Lao Cai plans to develop Y Ty into a tourist urban area.

Previously, when mentioning tourism in Lao Cai, many people would only think of Sa Pa as an irreplaceable destination. However, in recent years, tourists have shifted their focus to Y Ty – a land with pristine old-growth forests, the majestic The Pa terraced rice valley, and the almost perfectly preserved customs and traditions of the local ethnic groups.

Y Tý is a poor, mountainous border commune located nearly 70km from Sa Pa and almost 100km from Lao Cai city, at an altitude of 2,000m above sea level. Y Tý is most beautiful at two times of the year: the "golden season" from the end of August to around mid-September and the "cloud hunting season" from winter to spring. In late August and early September, when the rice begins to ripen, Y Tý is captivating with the vibrant golden color of the rice fields, stretching endlessly and fragrant with the scent of freshly harvested rice.

In recent years, Y Tý has become a well-known tourist destination, often referred to as the "second Sa Pa" in Lao Cai province. Visitors to Y Tý will experience its rustic, unspoiled beauty and encounter friendly, hospitable people. According to Mr. Pham Van Tam, Chairman of the People's Committee of Y Tý commune, the commune is guiding its residents in developing various service businesses to cater to tourists visiting the area.

Choan Then village in Y Ty commune has been selected for development into a community tourism destination. With nearly 97% of its population being Ha Nhi ethnic people, the area still preserves many traditional cultural features such as festivals, folk games, traditional weaving crafts, unique rammed-earth houses, and distinctive natural landscapes.

To support the local people, agencies, organizations, and local authorities have provided them with basic knowledge about community tourism, training in skills such as welcoming and serving tourists, cultural communication and behavior, and developing sustainable community tourism that is responsible towards the natural environment. The development of community tourism in Y Tý has helped to increase people's income while contributing to the preservation and development of the traditional cultural values ​​of the local ethnic communities.

In 2019 alone, Y Tý welcomed over 16,000 tourists, including more than 100 foreign visitors, generating over 6 billion VND in tourism revenue. This contributed to reducing the poverty rate in the locality and increasing the income of many families in this remote border area.

Recently, the Bat Xat District Party Committee passed a resolution selecting tourism development as one of its three breakthrough areas, focusing on developing and building Y Ty into a tourism center of Lao Cai province. According to the Secretary of the Bat Xat District Party Committee, Nguyen Trung Trieu, the general planning for the construction of the Y Ty tourist town will serve as a basis for investment and development of the Y Ty area to achieve a type V urban area, leading to the establishment of Y Ty town in the near future.

The Y Tý master plan will serve as the foundation for detailed planning of functional areas, infrastructure investment, investment attraction, population resettlement, land management, construction order, etc., aiming to form a Y Tý tourist city with the distinctive characteristics of the Northwest mountainous region, linked to conservation and sustainable development.

In the future, this area will develop into a new tourist and administrative urban area called Y Tý, divided into two distinct zones and seven sub-zones. These are: a conservation and community tourism development zone; a themed park and resort tourism zone; a sports and recreation zone; an administrative center zone; an experiential tourism and nature exploration zone; an urban development zone; and an agricultural and forestry development and production zone.

To ensure sustainable tourism development in Y Tý without losing its natural beauty, and to help local people reduce poverty sustainably, Bát Xát district is implementing a policy of strongly developing community-based tourism associated with preserving and promoting the cultural identity of ethnic minorities in the area.

My Tong