From May 2022, Hai Phong Department of Tourism will issue a map of delicious food and distribute it free of charge to passengers at Hai Phong station. Photo: Hai Phong Department of Tourism
"Explosion" of Hai Phong Foodtour
In 2022, the goal of Hai Phong tourism after reopening tourism activities is to exploit the domestic tourist market with close distance and reasonable cost, taking the domestic tourist market as the driving force for recovery. On March 15, 2022, Hai Phong Department of Tourism introduced Hai Phong Foodtour as a suitable strategic product.
Shortly after, Hai Phong Foodtour became an explosive trend on social networking platforms, a favorite product of tourists, especially young people, students. The number of passengers traveling by Hanoi - Hai Phong railway in 2022 was 700,000 people, 5 times higher than in 2021. From April to October alone, the number of passengers increased 10 times over the same period. The number of passengers traveling by train on weekends and holidays averaged more than 4,000 passengers/day.
To best prepare the conditions for tourists to visit and experience Hai Phong Foodtour, the Department of Tourism has researched, designed, published and distributed free maps of delicious dishes in Hai Phong, maps of check-in coordinates for tourists. In collaboration with young people reviewing cuisine and tourism, the video clip "Hai Phong around check-in" was produced and posted on online media channels, attracting a lot of attention from people and tourists. The Department of Tourism organized a peak period of propaganda and signed a commitment to food hygiene and safety, civilized tourism behavior, and selling at the listed price for restaurant, eatery and hotel owners to build a good image of Hai Phong people with tourists.
Ms. Pham Thuy Mai (Tu Son City, Bac Ninh) - shared: After 3 times experiencing Foodtour, she has enjoyed almost all the dishes in the Hai Phong Delicious Food Map. The most recent time, Ms. Mai and her family experienced the foodtour by public bicycle. "Cycling around the city in the afternoon, enjoying delicious dishes from crab rice noodles, su din, spicy bread, Thai sweet soup... is a memorable experience for my family. Hopefully, during the upcoming April 30 and May 1 holidays, my family will have more interesting experiences in Hai Phong, discovering many delicious restaurants with enthusiastic service" - Ms. Mai said.
Focus on promoting tourism on social networking platforms
In order to improve service quality, especially emphasizing the sustainable development of Hai Phong Foodtour, the Department of Tourism has built and launched the digital map of Hai Phong City tour with the address https://haiphongcitytour.vn/ following a youthful, modern, professional and easy-to-use trend.
The digital map provides suggestions and directions for visitors to dining locations, check-in points, hotels, etc. according to their needs. Visitors can directly evaluate the quality of service and satisfaction after the actual experience; create their own schedule, share with friends, colleagues, relatives, etc.
The Department of Tourism also cooperated with Traveloka to launch the Hai Phong online tourism trading floor with useful addresses and tourism information, convenient online travel booking support operations with many added benefits for tourists when experiencing tourism in Hai Phong. In just the first 3 months of implementation, the Hai Phong online trading floor received positive feedback from businesses and tourists. The Hai Phong City Tour digital map attracted more than 10,000 visits and information searches.
To promote and boost tourism, in addition to participating in tourism promotion at major domestic and international tourism fairs, the Department of Tourism has promoted the city's destinations on the website dulichhaiphong.gov.vn; sodulich.haiphong.gov.vn and social networking platforms, attracting over 20,000 followers.
Website: dulichhaiphong.gov.vn also opens a Hai Phong Review section for tourists to proactively post articles to share experiences, creating multi-dimensional, fast and close interaction between state management agencies, tourism service businesses and tourists.
Mr. Vu Huy Thuong - Deputy Director of Hai Phong Department of Tourism - said: With efforts in product development and innovation in tourism promotion, in 2022, Hai Phong tourism welcomed and served 7 million visitors, an increase of 89% over the same period, exceeding 55% of the 2022 plan. Revenue reached 6,300 billion, an increase of 98% over the same period in 2021.
In just the first two months of 2023, the city welcomed and served 913,622 thousand visitors, an increase of 28.45% over the same period; revenue reached 822,259 billion VND. This is considered a positive signal for Hai Phong tourism after a period of being affected by the epidemic.
