Cat Ba island, off the northern port city of Hai Phong, is set to become an eco-smart island and a national tourism site, according to the city’s tourism development plan period 2017-2020.
The city wants investment in a high-end ecotourism resort and entertainment complex, which will include an aquarium, six-star hotels, a golf course system and entertainment zones.Secretary of Cat Hai district’s Party Committee Bui Trung Nghia said that all internal combustion engine vehicles will be phased out on the island to prevent air pollution. Cable cars and electric vehicles will be used to transport tourists.Hai Phong is working with investors on measures to provide free transportation for locals, he added.As part of the plan, the city has called businesses like Sun Group to invest in an cargo port, tourism wharf, cable car station and logistics site.Southeast Asia’s longest cross-sea bridge, Tan Vu-Lach Huyen, is expected to form a complete transport network by the end of this year, facilitating travel to Cat Ba Island. The 5.4 kilometre bridge connects areas in the east of Hai Phong with Lach Huyen International Port in the island district of Cat Hai and the Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway.In the past seven months, the island welcomed more than 1.4 million visitors and earned 775.9 billion VND (34 million USD) from tourism services, up 10.3 percent and 10 percent, respectively, from the same period last year.Located east of Hai Phong and 150 kilometres from Hanoi, Cat Ba consists of 366 large and small islands, beaches and limestone mountains. In 2004, Cat Ba island was recognised by the UNESCO as a World Biosphere Reserve.-VNA
