Tram Chim National Park is Vietnam's fourth Ramsar site

Tram Chim has a total area of more than 7,300 hectares, including a cajuput forest with 10-20 year old trees, covering an area of 3,000 ha, with rich vegetation.  

It is home to over 250 species of waterbirds, 100 species of freshwater fish, 190 species of vascular plants and many species of amphibians, reptiles and other plankton. 

Tram Chim National Park is one of the few places where red-headed cranes, an endangered species in the Red Book, still live and require preservation efforts.

Tram Chim is preserving nearly 3,000 hectares of cajuput, 1,000 hectares of ‘lua troi’ as called by locals (a variety of natural rice growing in the fields full of water all year round), sen (lotus), hoa sung (Nymphaeaceae) and co nan (Eleocharis).

According to Ngo Quang Tuyen, deputy director of the Dong Thap provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Tram Chim is one of seven key tourism sites in the local tourism development plan in 2015-2020. 

It is a ‘miniature Dong Thap Muoi’ (Dong Thap Muoi is an inland wetland in Mekong Delta) with pristine landscapes, cool and fresh climate, special biodiversity and many plants and animal species. It is called the ‘green lung’ of Dong Thap Muoi, a ‘treasure’, or a ‘pearl of the Mekong Delta’.

To develop ecotourism, Tram Chim National Park has cooperated with nearly 30 local households to provide specifically designed tours. 

Locals, for example, row boats to serve travelers on excursions and guide them how to catch fish. As such, travelers can experience the life of fishermen, and catch fish, snails and crab in the flood season. 

Vo Tran Mai Phuong, a traveler from Cao Lanh City, said it was wonderful to experience the flooding season as she spoke with the local people and enjoyed the landscapes of the wetlands. 

Vice president of Dong Thap Tourism Le Huu Tuy confirmed that theere is relatively high demand from urbanites for visiting the wetlands.

In 2017, Tram Chim attracted more than 134,000 visitors, up 28.9 percent over the same period of 2016, bringing total revenue of VND 7.7 billion, up 118.7 percent.

However, deputy director of the Dong Thap provincial Tourism Development Center Vo Tien Thanh affirmed that Dong Thap will not attract travelers at any costs, while ignoring conservation. 

The development of the ecosystem, he said, has a close relation with environmental protection and reasonable natural resources exploitation.

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Thien Nhien