Da Nang (VNA) – Measures to develop cruise-based tourism in thecentral coastal city of Da Nang were discussed at an international conferenceheld in the city on November 15.

The event was attended by representatives from the city leaders, VietnamNational Administration of Tourism (VNAT), Vietnam Tourism Association, cruisesand travel agents.

According to Nguyen Xuan Binh, Vice Director of the municipal Department ofTourism, Da Nang has become a destination for both domestic and foreigntourists thanks to its location near world cultural heritages, diverse tourismproducts and port system which can serve international cruise ships.

An increasing number of tourists from Australia, China, Germany, Spain, and theUK have come to Da Nang city and the Central Highlands region on famous cruiseships like Star Cruises, Costa Cruises, AIDA Cruises, Dream Cruises and HollandAmerica Cruises, among others.

In 2012, 57 foreign cruise ships docked at Da Nang ports, carrying 52,570tourists to the city. Five years later, the city welcomed nearly 87,800tourists on 74 cruise liners. Particularly, Tien Sa port greeted 75 ships with94,000 visitors on board in the first nine months of the year, an increase of25 liners and 62 percent in the number of visitors from the same time in 2017,he added.

However, Da Nang city can lose out on cruise tourism if there is no specialfacility for cruise liners, experts said, given that local ports are currentlytoo busy to receive container ships while the city lacks special stations forsea travellers to do their immigration procedures.

In addition, local tourism products are not attractive enough to foreignvisitors to lengthen their stay in the city. Many liners dock at Da Nang inonly 1-2 days or even leave after a couple of hours.

Ha Bich Lien, advisor at Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd, said that a modern cruiseship can carry nearly 6,000 passengers, 70 percent of whom will make calls tofamous tourist attractions in the locality. Thus, besides fascinating tourismpackages designed for the visitors, entertainment activities should beavailable for those who stay in the ship.

The Asian region is witnessing strong growth in cruise tourism, posing bothopportunities and challenges for Vietnamese tourism sector, Truong Thi ThuHuong from the VNAT’s Department of Travel said, adding that the sector isfacing a fierce competition in luring foreign visitors as well as difficultiesin developing facilities to welcome large and modern ships.

Da Nang city should work to build special ports for cruise ships, diversifytourism products, and improve service quality to shoot to stardom as a renowneddestination for cruise travellers, she noted.-VNA