Bustling beach tourism market

(Baonghean) - This year, the hot weather has lasted for a long time, so the number of tourists coming to Cua Lo is higher than previous years. That has caused a sharp increase in the consumption of goods. The coastal town is having a bustling tourist season...

This season, Cua Lo is bustling with people and vehicles, business activities in services, trade, hotels and restaurants are bustling. The number of visitors to Cua Lo is increasing, so the demand for goods increases sharply, especially food and beverage products. Walking around the restaurants and kiosks along the beach along Binh Minh Street, almost every shop here is crowded with customers. Visiting Khanh Bao restaurant, although busy preparing food for customers, Ms. Vo Thi Bao happily confided: "My family has been in the restaurant business for more than 10 years. This year, the weather is hot, the number of customers coming to Cua Lo to swim in the sea has increased sharply, leading to an increase in demand for food and some services. Khanh Bao restaurant has many days with no room for customers, especially on weekends, the number of customers increases dramatically, although we have prepared seafood, there are days when it is still sold out. Up to this point, the consumption of goods at our restaurant has increased by more than 30% compared to the same period last year. Although we are hard-working, every member of the family is very happy."

Customers buy seafood at Cua Lo seafood market.

Trung Mo Restaurant also regularly has a large number of customers, the restaurant owner shared: It has been a long time since Cua Lo has had a bustling tourist season like this year, the number of customers is spread evenly throughout the month, mainly from within the province, the majority are still customers from Vinh City who come down to swim and eat seafood. This year, only live crabs are a bit scarce and expensive, the rest of shrimp, crab, squid... prices are relatively stable. Customers also consider spending according to their budget. Many groups of customers who come down to swim bring food from home to the restaurant for processing, we are also ready to serve, only taking the cooking fee. Our point of view is "customer is king" so we are always enthusiastic, welcoming customers with dedicated, thoughtful, friendly service attitude. Since then, customers trust and feel secure when coming to our restaurant, by the end of June 2015, sales increased about 30% compared to the same period last year.

Through research at a number of restaurants and food service kiosks on Binh Minh Street, most of them have sales growth of 20-30% compared to the same period last year's tourist season. This year, restaurants have prepared a variety of seafood dishes, serving the diverse consumption needs of customers from ordinary to high-end customers. The prices of processed seafood at restaurants are relatively uniform, with little difference. Grade 1 delicious crabs cost 600,000 VND/kg, grade 2 from 400,000 - 500,000 VND/kg. 18 delicious shrimps/kg cost 400,000 VND/kg; tamarind-fried mantis shrimp costs 350,000 - 400,000 VND/kg; grilled mackerel costs 300,000 VND/kg. In addition, the prices of beverage products are also relatively stable, the difference between the restaurants' sales and the imported prices is not too high, which is accepted by customers. Besides, this year security and order are good, according to tourists, street vending and begging have been eliminated by about 80%, business and service are more civilized, tourism infrastructure is more spacious and clean, creating a good impression for tourists.

We passed by the town's seafood market, which serves a full range of seafood from the sea with all kinds of shrimp, crab, squid, snails, fish of all kinds... bustling with customers, local customers and tourists, many groups of visitors from Hanoi or other provinces and even local customers come to the market to buy seafood as gifts for family and relatives. Ms. Le Thi Phuong (Thu Thuy ward) has been selling seafood at this market for 9 years since the first days the market opened. On an area of ​​about 3 - 4 square meters, there are all kinds of seafood for sale: mackerel, red snapper, itchy fish, grouper, pomfret, shrimp, squid... Ms. Phuong shared: The source of seafood is mainly taken from fishing boats of Cua Hoi, Cua Lo, always fully stocked with fresh products, meeting the diverse consumption needs of customers. This year, customers bought more than previous years, with an average of about 60 kg of seafood sold per day, an increase of 20-30% compared to the 2014 tourist season.

Hung My agent (Cua Lo) specializes in selling seafood to restaurants in the area. Mr. Nguyen Quoc Hung said: In the house, there are 4 large tanks that collect crabs, shrimps, and squid from boats. In particular, the crab source is always guaranteed to be 100% fresh, with the selling price of grade 1 crabs being 400,000 VND/kg. The house has tanks for raising live crabs, so it always ensures a supply source for the market. On average, more than 100 kg of seafood of all kinds is sold per day, with sales increasing by 30% compared to last year.

The business of accommodation and hotels has also improved. In addition to large hotels that often have large groups of tourists booking rooms, private hotels have also attracted a significant number of guests. The owner of Nam Oanh private hotel in Thu Thuy ward said that with 21 closed rooms for rent, the number of rooms for rent at the beginning of the week is not full, but on the weekends, Friday, Saturday and holidays, the rooms are almost sold out. The room rental price at the beginning of the week is 300,000 VND/day and night, and at the weekend, it is 400,000 - 500,000 VND/day and night.

According to the first 6 months of Cua Lo Town, the weather is favorable for sea tourism activities, and sea tourism activities are implemented synchronously, so most of the tourism indicators have increased. Total tourism revenue in the first 6 months is estimated at 1,250 billion VND, up 47.1% over the same period in 2014, reaching 60.2% of the yearly plan; Total number of visitors is estimated at 1,470 thousand people, up 32.4% over the same period last year. Total turnover of retail goods and services is estimated at 2,356 billion VND, up over 22% over the same period in 2014. Commercial activities are bustling, with the formation of a number of small supermarkets in the area and trade fair activities have contributed to attracting tourists to these shopping destinations. This result was partly due to the town doing a good job of publicly posting prices of goods at business kiosks in tourist areas, strictly managing to prevent price gouging, and thoroughly implementing the "5 no" policy. Strengthening inspection against smuggling, trade fraud, checking counterfeit goods, poor quality goods, business licenses and price stabilization, food hygiene and safety at markets, agents, restaurants, hotels... to create trust and good impressions in the hearts of tourists coming to Cua Lo coastal town.

Article and photos:Quynh Lan