Khanh Hoa (VNA) – The Nha Trang Sea Tourism Festival 2024 themed “Nha Trang 🐈bay- sparkling pearl” opened in Nha Trang city, the south – central province of Khanh Hoa, on June 13 evening.

The event, the second of its kind, aims to honour the beauty of Nha Trang bay, contributing to popularising the beauty, potential, and strengths of Nha Trang, towards attracting more holiday-makers, and domestic and international investors, thus contributing to the locality’s socio-economic development. Addressing the opening ceremony, Director of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s Vietnam National Authority of Tourism Nguyen Trung Khanh highlighted the vital role played by the tourism industry, calling it an important comprehensive economic sector for promoting the development of cooperation, cultural exchange, and international integration. Vietnam's tourism sector has recorded breakthroughs in recent years, become a highlight on the global tourism map, and been recognised by the international community with numerous top awards, he said. In the first five months of this year, Vietnam welcomed about 7.6 million international visitors and served 52.5 million domestic tourists, earning an estimated 352 trillion VND (over 13.83 billion USD). Nha Trang is emerging as an attractive coastal tourist city for both domestic and international visitors, serving as the gateway and heart of the south-central coast and central highlands regions, Khanh said, adding that the locality is also a premier location for hosting international events. In his opening speech, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Dinh Van Thieu said with many cultural activities and festivals reflecting traditional and contemporary culture values, the festival is part of the locality’s efforts to preserve and promote the cultural essence of the nation in general, and the Nha Trang-Khanh Hoa region in particular. The four-day festival features a string of cultural and sports activities, including a 200-pavilion fair showcasing tourism products and cuisine. The festival is expected to welcome 350,000 – 400,000 local and international visitors./.