ĐẮK LẮK - Đắk Lắk Province's wide variety of fun cultural activities and festivals have left a lasting impression on tourists during the National Day holiday, highlighting the province's tourism strengths.

During the National Day holiday on September 2, as part of the second Krông Pắc Durian Festival in 2024, Đắk Lắk Province hosted a durian garden experience for the first time.

Visitors were guided along paths to durian gardens, introduced to the cultivation process of durian, learned about three ancient durian trees, and enjoyed freshly picked durians.

Many tourists from across the country, including those visiting the Central Highlands for the first time, were thrilled with this unique experience.

Trần Ngọc My, a tourist from Kiên Giang Province, shared her excitement about visiting and experiencing the durian garden.

She especially appreciated the warm hospitality of the organisers, locals, and volunteers.

My found eating durian right in the garden to be both exciting and delicious.

She was also impressed by other festival activities, such as the street festival, the opening ceremony's art performances, and the DJ music night.

Hà Minh Thiện, a tourist from HCM City, noted that the durian garden tour was an innovative and valuable tourism product.

It allowed visitors to enjoy durian directly from the garden while understanding the hard work behind it, which increased their support for Vietnamese agricultural products.

As a parent, Thiện expressed a desire for Đắk Lắk Province to develop more experiential tours for children to explore.

To prepare for this new tourism product, Krông Pắc District developed infrastructure, decorated a six-hectare garden area of local households in Ea Yông Commune, and provided nine tons of durians for visitors to enjoy for free.

At the tourist sites, there were also activities for sharing experiences in durian cultivation and care, as well as cultural and artistic exchanges.

According to Mai Đình Thọ, chairman of the board of directors and director of the Clean Agricultural Services Cooperative in Krông Pắc District, this innovative tourism product will help connect visitors with farmers in the long term, allowing consumers to receive durians directly from farmers without intermediaries.

This helps address issues related to pricing and product consumption.

The durian gardens offer unique experiences year-round for visitors to enjoy and learn from.

Therefore, the cooperative will continue improving the garden's quality and explore the best tourism methods to attract more tourists.

“For farmers who have long focused solely on production in their gardens, tourism is a new and unfamiliar field. Farmers only have their passion and enthusiasm, so they need support from the government and professional agencies in acquiring tourism knowledge and assistance with procedures and conditions for tourism development,” Mai Đình Thọ emphasised.

Krông Pắc District Party Secretary Trần Hồng Tiến stated that the free durian garden tour is one of the highlights of the second Durian Festival in 2024.

To ensure its success, the district provided support to the clean agriculture cooperatives in terms of infrastructure, transportation, and the establishment of tourist sites. It also trained tour guides and volunteers.

The district hopes that following the success of the Durian Festival, it can develop additional tours for visitors to explore coffee plantations, durian gardens, and enjoy the Central Highlands’ culinary culture.

The district plans to allocate funds to continue training farmers in ecotourism development.

"Sounds of the Highlands"

In addition to the activities of the Durian Festival, this year’s National Day holiday in Đắk Lắk also featured many vibrant events such as the Gong Culture Festival, a scenic plant exhibition in Buôn Ma Thuột City, and the “Sounds of the Highlands” experience at Đắk Lắk Museum.

Various tourist attractions also hosted art performances and cultural exchanges to entertain visitors.

Nguyễn Thanh Long, a tourist from Khánh Hòa Province, said that during this National Day holiday, his company visited Đắk Lắk to both do a tour and learn about tourism development.

The more he explored, the more fascinated he became, gaining valuable insights. Đắk Lắk is rich in the cultural heritage of 49 ethnic groups, with pristine tourist destinations.

His company plans to research tour packages that connect the forests and the sea between the two provinces.

Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Anh, director of KoTam Community Tourism Company, shared that the third Đắk Lắk Gong Culture Festival in 2024, held in the Ako Dhông community tourism village and at the KoTam community tourism site, helps stimulate tourism and contributes to the preservation and promotion of an intangible cultural heritage - the Central Highlands Gong Cultural Space.

The tourism site has carefully prepared, increased its staff, and ensured both excellent service for visitors and a successful festival, linking tourists with the gong culture - the "sounds of the highlands."

Thanks to the efforts of various stakeholders, this year's National Day holiday saw Đắk Lắk’s tourist sites welcome approximately 130,000 visitors, a 168 per cent increase compared to the same holiday in 2023, including an estimated 2,500 international tourists.

The total number of overnight guests reached 75,000, an increase of 188 per cent compared to the previous year. Total tourism revenue during the holiday was estimated at VNĐ85 billion.

Nguyễn Thụy Phương Hiếu, deputy director of the Đắk Lắk Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, said the department had intensified the promotion of holiday activities and tourist attractions to highlight the province's landscape and people.

At the same time, it implemented measures such as ensuring businesses posted clear prices, improved service quality, and prevented any price gouging.

As a result, the number of tourists to Đắk Lắk during this year’s National Day holiday increased significantly, while reinforcing the image of Đắk Lắk’s people as friendly and welcoming. - VNS