Homestays - a highlight of tourism in Western Nghe An.

(Baonghean) - During this time, when visiting the western part of Nghe An province, tourists will experience a completely new and interesting type of tourism: community-based accommodation, also known as "homestay". Tourists rest and live in the homes of local people and explore the local culture and cuisine with them.

Tourists take a boat ride on the Giang River.

Try being a local.

The atmosphere at the family gathering of Ms. Lo Thi Hoa (Nua village, Yen Khe commune, Con Cuong district) has been more vibrant than usual these days due to the arrival of guests from many different countries. These include Japanese experts from the Nghi Son Refinery (Thanh Hoa), an American teacher in Nghe An, Korean students, and several Vietnamese tourists and interpreters. Everyone came with the common goal of exploring the beauty of western Nghe An and enjoying the experience of community-based tourism (also known as homestay) with Ms. Hoa's family.

Enjoy a meal featuring the specialties of the Thai ethnic group.

Experiencing a "homestay" for the first time in Western Nghe An, Duong Thu Phuong (22 years old, Hanoi) said: "The three days with Ms. Hoa's family were very interesting. We got to wear Thai dresses, weave brocade scarves, and learn to cook some traditional dishes like mooc, sticky rice in bamboo tubes, grilled catfish... just like a real Thai girl. I also didn't forget to buy some handcrafted textile products as souvenirs."

For foreign visitors, cultural differences are no longer a barrier when they are prepared to "adapt to local customs." Mr. Hiroshi Akiya (Japan) shared his impressions of the custom of sleeping together on the wooden floor. Akiya said: "The custom of the Thai people here is to sleep on the floor. Initially, we were a little hesitant because we weren't used to it, but we wanted to blend into the local life, so we slept together. The floor wasn't as cold as I thought because the host had prepared cotton mattresses, warm and clean blankets. I had a good night's sleep."

Tourists watch Thai ethnic women weaving brocade.

For Alex Gentry's group (from the US), what they enjoyed most was dancing the lamvong, drinking rice wine, and performing the bamboo pole dance with Thai women. Alex said: "The word 'happiness' is the only way to describe my special feelings. The people were very friendly and hospitable. The Thai folk music club invited us to participate in the cultural performances with such spontaneity and passion. They wanted us to experience and appreciate the community's culture, not for commercial purposes."

Potential types of tourism

Mr. Nguyen Xuan Nam (Head of the Culture Department of Con Cuong District) said: “Ecotourism combined with community-based accommodation is a special type of tourism that brings many benefits, and the district is promoting its development and calling for investment. Currently, Con Cuong district is coordinating with the Japanese JICA Project to select and train personnel from local households to expand the “homestay” model, increasing livelihoods and income for the people.”

Immerse yourself in the cultural and artistic activities of the local people.

According to Mr. Nguyen Xuan Nam, on February 29th, experts from the JICA Project conducted interviews and selections to train cooking and performing arts groups, as well as households capable of providing "homestay" services. The selected households had to meet requirements regarding the environment, living facilities, and especially the host's skills in welcoming and serving tourists.

Like Ms. Hoa's family, after being selected, they participated in many local training courses and visited and learned from the community tourism model in Lac village, Mai Chau district, Hoa Binh province. Wanting to serve guests more effectively, her family renovated the resting area, ensuring it was clean, airy, and planted more trees.

Ms. Hoa said: “As this is the initial stage of our ‘homestay’ business, we are still in the process of perfecting everything, from our attitude towards guests to our facilities and the quality of our meals. Most guests who have stayed here have given positive feedback. I am confident that in the future we will welcome many more groups of guests and receive their satisfaction.”

Overall, the implementation of community-based tourism projects still faces several limitations, such as: information on tourist destinations and routes has not been widely promoted; transportation planning along tourist routes remains inconvenient; the collective awareness of "doing tourism" among households in homestay areas is not uniform; and the foreign language skills of local people are still limited, etc.

Therefore, for this form of tourism to develop into a complete tourism product, a synchronized effort is needed in promotion, investment in improving accommodation quality, upgrading infrastructure, training local human resources, and strengthening security and environmental protection measures.

Hoang Van