Published on : Thursday, January 29, 2015
Embassy of the S.R. of Vietnam, in association with Accor Hotels, OM Tourism, Vietnam Airlines and Jet Airways, organized the first ever Vietnam Tourism Promotion event in West Bengal, under the theme “Vietnam – Amazing destination for Indian tourists” at Novotel Hotel & Residence in Kolkata. Shri Umapada Mukherjee, Director Tourism, West Bengal Government and 140 travel agents and media attended the event.
In his welcoming speech, H.E. Mr. Ton Sinh Thanh, Ambassador of Vietnam to India recalled the historic links between the city of Kolkata and Vietnam. Here, in 1958, President Ho Chi Minh visited Kolkata during his first official visit to India and the people of West Bengal showed strong support to Vietnamese people during their difficult quest for freedom and independence. Ambassador Thanh affirmed, after nearly 30 years of renovation, from a country heavily damaged by the war, Vietnam has become one of the most dynamic economies in the region. “Vietnam is home of 8 UNESCO world heritages, well –preserved historic relics and beautiful beaches which can rival the beaches in Thailand or Malaysia. Indian travelers can find the affluence of Indian culture in Vietnam through Hindu temples in Ho Chi Minh city or at the My Son sanctuary as well as many Indian restaurants. Vietnam has all kind of services to satisfy the need of foreign tourists, whether for holidays, shopping, leisure, food exploration, wedding, honeymoon or for business and conference” – Ambassador Thanh said. He also highlighted the rapid improvement in living standard achieved by India which permitted, in 2013, over 17 million of Indian people to spend their holiday abroad and 2.5 million of them went to South East Asia.
However, the number of Indian tourists to Vietnam is still limited to 55,000 in 2014 but it is estimated to increase next years, thank to many promotion activities to be organized by Vietnam and India and also to the recent opening of direct flights between the two countries operated by Jet Airways. Ambassador Thanh invited Indian and especially West Bengali tour operators and travel agents to take advantage of geographical proximity between Kolkata and Vietnam to promote tourism and expand their tourist business with Vietnam for mutual benefits.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Umapada Mukherjee expressed his appreciation for the initiative of Vietnam Embassy in India and stressed the importance of tourism cooperation between Vietnam and India. Mr. Geetesh Sharma, Chairman of Indo – Vietnam Solidarity Committee in West Bengal recalled his memories about the beautiful country such as Vietnam, especially about the magnificient Ha Long Bay in the North and Da Nang city in the Center of Vietnam. Presentation on air connectivity and hotel facilities are also given by representatives of Jet Airways, Vietnam Airlines and Accord Hotels. Interestingly, with the aim to facilitate the Vietnam visa application in West Bengal, the Embassy of Vietnam authorized Cox & Kings Global Services office in Kolkata to accept visa applications at their centre with effect from February 1st 2015. Travelers from West Bengal now can apply for Vietnamese entry visa directly in Kolkata. With this initiative, the Embassy of Vietnam hopes to see major tourism influx from India to Vietnam in the very near future.
Tags: vietnam tourism
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