DTU and Business

Danang has proved its potential for developing local tourism. Ba Na Hills, the Son Tra Peninsula and Marble Mountain have become key tourist attractions during a holiday in South-East Asia. At the conference, Mr. Tran Chi Cuong, Vice Director of the Danang Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism said: “In the developing a strategy to promote Vietnamese tourism, Danang has been identified as one of the most important centers of tourism in the country. The Danang brand has been recognized by visitors worldwide and ranked high in travel poll preferences. We must continue to act responsibly to protect our status. This conference will therefore continue to promote collaborations to develop tourism and come up with some new, practical ideas from members of our business community to build and promote a recognized branding for Danang.” 

 

 

 Many local and foreign businesses attended the conference

 

The breakthrough in tourist development has helped to reshape our city and the standard of living here has improved. However, Danang businesses must still work together to overcome many of the obstacles and challenges still facing them. Many topics that were raised during the workshop have already become practical issues for the tourist industry.

 

Various topics were presented at the conference, such as “The Status of Danang Tourism Today”, “Current Major Tourist Attractions in Danang”, “The Development Potential of Danang tourism”, “The Future of Tourism: Goals and Orientation”, “The Current Shortcomings of Building the Perfect Tourist Destination”, “How to Build the Perfect Tourist Destination”, and so on. 

 

Contributions to the Development of Danang Tourism 

 

The Conference on Branding Danang involved not only business leaders of relevant government agencies, national business enterprises and educational institutions, but also NGO volunteers and experts from PUM in the Netherlands. 

Professor Guillaume Van Grinsven has more than 45 years working in the entertainment, tourism and hospitality industry, with experience in implementing marketing and branding projects worldwide. He offered participants practical advice on the development of tourism in Danang. He said: ”Danang is a busy, modern city with beautiful beaches and friendly people. You can daily experience the unique Vietnamese lifestyle in the markets in the center of the city. There are many interesting places to visit and enjoy”.

 

Distinguished Teacher Le Cong Co, DTU Provost and President has also worked in the travel industry for many years and said: ”Aware of the important role of a highly qualified workforce in tourism development, DTU has established Tourism and Hospitality as one of our three main training programs. Over the years, we have collaborated with Penn State University, one of the five largest public universities in the USA, to develop international programs in Business Administration, Accounting, Finance and Banking, and Tourism and Hospitality. DTU has steadily improved its quality of education and fully understands the trends and demands of the tourist industry. Free training programs on service skills are available at DTU for students and workers from Quang Nam who are working part-time in restaurants and bars. Once they have been trained, they will be able to serve tourists in the city in a professional manner. So the DTU contribution to hospitality training will help improve bring the standard of service to a new level.”

 

The Conference on Branding Danang will last until mid-October 2013, comprising many sessions. Hundreds of comments sent from the tourism community to the organizers will also prove to be a valuable resource for DTU and businesses to develop training plans for the future.  

 

(Board of Website Editors)