The new ‘Green Travel’ section on the national tourism website vietnam.travel/sustainability set up by the VNAT in collaboration with the Vietnam Tourism Advisory Board (TAB) and the Sustainable Tourism Programme of Switzerland (SSTP) aims to boost tourism activities among foreign expats in Vietnam.

Foreign travellers can find sustainable tourism options through articles introducing responsible tourism, detailing the customs and traditional practices of Vietnamese people, including ethnic minority groups across the country.

The web page includes advertisements promoting destinations that promise to be very attractive but have not been known much for tourism.

Part of the web page Green Travel on the national tourism website www.vietnam.travel/sustainability. Screenshot

Green Travel provides a comprehensive list of Vietnam recognised sustainable tourism products through images and tours to localities with a focus on natural environmental protection and cultural preservation programmes.

Viewers can read about educational, community-responsible and environmentally-friendly tours. They can find sustainable accommodation such as stilt houses, indigenous people's homestays and hotels, and learn more about handmade souvenirs, fabrics, and stationery brands that contain different features of Vietnamese culture.

To ensure the listed companies are standout examples of practising socially and environmentally sustainable tourism, TAB sought the expertise of SSTP consultants to research the contents of the Green Travel section.

The SSTP, the first programme of its kind funded by Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) for Vietnam since 1998, aims to raise the competitiveness and sustainability of Vietnamese tourism.

The programme, which will be implemented until May 2022, targets small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and training establishments through technical assistance.

It popularises sustainable tourism models to SMEs, small hotels and homestay services suppliers so they can expand the presence of sustainable tourism models and products to newly-emerging destinations.

The programme comprises of sub-projects that are built in conformity with the private sector’s demand as well as co-operation of seven training establishments.

Tourism officials said the Green Travel section was the first step in Vietnam’s endeavours to support sustainable travel businesses and assist responsible travellers coming to the country.

Over the coming months, the national tourism website will launch videos showcasing the country’s best sustainable tourism assets and outstanding experiences and will host giveaways for sustainable Vietnamese products and holidays on its social media channels.

Social media users can show their support for responsible travel by searching in GIFs for the keyword ‘greenvietnam’ and posting the stickers to their stories on Instagram and Facebook.

To enhance promotion for tourism amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the VNAT has vowed to continue updating information for tourists around the world.

Recently, it also launched a 'Visit Việt Nam from Home' page on its website to encourage tourists to explore Vietnam from home while the country is still closing its borders with foreign visitors.

The page delivers virtual travel experiences such as 360-degree tours, local food recipes, colouring pages and immersive videos.  VNS

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