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time, there were no tourism associa-
tions in all of Vietnam. There was de-
bate over whether the Vietnam Na-
tional Administration of Tourism should
run it or whether another organisation
should be set up to do so. “Because no
agreement was reached on the status
of an organisation to lead the initiative
among tourism authorities, the World
Heritage Road could not flourish,” Vinh
recalls.
He adds that this problem could
only have been addressed by estab-
lishing a tourism association for the
whole area. Other issues such as fund-
ing would also have then been handled
more easily, especially following the
construction of the many hotels and
resorts that now operate there.
In fact, tourism in central Vietnam
has developed rapidly over the last few
years, with double-digit growth year
after year. As a result, big name hotel
developers and operators have been
encouraged to come to the area, open-
ing new properties such as Laguna Lang
Co, Crowne Plaza, InterContinental Sun
Peninsula Resort, Hyatt Regency Dan-
ang, The Nam Hai, and many more.
Leisure facilities have also been devel-
oped, such as two new golf courses, a
casino, and a theme park.
According to CBRE, in 2013 Da-
nang’s hospitality market welcomed
17 new developments totalling 1,827
rooms, the highest increase seen for
the last four years. Six of the new ho-
tels are four-star, one five-star, and ten
three-star. It should be noted that only
one of the six new four-star hotels,
the Novotel Premier Han River, is man-
aged by an international group (Accor),
while the others are locally-managed.
2014 will see the addition of 1,567 new
top-tier hotel rooms across 12 develop-
ments. Of these, 1,052 rooms are in
three and four-star properties.
Despite the growing competition,
hotels on the central coast are faring
well. “We are now enjoying the best
business period to date, with occupan-
cy and revenue reaching record highs,”
said Nguyen Duc Quynh, executive as-
sistant manager of the Furama Resort.
Sunrise Hoi An Resort has also ben-
efited from growing tourism in the area.
According to general manager Jean Luc
Bonneau, last year saw 83 per cent oc-
36
timeout
Many golf courses have sprung up over
recent years around the central coast
The central coast is home to many
new resorts, all with spectacular views
Tourism
authorities
in the three
provinces
of central
Vietnam
should
work
together
under an
umbrella to bring the advantage of
each locality into full play.
Huynh Tan Vinh,
General director, Furama Resort Danang