Hanoi and four northern provinces and cities on September 24 inked a joint agreement to boost the tourism sector.

Foreign tourists at Hanoi's Temple of Literature. Photo: Pham Hung/The Hanoi Times

The agreement, signed by the provinces of Lao Cai, Hai Duong, Quang Ninh and the coastal city of Haiphong, aims to combine cross-regional values and leverage each locality's advantages to create outstanding tourism products and services for the Northwest and Northeast regions.

"Tourism cooperation among localities is essential to boost socio-economic growth post-pandemic," said Ha Van Thang, director of Lao Cai Provincial Tourism Department.

The five cities and provinces have long-term partnerships in the tourism sector. Their main products include spiritual and cultural tourism.

Under the agreement, the cities and provinces will strengthen information and communication in tourism management, promote each other's tourism activities, develop new products and brands, and encourage enterprises and associations to cooperate and set up joint tour packages.

At the signing ceremony, representatives from the cities and provinces also discussed how to leverage their advantages and solutions to develop local tourism.

They introduced their characteristic products and services, discussed ways to improve the quality of products and services, and detailed solutions to boost joint cooperation.

In January-August, Hanoi welcomed a total of nearly 17 million visitors, up 36% year-on-year, earning about VND61 trillion (US$2.5 billion), up 63% year-on-year.