New experiences

Located in Dam Thuy commune, Trung Khanh district, Ban Gioc Waterfall is rated as a national scenic spot in the Non Nuoc Cao Bang Geopark area, and is one of the main tourist attractions of Cao Bang province.

Covering about 300m, including the main and the secondary waterfall, Ban Gioc Waterfall is considered the most beautiful waterfall in Vietnam, the largest natural waterfall in Southeast Asia, one of the top 10 most beautiful waterfalls in the world, and is the world's 4th largest waterfall among major waterfalls located on the border between countries.

The natural scene here attracts the attention and love of many domestic and international tourists. However, with a very large space, if only observed with the naked eye, it is difficult for visitors to visualize and fully access all of the destinations of this landscape.

To help visitors have a better experience, a number of digital technology applications have been deployed such as VR 360 to help visitors comprehensively explore landscapes from many different angles, including points above the waterfall.

The second time visiting Ban Gioc Waterfall, Ms. Minh Hoa from Ha Nam Province said: "I want to come back here because the scenery is very beautiful. When looking for information about Ban Gioc Waterfall, in the past I mostly searched on Google. But recently I just learned about the CaoBang Tourism app which has a lot of interesting information and images about Ban Gioc Waterfall. The narration makes me feel relaxed. Using this app, I feel like I have a tour guide guiding me to each place to visit, so I feel very satisfied. Sadly, many people still don't know about the CaoBang Tourism app."

Mr. Ho Hung Duy, 26, from Hanoi said: "This is my first time to Ban Gioc Waterfall, also my first time to Cao Bang. I heard that Ban Gioc Waterfall is one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Southeast Asia, so I really wanted to come here to see it with my own eyes."

After experiencing the CaoBang Tourism app, Ho Hung Duy said: "In my opinion, this app creates a breakthrough in Cao Bang's tourism industry. It shows a panoramic picture of Ban Gioc Waterfall in 360-degree VR, with explanations of each specific location. Even though I don't have a tour guide, through the app, I can still know the details of all locations in Ban Gioc Waterfall."

As a person working in the information technology industry, Ho Hung Duy feels very excited that digital technology products are becoming more and more popular in the tourism field, but also sincerely commented: "The interface should be more user-friendly, more beautiful. At the same time, Cao Bang authorities should further introduce this app on media and social networks so that more people know about this useful application."

A model for smart tourism

Ban Gioc Waterfall is a model for smart tourism, contributing to making tourism the leading industry in digital transformation in Cao Bang province.

Tourists just need to scan the QR code to access the Cao Bang Smart Tourism Portal or the CaoBang Tourism app, select the Ban Gioc Waterfall to quickly have a panoramic picture of this scenic spot and choose the order of destination based on personal preference.

About a month ago, a control gate system integrated with QR code was deployed to enhance the efficiency of smart tourism management. Each admission ticket is assigned a QR code. Thereby, it is possible to accurately count the number of visitors.

A surveillance camera system with 36 cameras and 5 free wifi hotspots was also put into use in October 2023. To date, the devices haven been working well. The surveillance camera system helps increase the effectiveness of monitoring security, while the wifi system helps visitors feel more comfortable when experiencing smart travel.

The smart tourism model has been increasing the satisfaction of domestic and international tourists when coming to Ban Gioc Waterfall, contributing to increasing revenue for Trung Khanh district in particular and Cao Bang province in general.