Tour operators in HCM City have had to drop so-called floating tours to the Mekong Delta from September to November, which is supposed to be the flooding season in the delta, as floods have not come to the region this year.

Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai, marketing manager of Ben Thanh Tourist, told the Daily that it is a big loss for the company when removing tours to the Mekong Delta during the flooding season as the firm served more than 1,000 guests booking the tour last year.

“As the delta has no flooding season this year, we cannot operate the tour,” she said.

Ben Thanh Tourists started offering the tour to An Giang and Dong Thap Province last year, attracting not only customers from HCMC but northern localities.

Currently, only a few travel firms are offering the tour, including Saigontourist and Fiditour.

Nguyen Ngoc An, director of Fiditour’s Domestic Department, said the firm still offers the tour to An Giang Province but has lured few visitors as people are aware of the low floodwater levels in the delta.

“Last year, the tour was booked every week but so far this year only one group has booked it though Fiditour has run advertisement since August,” he said.

Nguyen Phu Phuc, vice director of tourism center under An Giang Tourimex, reported the same business situation.

In previous years, the center usually cooperated with travel companies in HCM City to bring hundreds of tourists to flooding areas in An Giang Province but this year it has not promoted the service widely.

“Floodwaters are supposed to overwhelm paddy fields in flooding season but so far this year, water has not even reached the fields,” he said.

SGT