(HBO) – We visited the family of Bui Thi Su in Ai hamlet, Phong Phu commune, Tan Lac district, Hoa Binh province on a day when they were serving a group of 26 French tourists. The visitors came here from Hanoi and had lunch at Su’s house. As scheduled, they would visit Mai Chau after lunch and leave for Thanh Hoa province. Su cooked tofu with tomato sauce and wrapped betel leaves with pork for the guests while her daughter cleaned the house.


Ms. Bui Thi Su is preparing food for tourists.

Su said "Some foreign tourists just like simple food such as roasted meat, tofu, stir-fried and boiled vegetables. Only few want to taste traditional dishes of Muong ethnic people. In the past, when Ai hamlet had not planned to build a community-based tourism village, my family worked on a farm. The whole family earned a living through rice and crop cultivation and forestry. In free time, we had to do other jobs to increase income. Thanks to the State support, my family borrowed loans to upgrade our house, rearrange cages for buffalos, cows and pigs, and build a toilet”.

Currently, on average, each month, Su’s family welcomes 5-10 tourist groups. Apart from collecting 160,000 VND from each guest who stays in her house one day with breakfast and dinner, her family also earns money from raising cattle and growing vegetables. Excluding expenses, her family rakes in 4-5 million VND each month. In days without guests, Su and her spouse could do farming to improve their living.

Ai hamlet has 94 households with over 400 people. In 2016, it was recognised as a community tourism destination with over 50 traditional stilt houses in Muong ancient village. 

At present, there are two households in the hamlet doing community-based tourism. The hamlet could provide a wide range of services for around 40 foreign tourists or 70 domestic ones such as joining art performances, learning cooking, experiencing the daily life of locals, fishing, growing rice, gardening, walking, and cycling./.

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