Mù Cang Chải District in the northern province of Yên Bái is one of the popular destinations in the north of Việt Nam. — VNA/VNS Photo Đỗ Tuấn Anh

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam has made the shortlist for the prestigious World Travel Awards, in not one, not two, but six categories.

The country has been nominated in the 2019 awards for Leading City Destination, Leading Cultural City Destination, Leading Culinary Destination, Leading Culture Destination, Leading Destination and Leading Tourism Board.

It is the first time the country has been nominated in the culinary category.

According to Vietnam Administration of Tourism, the country has made significant strides in the past three years, almost doubling the amount of visitors from 7.9 million in 2015 to 15.5 million in 2018.

According to annual evaluation of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, the 25 per cent annual increase in visitor numbers was the highest on the planet.

In the recently Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index 2019 released by the World Economic Forum (WEF), Việt Nam’s cultural resources is ranked 29th among 140 countries and territories, the runner-up in the Southeast Asia and the natural resources of the country is ranked 35th among 140 countries and territories, standing in the third position of the region.

Such achievements are considered as outstanding strengths of Việt Nam’s tourism, making it being included in the world’s top lists by WEF.

Việt Nam has also become the destinations for more and more tourists and renowned international brand name products worldwide.

Famous landscapes like Hạ Long Bay or Ninh Bình were chosen as the backstage for Hollywood blockbuster Kong: Skull Island or most recently, Việt Nam has been featured in Louis Vuitton’s latest advertisement campaign The Spirit of Travel.

The Asia region gala ceremonies of World Travel Awards will take place on October 12 on Phú Quốc Island located in the southern province of Kiên Giang. Regional winners then compete head to head in the world categories. The winners will be announced on the night of World Travel Awards Grand Final in Muscat, Oman in November 2019.

In order to vote, audiences can access https://www.worldtravelawards.com/vote. The vote will close on October 20.

Established in 1993, World Travel Awards aims to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries. The awards have been recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of industry excellence and dubbed as the Oscars of Travel and Tourism by The Wall Street Journal. — VNS