As a young and dynamic city with the orientation of developing services and tourism, Da Nang has soon realised the importance of turning itself into a city of events and festivals for tourists. This is a suitable direction for the development of the city in the coming time.
The process of building a brand of a city of events and festivals contributes to promoting the city’s socio-economic development
A host for international events and festivals
After nearly three years of suspension due to the impact of COVID-19, the Da Nang International Fireworks Festival 2023 makes a comeback to Da Nang from June 2 - July 8, kicking off bustling summer in the city.
In 2017, for the first time, the central coastal city was chosen by the Central Government as the host for the 2017 APEC Economic Leaders' Week (AELW) which was one of the large-scale international events in the country with more than 10,000 attendees, including leaders of 21 economies in the Asia-Pacific region. The success of the event opened up important opportunities for the city to develop.
According to Chairman of the Da Nang Hotel Association Nguyen Duc Quynh, AELW not only brought Da Nang closer to international friends, created more trust for world-class event organisers to bring more conference guests and tourists to Da Nang, but also lured more domestic and foreign tourists to the city.
In the process of developing its brand of a city of events, Da Nang was honoured as “Asia's Leading Festival and Event Destination” at the World Travel Awards (WTAs) Asia & Australasia Gala Ceremony in 2016 and 2019.
According to statistics released from the municipal Department of Culture and Sports, Da Nang hosts an annual average of 23 - 28 festivals and events for all groups of tourists at both home and abroad.
All traditional and folk festivals, cultural exchange festivals, and art programmes have been staged in the form of closed-scale shows to large event spaces. Included are the 5th Asian Beach Games (ABG5) in 2016, the Da Nang International Marathon in August every year, the IRONMAN 70.3 Viet Nam triathlon, the annual New Year Countdown Party, and the ‘Great Da Nang’ Festival.
The successful organisation of festivals and events, along with rapid improvement of infrastructure, and the ease in administrative procedures has helped Da Nang gradually appear on the national event map. However, the city has a lot of work to do in the coming time in order to preserve and sustainably promote the brand of a city of international events and festivals.
Thinking about future events industry
The development orientation to become a centre of regional and international events and festivals is considered a suitable direction for the potential, aspirations and quality of the people of Da Nang.
On that basis, building an events industry is a necessary destination, in line with the general trend in order to maintain and continue to promote the brand that Da Nang has positioned.
Mrs. Duong Le Phuong, Head of the Cultural Management Division under the municipal Department of Culture and Sports, said according to recent research process about the city's cultural industry, festivals and events are not only cultural products but also commercial products and effective communication channels for individuals, organisations, destinations, a country or a region.
In addition, the strong economic growth entails the need to develop professional skills, the demand for entertainment and enjoyment of art forms of all ages, and changes in consumption trends are potential factors for Da Nang to develop the events industry.
Director of the municipal Department of Industry and Trade Le Thi Kim Phuong said that tourism and trade have a mutually supportive and promoting relationship. Therefore, in the coming time, the industry and trade sector will coordinate with the tourism industry to develop a plan to form a number of "spot" markets, creating specific tourism products for the city. These are places to promote local typical commercial products.
Most recently, the municipal government has approved the project on organising annual special cultural events and festivals, associated with a chain of events and cultural festivals at night in the city during the 2022 - 2026 period.
One of the solutions identified by the city is to strengthen cooperation and linkage with neighbouring localities.
Moreover, the focus will be on boosting cultural exchange activities with countries worldwide; as well as strengthen connections with diplomatic missions of countries in Viet Nam (especially those with offices located in Da Nang) to organise international events.
Reporting by Khanh Hoa - Hanh Hoa - Translating by M.Dung