1. Viet Nam’s folk singing honoured with UNESCO recognition
Two more activities showcasing Viet Nam’s cultural heritage have been added to the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO, xoan singing and the art of bai choi.
Particularly, xoan singing was removed from the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding and moved to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This was thanks to the efforts of Phu Tho’s communities and authorities in preserving the heritage and upgrading the art form in the past six years.
In total, Viet Nam presently has 11 Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity and one inscribed on the list of intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding – tru singing.
2. Bai Tu Long National Park recognised as an ASEAN Heritage Park
Bai Tu Long National Park in Quang Ninh was recognised as the 38th ASEAN Heritage Park in May 2017.
The criteria to become an ASEAN Heritage Park include ecological integrity, preservation of genetic diversity, sustainable utilisation of resources and the provision of opportunities for outdoor recreation, tourism, education and research.
The park covers a total area of nearly 16 hectares with more than nine hectares of sea and six hectares of islands. It is home to nearly 2,000 species of flora and fauna, of which 72 animal species and 30 plant species have been listed in the Việt Nam Red Book.
The ASEAN Heritage Park programme is an initiative by the ASEAN Working Group on Nature Conservation and Biodiversity implemented since 2002.
3. Heritage festival boosts central region’s tourism
The sixth Quang Nam Heritage Festival opened on June 9 at Tam Thanh Beach, aiming to give visitors insight into the province’s as a land with a variety of wonders found in its plains, coast, islands and remote inland areas.
Various cultural activities were held in Hoi An City and throughout Quang Nam Province during the week-long event, including an international choir competition gathering 32 choral groups from 15 countries and territories, and a kite festival gathering 100 artisans from 12 nations.
That week, Hoi An City hosted the International Food Festival as well as the “World and Viet Nam silk festival” with the participation of the silk association around the world and fashion designers from more than 10 countries.
On this occasion, from June 10-13, the first ever Ngọc Linh ginseng festival took place at the foot of Ngọc Linh Mountain in Nam Tra My District. It introduced visitors to the value of Vietnamese ginseng trees.
4. The first-ever festival honouring the country’s wildest waterfall
A waterfall festival was held for the first time on October 7-8 at the Ban Gioc Waterfall Tourism Complex in Dam Thuy Commune, Trung Khanh District, in Cao Bang. The festival, the first of its kind in the region, aims to promote the image of the province and its people to domestic and international tourists.
Ban Gioc Waterfall is one of Viet Nam’s most impressive natural sights. Thirty metres high and 300 metres across, it is the widest, but not the highest, in the country. The falls lie on the beautiful jade-blue water of the Quay Son River as it flows through a pastoral landscape of rice fields and bamboo groves, surrounded by limestone mountains.
5. US director named VN Tourism Ambassador
Kong: Skull Island director Jordan Vogt-Roberts was appointed Viet Nam’s Tourism Ambassador from 2017-20 by the Viet Nam Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on March 13. Vogt-Roberts was the first film director to take on the position, which aims to promote the image of both Việt Nam’s people and culture to international friends and to bring the country closer to Hollywood film producers and directors.
Since taking the post, the ambassador has actively participated in various events and projects to promote the country’s culture and tourism including calling for scholarships from the US and some other countries for Vietnamese students, organising charity events and assisting local communities to develop tourism activities.
6. Viet Nam receives record foreign visitors
