(VOVworld) - Vietnam’s natural and cultural heritages, especially those recognized by UNESCO, have a great attraction for tourists. The tourism sector is seeking ways to effectively exploit these heritages to boost its development.

Hoi An's Pagoda bridge

Vietnam boasts several tangible and intangible heritages including Ha Long Bay, Thang Long Citadel, Temple of Literature, Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park, Hue ancient citadel, Hoi An ancient town, ca tru folk singing, gongs of the Central Highlands and Quan Ho duets. These heritages are vital resources for the development of the tourism sector.  "It’s essential to bring into play values of heritages, relics and culture to enhance tourism development as they are tourism resources that bring tourists the best experience of a country. In return, tourism activities revitalize these heritages, relics and cultural tradition", said Nguyen Van Tuan,General Director of the Vietnam Tourism Administration.

Mr. Mai Tien Dung, Deputy Director of Hanoi’s Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, says tourists are captivated by Hanoi’s cultural values. He says these values will produce large revenues if they are effectively promoted. "The tourism sector can’t develop without cultural heritages, which play a crucial role particularly in Hanoi’s tourism development. The values of these heritages can only be promoted through tourism activities", said Mr. Dung.

Thang Long ancient citadel

Mr. Dung says the exploitation of heritages in tourism activities remains limited because enterprises focus on using the resources but neglect to invest in them. The coordination between localities that have heritages has not been effective. Mr. Ho Tan Cuong, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Nam province says it’s necessary to create unique tourism products to increase revenues for the tourism sector. "We need to enhance cooperation in creating attractive tourist products using available local cultural values and in promotion activities. This will help enhance multicultural characteristics for our tourist products", said Mr. Cuong.

Vietnam’s world heritages are particularly valuable tourist resources to create attractive and competitive tourist products. The Vietnamese tourism sector has paid due attention to preserving and promoting heritage values, especially at tourist fairs inside and outside the country. Heritage tourism is the theme for this year’s National Tourism Year, which begins next week with Hue Festival 2012.