Hoa Lu City, with its distinctive historical and cultural values, has become and is continuing to develop as an ideal destination for cultural and heritage tourism. This city is home to prominent historical sites such as the Ancient Capital of Hoa Lu, the Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex, Bai Dinh Pagoda, and Tam Coc - Bich Dong. These landmarks are not only of historical significance but also contain unique cultural elements, representing great potential for the development of sustainable tourism.

With its superior potential and advantages in cultural heritage, natural landscapes, and diverse cultural communities, along with strong investments in tourism infrastructure, Hoa Lu City has the capability to become one of the top tourist destinations in Vietnam and Southeast Asia.

In recent years, Ninh Binh Province has focused resources on developing the technical infrastructure of the tourism industry, building modern cultural institutions that strongly reflect the identity of the ancient capital of Hoa Lu, with a history spanning a thousand years. The province has upgraded urban technical infrastructure systems and improved the landscape. Ninh Binh has also promoted the exploitation of resources to develop cultural tourism, creating and developing tourism products linked to the brand of the heritage urban destination. Among these, ecological tourism, green tourism combined with culture, history, and heritage has been identified as one of the important highlights for building specific products.

The heritage economy model in Ninh Binh has been asserting its brand and position in the province’s economic structure. Most of the cultural heritage sites have been researched, identified, and clarified, and the local people voluntarily preserve and promote these in their social life. Many tourism products linked to the Trang An Heritage, Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, and intangible cultural heritage values have been recognized in both domestic and international markets, becoming attractive, characteristic products and pillars of the province, drawing large numbers of domestic and international visitors. Prominent destinations such as Trang An Ecological Tourism Area, Tam Coc - Bich Dong, Hoa Lu Ancient Capital, Thung Nham Ecological Tourism Area, Mua Cave, etc., have created a strong attraction.

Many cultural, tourism, and sports events have also been held annually, such as the Ninh Binh Tourism Week "Golden Colors of Tam Coc - Trang An," Ninh Binh Festival, and music performances featuring domestic and international artists. This year, the tourism sector is actively coordinating the organization of music tourism events to attract visitors, including the "Forestival" program with the theme "Heart of Heritage" at Khe Coc Island - Trang An, scheduled for May 31, and the "Heritage Legends" program at Tam Coc Pier, scheduled for April 30-May 1. Traditional craft village performances will be organized on May 2 at Tam Coc - Bich Dong.

Thanks to the application of comprehensive solutions and the involvement of the entire political system, the business community, and local residents, the role, position, and tourism brand of Ninh Binh Province have been increasingly enhanced. Ninh Binh tourism continues to receive major recognition through many prestigious awards from international organizations and media outlets, such as "Top 10 Most Attractive Experiences of 2024," "Top 10 Friendliest Destinations in the World," and Forbes International magazine ranking Ninh Binh in 4th place in the "Top 10 World Wonders for People Who Don’t Like Crowds." In the first three months of 2025, the province welcomed over 4.4 million visitors, a 13.4% increase compared to the same period last year, with 535 thousand international visitors, up 40.8% from the same period in 2024. Revenue reached nearly 4.7 trillion VND, up 29.3% compared to the previous year.

However, alongside the achievements, cultural tourism and heritage tourism activities in Hoa Lu City still face some limitations. Specifically, the integration of tourism with cultural heritage has yet to reach a deeper level, lacking breakthrough products. Investment resources to improve the quality of cultural tourism and heritage tourism products remain limited. The conservation and promotion of cultural heritage values also face difficulties and challenges. The number of deteriorated or encroached heritage sites is still significant, and public awareness about heritage protection remains insufficient. Cultural tourism products have not been effectively exploited, lacking high-quality services, with low competitiveness, and many products are repetitive, monotonous, and saturated in the market.

On March 4, 2024, the Prime Minister issued Decision No. 218/QD-TTg, approving the Ninh Binh Provincial Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050. The goal is to "build Hoa Lu City into a centrally governed city with a millennium-old heritage urban identity, a creative city; a large center with high-value tourism, cultural industry, and heritage economy brands for the entire country and the Asia-Pacific region." To implement this direction, restructuring cultural and heritage tourism products in Hoa Lu towards a cultural industry model and building an international tourism brand can focus on the following solutions:

1. Focus on planning and managing architecture and landscapes: Strict management of architecture and landscapes in heritage sites and urban-rural areas is necessary to effectively exploit cultural, historical, and natural values. Heritage conservation combined with development planning will create harmonious connections, providing distinctive highlights for a heritage urban area, contributing to enhancing the tourism image of Ninh Binh.
2. Invest in developing tourism products linked to the cultural industry: It is essential to build experiential tourism products based on Hoa Lu’s cultural heritage, such as live shows, living museums, and tours that recreate history, spirituality, and pilgrimage, as well as traditional craft village spaces.
3. Build the International Tourism City brand: To make Hoa Lu an international tourism destination, it is necessary to establish cooperative links with international tourism partners, intensify promotional and marketing programs to potential tourism markets, especially traditional markets such as Asia and Europe. International tourism events, such as cultural festivals, heritage night markets, film tourism, heritage seminars, and international-scale art events, should be created.
4. Establish and improve mechanisms and policies to support tourism development: Policies regarding land use, urban planning, and taxes should be prioritized to create favorable legal frameworks for the development of cultural industries and tourism, while enhancing investment attraction and tourism infrastructure development.
5. Develop high-quality human resources for the tourism sector: It is necessary to build a plan for human resource development, training a professional, modern, and experienced tourism workforce, particularly in cultural tourism and heritage tourism. Additionally, encouraging enterprises, artisans, and experts to participate in training tourism staff is essential.

With its outstanding potential and comprehensive solutions, I believe that Hoa Lu City will continue to grow stronger, becoming an international tourism destination, contributing to enhancing the value of cultural heritage and promoting sustainable economic development for Ninh Binh Province.

BBT