HÀ NỘI — An art performance will light up Nha Trang in the central coastal province of Khánh Hòa on December 31 to celebrate New Year’s Eve and announce the National Tourism Year 2019.

With the theme “Nha Trang – Colours of the Sea”, the Visit Việt Nam Year 2019 programme will stage more than 100 festivals and cultural activities to promote sea and island tourism in Nha Trang, said Trần Sơn Hải, Vice Chairman of the Khánh Hòa Province’s People’s Comittee.

“The programme is expected to boost tourism development, contributing to the growth of the local and regional economy in the coming years,” he said. “More tours and destinations will be introduced to meet demand. We will also strengthen co-operation with Khánh Hòa and neighbouring provinces to create a regional tourism network.”

The opening ceremony will be held in May along with a week-long sea festival. Highlights of the Tourism Year programme include the Miss Universe Việt Nam 2019 contest, the Symphony of the Sea festival, a film screening week, a seafood festival and the Miss Tourism ASEAN contest.

Various sport events will be held such as the KN Golf Championship, Vibe Marathon Nha Trang, Challenge Việt Nam, the Hong Kong – Nha Trang yacht race and a jet ski race.

Security and service quality are two urgent problems authorities are trying to address, said Trần Việt Trung, director of the provincial Department of Tourism.

“We tightened management of travel agencies and accommodation providers to ensure good service,” Trung said. “We also set up hotlines to receive feedback and complaints from tourists.”

There are nearly 40,000 rooms in the province to serve increasing demand during the festivals.

“Cam Ranh Airport has been improved to prevent overloading,” he said.

The province received 6.3 million tourists, including 2.8 million foreigners, during 2018. Its target is to welcome 8.5 million tourists, including 3.5 million foreigners, in 2020, and to earn VNĐ70 trillion (US$2.99 billion) in tourism revenue.

Nguyễn Văn Dũng, director of the Bình Định Department of Tourism, said Khánh Hòa Province should also promote regional and national tourism during the National Tourism Year.

“We expect the programme will boost tourism in the central coastal provinces including Bình Định and Phú Yên – localities with beautiful destinations and unique cultural heritage.”

National Tourism Year 2019 in Nha Trang is expected to receive seven million tourists, said Trung.

Nha Trang has 180 kilometres of coastline with beautiful landscapes of Vân Phong, Nha Trang and Cam Ranh bays and many islands. It has huge potential for tourism development. — VNS