The central province of Thua Thien-Hue has now become Vietnam’s second locality after its neighboring Danang City to allow international cruise ships to keep their casinos and free-duty shops operational while at anchor there.

Tourists roam inside a foreign cruise ship in Vietnam. International cruise ships can now dock in Thua Thien-Hue Province with onboard casinos legally open to punters 

Local authorities consulted many agencies and reviewed relevant regulations to come to a decision that foreign-flagged cruise liners are given the go-ahead to dock with their onboard services legally provided, including casinos and free-duty shops, according to Le Huu Minh, deputy director of the provincial tourism department.

Many shipping lines and travel firms said the ban appears to be within a decade-old practice without being written in any law. Therefore, no rules are found to force foreign ships to suspend certain services when they are in Vietnamese waters.

Minh stressed the policy is intended to lure more visitors to Thua Thien-Hue, thereby facilitating the local tourism to become its spearhead economic sector. Especially, sea and rail travelers are high on the province’s list of priorities.

“We enjoy considerable advantages that many European and North American travelers come here to explore our ancient imperial capital and local cultures. Therefore, we are trying our hardest to develop new wharfs and services in order to attract more tourists,” he said.

The first wharf of the Chan May Port can now comfortably accommodate large cruise ships while its wharfs No.2 and 3 are under construction.

Provincial authorities intend to call for more investors to build other wharfs so that Chan May will become an international tourism port providing connections to Halong, Vung Tau, Phu Quoc, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the Philippines.

Last year, foreign cruise ships transported around 79,000 tourists to the province. The figure is forecast to nearly double to 150,000 this year.

Meanwhile, the tourism department has called on 40 local travel firms and hotels to cooperate with the railway sector so as to offer tourists promotional packages.

Notably, it has also come to an agreement with the railway sector to launch carriages on short routes from Hue to Quang Nam, Quang Binh, and Danang with the aim of serving domestic and international travelers as part of its Central Heritage Road Tour.

The number of tourists to Thua Thien-Hue is forecast to reach five million in 2020, a rise of 1.7 million against 2016, with revenues estimated at VND6 trillion. The local tourism and services sector is expected to account for more than 55% of gross regional domestic product, according to the province’s action plan to turn the local tourism into a spearhead economic industry.

Therefore, the province has put forward a slew of solutions to develop infrastructure and new tourism products, as well as promote its image.

SGT