HÀ NỘI — Every citizen in the country, even those not involved in tourism, should promote the image and culture of Việt Nam so that the industry flourishes and becomes a key economic sector, Deputy Prime Minister Vũ Đức Đam said on Saturday.

He was speaking at a ceremony held at the Hà Nội Opera House, marking the 57th anniversary of the establishment of Việt Nam’s tourism industry (July 9, 1960-2017).

The ceremony saw 91 enterprises receiving the Việt Nam Tourism Award 2017 in various categories.

The awards were introduced in 1999 to honour enterprises which make significant contributions to tourism development by improving service quality, diversifying tourism products, promoting Vietnamese destinations and strengthening international integration.

The 91 awards were given to: Top 10 inbound tour operators; Top 10 domestic tour operators; Top 10 five-star, four-star and three-star hotels; Top five tourist automobile transport businesses; Top 10 restaurants; Top two tourist rest stops; Top seven tourist attractions; Top five tourist sites; Top 10 golf courses; one airline carrying the largest number of passengers; and one airline with the fastest growth in passengers.

Deputy PM Đam highly valued the efforts and contributions of business community to the development of Việt Nam’s tourism sector. Tourism has increased its share of the GDP and job creation, and fostered the growth of other industries, he said.

Việt Nam was ranked 67th among 136 economies in the World Economic Forum (WEF)’s recently released Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) 2017, up eight places over 2015.

However, Đam said that this ranking was still placed modest compared to the huge tourism potential that Việt Nam has.

"I hope that every Vietnamese citizen, even those who do not work in tourism industry, can contribute to promote the image and rich culture of Việt Nam," he said.

The first half of this year has been one of the most remarkable periods in the history of Vietnamese tourism.

Nguyễn Văn Tuấn, director of the Việt Nam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), said at a press conference last week that the number of foreign tourists visiting the country in the first six months crossed 6.2 million, a 30.2 per cent increase over the same period last year. Total income from tourism activities reached approximately VNĐ254.7 trillion (US$11.17 billion), a 27 per cent increase over the same period last year.

Top seven tourist attractions which were honoured this year include:  Imperial Citadel of Thăng Long (Hà Nội), Imperial City (Huế), Temple of Literature (Hà Nội), Vietnamese Women’s Museum (Hà Nội), Việt Nam Museum of Ethnology (Hà Nội), Củ Chi Tunnels (HCM City), Vally of Love (Lâm Đồng).

Top five tourist sites of Việt Nam which were honoured this year include: Hạ Long Bay (Quảng Ninh), Bà Nà Hills (Đà Nẵng), Vinpearl Nha Trang (Khánh Hoà), Vinpearl Phú Quốc (Kiên Giang), and Sầm Sơn Beach (Thanh Hoá). — VNS