(HBO) – Since 2008, Pa Co commune in Mai Chau district has become a vibrant tourist destination, attracting a large number of domestic and international travelers thanks to its unique and attractive products.
Thousands of tourists experience the Mong cultural exchange night market in Mai
Chau district’s Pa Co commune every Saturday night.
Sung Y Do, the owner of "Mong Space”, which is considered a cultural space of
the Mong ethnic people in miniature, said she created the space with a desire
to preserve the cultural beauty of her community.
Visitors to Mong Space will be impressed by stone fences and traditional
housing architecture which is close to nature. They will also have a chance to
try interesting things such as picking tea buds, bathing and soaking feet with
herbal leaves.
Costumes and jewelry of Mong women which were made hundreds of years ago, as
well as flute and some items from ancient times including oil lamps and
baskets, are on display at the Mong Space.
Along with the development of the tourism economy, there are six homestays in
the commune, meeting the accommodation demand of visitors. Among them, A Pao
Homestay is the most favorite destination as it focuses on preserving the
unique identity of the Mong people.
Hua Thanh Tung, a tourist from Hai Duong province said his family and friends
were satisfied when staying at A Pao Homestay, a Mong-style accommodation.
"We enjoy our stay at A Pao Homestay a lot”, he said, adding that the host was
also very enthusiastic to take them to experience other activities, such as
hunting clouds or visiting traditional craft villages and fairs.
Pa Co village welcomes guests all year round. It is mostly crowded on weekends
and public holidays. Particularly, the Mong ethnic cultural exchange night
market, which is organised every Saturday, has become a unique and attractive
tourist product.
Phan A Song, Chairman of the commune Farmers' Association, said that the night
market model gives visitors a sense of the highland market space. They can
enjoy Mong dance performances and participate in cultural exchanges. It also
offers an opportunity for them to buy local specialities, and experience
traditional cuisine, folk games and entertainment with Mong ethnic identity.
With unique products, Pa Co commune's tourism has left many imprints on
visitors and is one of the provincial tourist destinations that attracted the
most visitors on the occasion of the country’s National Day (September 2).
It welcomed over 8,000 visitors during the National Day holiday from September
1-4./.
In the first 9 months of 2024, Hoa Binh province continues to implement the expanded tourism development cooperation program plan of 8 Northwest provinces with Ho Chi Minh City; deploying digital transformation content in tourism and developing a smart tourism province. Hoa Binh province received about 3.6 million views, an increase of 7.9% over the same period. In which, international visitors are about 380 visitors, domestic visitors are estimated at 3 million 220 visitors.
Spanning thousands of hectares and winding gracefully along mountain slopes, hillsides, and riverbanks, the terraced rice fields of Lac Son District present a stunning and captivating beauty. This region, renowned for its remarkable terraced landscapes, is also the centre of Hoa Binh Culture known for numerous archaeological sites.
The life of Mong people in Hang Kia and Pa Co communes of Mai Chau district has improved much thanks to tourism development.
The man-made Hoa Binh Lake, with a water surface area of approximately 9,000 hectares and a capacity of 9.45 billion cubic meters, stretches over 200 kilometers from Hoa Binh to Son La provinces. With the goal of developing into a national tourism area, the Hoa Binh Lake tourism area is expected to not only become the largest tourism centre in the province but also one of the 12 key tourist destinations in the northern midland and mountainous region of Vietnam.
Da Bia hamlet, now Duc Phong, in Tien Phong commune, Da Bac district, was once almost isolated from the outside as the only way to the hamlet was to get a boat ride across the Hoa Binh reservoir. However, as its tourism potential has been unleashed, the hamlet has established itself as one of the most attractive destinations on the tourism map. It has even received the ASEAN Community-Based Tourism Awards in 2019.
In the first 9 months of 2024, Mai Chau district, Hoa Binh province welcomed over 684 thousand visitors to visit and relax. In which, over 516 thousand domestic visitors and more than 168 thousand international visitors. Total revenue from tourism is estimated at over 821 billion VND.