(VOVWORLD) - The northern mountainous province of Ha Giang held a ceremony on Saturday to receive UNESCO’s recognition of the Dong Van Karst Plateau as a global geopark for the third time.
 The Dong Van Karst Plateau. (Photo: VNA) |
The province also launched the 2023 Buckwheat Flower Festival, which honors the locality’s most iconic flower and the unique cultural values of local ethnic people.
The Dong Van Karst Plateau has become an attractive destination for domestic and international tourists, along with its diverse and unique tourist products and attractions such as the Lung Cu flagpole, Vuong Mansion relic site, the Dong Van Old Quarter, Tu San canyon, Ma Pi Leng pass, the Mong Panpipe Festival, and Khau Vai love market.
The number of visitors to Ha Giang increased sharply from just 2,000 in 2010 to 2.2 million in 2022 and the figure is expected to reach over 3 million this year.
In 2010, the Dong Van Karst Plateau was recognized by UNESCO as an official member of the Global Geo-parks Network (GGN), becoming Vietnam's first geological park and the second in Southeast Asia.
In 2014 and 2019, UNESCO re-recognized the Dong Van Karst Plateau as a member of the UNESCO Global Geopark network in the 2015-2018 period and the 2019-2022 period.