.

Từ Thanh Bình, 22, a student of the Duy Tân College in Đà Nẵng, said he was employed as a manager in the new-opened An Nhiên-Hippy home.

“We are a group of five students including three managers and two staffs. We assign each other work and studying schedules. When I was away in college, other managers will take care,” Bình said.

Bình a native of Bình Định Province, said employees at the An Nhiên-Hippy enjoy group work and free accommodation, and get a little money from the home service.

“The temporary job helps us gain real life skills and practice. It also saves money for us with free accommodation and shared cooking. All of us clean the house, decorate it and host BBQ and music parties on the weekend for tourists,” Bình said.

“The new home offers more choice for tourists as it is located in a residential area with many restaurants, markets and shopping centres. We have bikes for rent and links with travel agencies, booking centres and eateries,” he said.

The student manager said the home is just 500m away from the coast, so guests can enjoy the sea and its breeze after a short walk.

“It’s cheerful home for young hippy types in Đà Nẵng at reasonable cost.”

He said the Hippy house has a room for couples with VNĐ350,000 (US$15.5), while a room for four costs VNĐ400,000 ($17.7).

Laurent, a tourist, said about her time at the An Nhiên Homestay: “If you are looking for a great and relaxing spot in the middle of Đà Nẵng, this is the place to go. Just a few steps from the busy city you will find this beautiful house with the great hosts – they will immediately make you feel at home and will help you with any questions you may have during your stay. I strongly recommend you to stay here if you’re in Đà Nẵng.”

Another visitor, Till, said: “What a nice house in the heart of Đà Nẵng. I could not imagine a better homestay. It’s quiet and has a wonderful terrace where you can enjoy eating outdoors or just have a cup of coffee.”

Homestay service is the latest hospitality sector entrant in the coastal city, following investors pouring funds into international standard hotels and resorts.

“I plan to open more such places in quiet streets near the beaches of Đà Nẵng and the tourism hubs of Huế and Nha Trang,” said Tâm.

“I just want to create an easy choice for tourists when they come to Đà Nẵng, as I have experienced in my own bike trips in ASEAN and Việt Nam. The opportunity to stay in a safe and peaceful house in Đà Nẵng would lure more tourists to the city.” — VNS

GLOSSARY

With her own money, she rented a full house in an alley on Hoàng Diệu Street in Đà Nẵng.

To rent a house means to have the use of it in exchange for paying the owner some money every month.

An alley is a narrow street.

Tâm and her friends decorated the house in a freestyle manner and called it "An Nhiên House".

To decorate a place means to make it look attractive.

Freestyle means without rules and restrictions.

The two-storeyed building, which is isolated from most of the noise in city’s downtown area, offers three rooms for short vacationers in Đà Nẵng.

Each floor of a building is a storey.

Isolated means “far away from”.

Vacationers are people who are on vacation, or holiday.

“We intentionally set up a self-service at An Nhiên-Homestay so that guests can feel like they are at home.”

To intentionally set up a self-service means to set about doing that as the plan you wanted to achieve from the beginning.

A self-service, in this case, is an accommodation centre that involves no waiters, cooks or cleaners. People simply help themselves.

“I don’t care how much they pay for what they use during their stay here, I just offer them a homely space when visiting Đà Nẵng, a free and relaxing time.”

A homely place is a place like home.

“I founded the service as my favourite start-up businesses, allowing tourists to explore real life in Đà Nẵng”

Founded means started from the beginning.

“Security in the living quarter is quite good, and the home is a registered business,” she added.

Security means being free from threats and danger.

A registered business is one that is on the books of the authorities and has met certain standards that the authorities require.

The Đà Nẵng native also employs students to take care of the house, offering them free accommodation.

A Đà Nẵng native is someone who is from that city and nowhere else.

To employ students means to give them jobs.

“I employ them to work at the house as a chance for them to practise a vocation and pick up some life skills before graduating from college,” she said.

A vocation is a job you do with a great sense of duty and interest.

Graduating from a college or university means passing at the end of your course.

“Students also get a little money from my home service’s profit every month, and that should help them with small expenditures, since accommodation at the house is free,” Tâm said.

Expenditures are times when you spend money.

 “We assign each other work and studying schedules.”

Assign means give someone something to do.

Schedules are programmes. 

“The temporary job helps us gain real life skills and practice.”

A temporary job is one that you do for a little while and not permanently.

“The new home offers more choice for tourists as it is located in a residential area with many restaurants, markets and shopping centres.”

 A residential area is an area where people have their homes and is not one where there are businesses and factories.

“It’s cheerful home for young hippy types in Đà Nẵng at reasonable cost.”

Hippies are free-thinking, free-living people.

I strongly recommend you to stay here if you’re in Đà Nẵng.”

Recommend means advise.

Homestay service is the latest hospitality sector entrant in the coastal city, following investors pouring funds into international standard hotels and resorts.

The hospitality sector is the part of the economy that is involved with offering people food and accommodation for recreation.

Investors are people who spend money on things in the hope of making more money out of them.

“The opportunity to stay in a safe and peaceful house in Đà Nẵng would lure more tourists to the city.”

An opportunity is a chance.

To lure more tourists means to attract them.

WORKSHEET

Find words that mean the following in the Word Search:

1. A word that describes free-thinking and free-living people.
2. A type of two-wheeled vehicle you can rent at An Nhiên-Homestay.
3. The number of people who may stay in a VNĐ400,000 room at An Nhiên-Homestay.
4. A place in Đà Nẵng where people like to visit that is not far from An Nhiên-Homestay.
5. A place on the Internet where Phan Mai Thiện Tâm is known as Ha Di.

ANSWERS:

© Duncan Guy/Learn the News/ Viet Nam News 2017

1. Hippy; 2. Bike; 3. Four; 4. Beach; 5. Facebook.