Ho Chi Minh City on a Path to Sustainable Development

Saigon travel - Fields, forests, streams, craft villages, orchards… are gradually becoming the new 'destinations' for tourists visiting the eastern part of Ho Chi Minh City. Rural tourism has now opened up opportunities for sustainable development for communities and revitalized the countryside.

The countryside is changing.

Suoi Rao Ecolodge (Xuan Son commune, Ho Chi Minh City ) is situated on a gentle hillside, connected to the lush green Xuan Son protective forest. Few can imagine that nearly 20 years ago, this area was just a barren, rocky wasteland, where only short-term crops like beans, corn, and cassava were grown seasonally.

Ms. Le Thi Nga, owner of Suoi Rao Ecolodge, said: “Initially, I only thought of transforming my 5-hectare plot of barren, rocky land in Suoi Rao into a biodiversity forest to satisfy my passion. To date, the garden has over 1 million trees of various kinds, turning the desolate land into an ecological forest with hills, native trees, medicinal plants, vegetables, flowers, birds, and animals…”

After establishing a diverse ecosystem, I aimed for green tourism”. And the green tourism journey began from there. Suoi Rao Ecolodge now has a restaurant, a tea room, and dozens of villas ranging from 30-140m2, built entirely with environmentally friendly materials such as natural fired bricks, tile roofs, bamboo, and wood… with architecture inspired by the traditional three-compartment houses of Northern and Central Vietnam, as well as the stilt houses of the Central Highlands.

Since September 2024, Suoi Rao Ecolodge has been recognized by the Institute for Applied Research and Business Innovation (3AI) as the first Net Zero Station in the eastern part of the city. Tourists from all over the world have flocked to Suoi Rao Ecolodge to enjoy the fresh air and immerse themselves in the rural nature.

Singh Sukhmandeep, a tourist from Hong Kong, said after a two-week stay at Suoi Rao Ecolodge: “I truly escaped the hustle and bustle of the city and enjoyed the peaceful countryside atmosphere in the eastern part of Ho Chi Minh City.”

Similarly, in recent years, farmers have transformed cocoa-growing areas in eastern Ho Chi Minh City into parks and experiential destinations for tourists. Binon Cacao Park, located in Chau Duc commune (Ho Chi Minh City), covers an area of ??46 hectares, showcasing cocoa cultivation and production, becoming a unique agricultural tourism and experiential destination in the locality.

Here, visitors can not only admire the scenery but also tour the cocoa orchards laden with fruit, taste the sweet and sour flavor of fresh cocoa beans, and observe the entire process from planting, harvesting, fermentation, drying, shelling, etc., to producing cocoa beans.

According to the leaders of Chau Duc commune, Binon Cacao is a model of clean agriculture combined with tourism. This can be considered one of the unique tourism products, making an important contribution to the economic development of the locality.

Also capitalizing on the peaceful atmosphere of the countryside, the ecotourism model at Tu Phuong That Dao (Tam Long ward, Ho Chi Minh City) aims to help people harmonize with nature to discover the sustainable values ??of life.

The Tu Phuong That Dao eco-tourism area was completed in 2016 on an area of ??3 hectares. After several renovations, the area now features structures with a distinctly rustic countryside feel; three sides are surrounded by vast rice fields, and the remaining side by orchards and livestock pens. Thatched huts are built on seven rectangular artificial islands, surrounded by a system of canals and waterways...

Developing agriculture in conjunction with tourism.

Recently, in rural communes in the eastern part of Ho Chi Minh City such as Xuan Son, Chau Duc, Xuyen Moc, Dat Do, Ho Tram, and Long Son, community-based ecotourism and agricultural tourism combined with experiential activities have been developing strongly...

These models have opened up great opportunities for economic development, transforming many purely agricultural areas into attractive tourist destinations; combining agricultural production and serving tourists. This, in turn, extends the length of tourist stays, increases spending, and boosts income for local people…

Mr. Trinh Van Thanh, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Binon Cacao Joint Stock Company (the investor and manager of Binon Cacao Park), said that Binon Cacao officially opened in May 2019. Each year, Binon Cacao attracts more than 10,000 visitors, including many international tourists from South Korea, Japan, Canada, and the United States.

"In the future, we will coordinate with the local authorities to expand the area, connect with farmers growing agricultural crops and fruit trees around the region, especially cocoa trees, following sustainable organic farming practices to expand the agricultural tourism experience. At the same time, we will build a chain of clean, standardized products to serve locals and tourists who want to enjoy and purchase them right at the farm," said Thanh.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Association, the eastern part of the city has favorable natural conditions and climate, along with tens of kilometers of coastline, a system of lakes, rivers, streams, and fields… These are ideal conditions for the locality to diversify its tourism products.

The city's tourism industry is focusing on developing high-quality tourism products and community-based tourism in rural areas. However, depending on the geographical location and natural conditions of each region, the development direction will vary.

Source: https://saigontraveltour.com/sai-gon-travel-blog/rural-tourism-transforms-eastern-ho-chi-minh-city/

Cua Van Floating Center on Journey Back to Life

Halong cruise tours - Amidst the vast expanse of Halong Bay, the Cua Van Floating Cultural Center – a unique aquatic "museum" – is receiving renewed attention following the recent storms, opening up opportunities to continue and spread the distinctive maritime cultural values of the heritage site.

Located in Cua Van, one of the most representative fishing villages in the bay, the Center serves as both an exhibition space and a repository of centuries-old memories of the aquatic communities in Halong Bay. According to research on aquatic culture, Cua Van was formed from the settlement of many ancient fishing villages, most notably Giang Vong and Truc Vong.

With the restoration of the Cua Van Floating Cultural Center, visitors will have a unique destination within the heritage site of Halong Bay.

From around the 17th-18th centuries, fishermen from these villages settled in Halong Bay, building floating houses and traveling by small boats, forming a lifestyle closely connected to the sea. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, residents of Giang Vong, Truc Vong, and other nearby water-dwelling groups gradually converged on the Cua Van area – a sheltered location ideal for anchoring boats – creating a large, bustling fishing village that also became the cultural and social center of the Halong Bay fishing community.

In that historical context, the Cua Van Floating Cultural Center was inaugurated in 2006, within the framework of the Halong Ecological Museum Project funded by the Norwegian Government. It became the first floating cultural center in Vietnam for fishermen and a pioneering ecological museum model connecting heritage with the original living space. According to experts on sustainable tourism development from the UNESCO World Heritage Center, this center not only displays artifacts and tells the story of maritime culture in a vivid and profound way, but also contributes to the development of the local community, raises conservation awareness, and spreads indigenous values.

Accordingly, in nearly two decades of operation, the Center has affirmed its special role in introducing the maritime culture of Halong Bay. Six exhibition themes comprehensively reflect the material and spiritual life of the aquatic inhabitants, from the natural environment, livelihoods, folk knowledge to maritime beliefs and traditional love songs and call-and-response songs. The floating space in the bay allows visitors not only to "see" the culture, but also to "feel" it, through direct experience with the landscape, people, and the rhythm of life that once existed on the water. Therefore, the Center is considered a "special museum," adding humanistic depth to the Halong Bay World Natural Heritage site. It is also a learning and research destination for many scientists and students, both domestic and international, when studying aquatic culture, a unique form of habitation.

However, after nearly 20 years of operation in harsh marine conditions, especially Typhoon Yagi in September 2024 with its strong winds and large waves, the Center suffered serious damage, forcing all operations to temporarily cease. This impact not only caused material losses but also posed a risk of disrupting an important space of memory for the fishing community's culture.

Given this situation, the renovation and upgrading project was proposed by the managing agency and received attention from the Provincial People's Committee and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry assessed the necessity of the project, affirming that it is a project of outstanding value in preserving and promoting cultural heritage associated with the World Natural Heritage site. The Provincial People's Committee has directed specialized agencies to research and propose a project for the renovation, repair, and upgrading of the Center.

Cua Van is both a vibrant living museum and a place that recreates many beautiful and unique cultural features of the coastal inhabitants.

The project is expected to be implemented in 2026. The center will be relocated ashore for repairs, then returned to its original location in the bay, ensuring structural safety, landscape harmony, and minimizing the impact on the heritage environment. More importantly, after its restoration, the center will not only be upgraded technically but also repositioned to serve as a space showcasing the unique maritime and island culture, while also becoming a highlight for heritage education and sustainable cultural tourism.

From ruins after Typhoon Yagi, the revival of the Cua Van Floating Cultural Center is not just about repairing a structure, but about affirming the commitment to preserving and continuing the aquatic culture of Halong Bay as a vibrant part of today's heritage.

Source: https://halong-tour.com/travelnews/halong-bay-restoring-cua-van-floating-cultural-center.php