Visitors at Phú Quốc Island off Kiên Giang Province. — VNA/VNS Photo Lê Huy Hải

KIÊN GIANG — The Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Kiên Giang welcomed nearly 2.3 million visitors in the first quarter of this year, up 44.7 per cent year-on-year, according to the provincial Department of Tourism.

In the first quarter of the year, the number of international tourists visiting the province surged nine-fold over the same period last year to reach more than 207,000.

Tourism revenue totaled more than VNĐ5.36 trillion (US$229 billion), a year-on-year increase of 263 per cent.

Phú Quốc Island received more than 1.55 million tourists in the first three months, up 43 per cent year-on-year.

The province will put more investment in tourism infrastructure development to improve the quality of tourism products and services, said Bùi Quốc Thái, director of the department.

It has strengthened tourism linkages with other cities and provinces and boosted promotion and marketing activities at home and abroad to attract more domestic and foreign tourists, Thái said.

The province’s Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Centre plans to participate in the Vietnam Travel Mart in Hà Nội from April 13 to 16 to promote its tourism potential and enhance tourism investment and cooperation, he said.

To date, the province has attracted investments worth totally VNĐ380 trillion in 328 tourism projects covering more than 10,000 hectares.

Of that figure, 75 projects worth more than VNĐ19.2 trillion are on stream and 84 projects worth VNĐ197.5 trillion are under construction. The remaining 169 projects have been approved and are undergoing investment preparation procedures.

The province’s master plan on tourism development for the 2021-30 period outlines four key areas: Phú Quốc, Hà Tiên-Kiên Lương, Rạch Giá-Kiên Hải, and U Minh Thượng.

Its target is to receive 8.3 million tourists this year, a year-on-year increase of 9.7 per cent. — VNS