Located on the outskirts of Hanoi, Dong Anh District is famous for its tourist attractions such as Nam Hong Tunnels, Co Loa Citadel, and Cao Lo Temple. Tourists are also attracted by unique traditional festivals such as the Co Loa Festival, An Duong Vuong Temple Festival, Sai Temple Festival, and cultural attractions such as the Dao Thuc water puppet show, and cheo singing (traditional operetta).

With 134 cultural relics of national importance, Dong Anh district has good conditions for the promotion of the tourism economy.

Rich culture

Dong Anh district is located in the north of Hanoi. It was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Au Lac under the reign of King An Duong Vuong (257-207 BC). Dong Anh has a wealth of cultural heritage, which includes historical relics associated with traditional festivals and handicraft villages. This provides huge opportunities for the socio-economic development of the county.

There are 413 historical and religious relics, including one special national relic (Co Loa Citadel), 64 national-level relics, and 70 city-level relics, according to Nguyen Thi Tam, vice chairwoman of the Dong Anh District People's Committee.

Co Loa Citadel Festival is the highlight of tourism in Dong Anh District. Photo: Doan Thanh/The Hanoi Times

Dong Anh District has many traditional cultural heritage elements, such as handicraft villages, festivals, and cultural and artistic activities associated with the rice civilization.

"Local authorities always decide that tourism development must be linked to traditional heritage, preserving and promoting its values," Tam said.

Tam added that throughout history, the tangible and intangible cultural heritage values in the county were always preserved and handed down from generation to generation.

"These are great potentials and advantages for tourism development. The local tourism industry is making gradual but robust steps, turning the district into an attractive and friendly destination, contributing to socio-economic development," Tam said.

Developing human resources

Despite efforts to preserve cultural heritage in the context of tourism development, this process still faces many difficulties, such as limited funding for conservation work, and underqualified human resources in tourism services. In addition, the promotion, introduction, and connection of tours and routes are still weak.

Sai Temple Festival (Dong Anh District) is a unique festival with a procession of kings and lords (played by respected people in the village) instead of statues like other festivals. Photo: Ngoc Tu/The Hanoi Times

“To develop the tourism industry, Dong Anh District needs to strengthen guidance on brand building for typical local traditional handicraft village products, such as Van Ha wooden furniture, Tam Xa kumquats, Mach Trang vermicelli noodles, and Viet Hung soy sauce, to increase the spending level of tourists," said Professor Pham Hong Long of Hanoi University of Social Sciences and Humanities.

According to Long, the most important thing is the quality of tourism services, which depends heavily on human resources. Therefore, the district needs to organize training programs that are combined with practical experience to help people improve their skills and knowledge in the tourism industry.

Vice Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Tam said the district People's Committee has completed the book "Dong Anh Cultural Heritage" for tourism purposes; preserving and promoting the value of intangible cultural heritage and outstanding cultural relics such as Co Loa Citadel and Sai Temple.

"To promote cultural resources, we focus on building cultural and historical tourism routes, applying digital technology in promoting cultural tourism, especially building infrastructure and training human resources in developing cultural and historical tourism," said Tam.