Sustainable tourism development in the world heritage tourism destination - The scenic landscape complex of Trang An
Tạp chí Khoa học - Trường Đại học Mở Hà Nội 72 (10/2020) 1-6
1
SUSTAINABLE TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN THE
WORLD HERITAGE TOURISM DESTINATION - THE
SCENIC LANDSCAPE COMPLEX OF TRANG AN
Nguyen Thi Thu Mai, Nguyen Anh Quan*
Date received the article: 2/4/2020
Date received the review results: 2/10/2020
Date published the article: 26/10/2020
Abstract: The Scenic Landscape Complex of Trang An was the first mixed heritage site of
Vietnam and South East Asia that was recognised by UNESCO as one of the World Cultural and
Natural Heritage. The developments of the tourism scene has not only contributed to the economy
of the local residents but also helps to establish the connection between the different parties in-
volved. In addition, it also creates various opportunities for cultural exchange as well as promotes
the overall image of the destination. However, the expansion of tourism also leads to a number of
setbacks for the local economy as well as the socio-cultural scene and the environment of the heri-
tage site. In order to ensure the sustainable development of Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex,
striking a balance between the process of conservation and development is of the utmost priority
so that the current demands of tourists and the local community will be fulfilled and at the same
time do not interfere with the ability to provide for the future generations.
Keywords: Sustainable development, tourism, heritage, Trang An
1. Introduction
ly conveyed to the general public, both
domestically and internationally, thus
bringing in significant sources of income,
contributing to the local economic devel-
opment. Over the past few years, along
with the ever increasing number of tour-
ists coming to Trang An SLC, the conflict
between the process of conservation and
development has become more and more
apparent. In order to ensure the sustainable
development of Trang An SLC, the issue
of harmonizing the relationship between
conservation and development needs to
be addressed so that “the current demands
are fulfilled without affecting or interfer-
ing with the ability to meet the needs of
the future generations” (WCED, 1987)
Being the first mixed heritage site
of Vietnam and Southeast Asia to be rec-
ognised by UNESCO as a World Cultur-
al and Natural Heritage, Trang An (SLC)
Scenic Landscape Complex stretches over
12,000 hectares under administrative ad-
dresses of 5 districts, cities of Ninh Binh
province. Trang An SLC is an unique and
interesting destination with a harmoni-
ous combination between beautiful natu-
ral landscapes and rich cultural heritage.
Through tourism activities and events as
well as the rich scene of history, culture,
nature and stunning aesthetics, the overall
image of Trang An SLC has been wide-
* Faculty of Tourism - Hanoi Open University
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Nghiên cứu trao đổi ● Research-Exchange of opinion
according to the principles of sustainable
development.
one of the most attractive tourist destina-
tions in Vietnam. During the period from
2010 to 2019, the number of tourists com-
ing to Ninh Binh increased rapidly with an
average annual growth rate of 11% , av-
erage revenue increased 23.6% per year.
In 2018, Trang An SLC welcomed more
than 6.25 million visitors, an increase of
2% compared to 2017, of which domes-
tic tourists accounted for over 5.52 mil-
lion. The number of international visitors
reached over 731 thousand arrivals, rose
by 2% and 2.8%, respectively compared
to 2017. In 2019, the number of domestic
tourists reached over 5.56 million, inter-
national visitors reached approximately
760 thousand arrivals, revenue from tour-
ism alone reached 867.5 billion VNІ.
2. Sustainable tourism develop-
ment - Tourism activities on Scenic
Landscape Complex of Trang An and
their impacts
According to the World Tourism Or-
ganization - UN-WTO, the act of sustain-
able tourism development must take into
account different aspects of economic,
socio-cultural and environmental impacts,
in addition to balancing the benefits of the
parties involved, namely the local commu-
nities and businesses both for the present
and future (UN-WTO, 2010). Sustainable
tourism development requires the harmo-
ny between different interactive systems
including: Economy - Create prosperity
for the community and economic effi-
ciency for all stakeholders; Socio-cul-
ture - Respect for equality, contribute to
creating peace and human development;
Recognize and respect different cultural
backgrounds, preserve the cultural values;
Environment - Protect and manage natural
resources; minimize environmental pol-
lution, conserve diverse in biology and
natural heritages.
Tourism also changes the overall
economic structure and at the same time,
diversifies the jobs market of local com-
munities. In many tourist destinations such
as the ancient Capital of Hoa Lu, SLC
of Trang An - Tam Coc - Bich Dong, the
economic structure has changed from ag-
riculture and handicraft to services. Many
households who used to live off of by farm-
ing and breeding have switched to provid-
ing tourism-related services with many
occupations such as: boating, selling sou-
venirs, photographing, tour guiding, work-
ing as staff at restaurants, hotels, home stay
businesses, ... The average growth rate of
labor participating directly and indirectly
in the tourism sector in Ninh Binh over
the past 10 years - from 2010 to 2019 is
estimated to have increased about 26% per
year. Many fields are formed or developed
as a result of the development of tourism,
which support the growth of tourism prod-
ucts such as: construction, transportation,
accommodation, retail, finance ..., espe-
3. Economic impacts of tourism
activities
The reality of tourism development
at attractions has proven that economics
is an important aspect, most concerned
because tourism contributes to creating
investment opportunities, employment
opportunities and increasing the income
therefore alleviating poverty in the local
community at the tourist destinations.
With globally outstanding values in cul-
ture, aesthetic beauty and geomorphology,
in recent years, TrangAn SLC has become
† Statistics of Ninh Binh Tourism Department
Nghiên cứu trao đổi ● Research-Exchange of opinion
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cially production activities of Traditional
craft villages such as Van Lam embroider-
ies, Kim Son sedge mat, Phuc Loc carpen-
try, Ninh Van stone... thrive by introducing
and the selling of products to tourists and
visitors. Income of local residents in tour-
ist attractions has increased - per capita to
about 5 million VND/month, contributing
to improving the economy of the local res-
idents. It can be seen clearly that tourism
has made a significant contribution to the
socio-economic development of the locali-
ty, although there are also signs of a wealth
gap between the rich and the poor as the
income gap tends to widen.
the Department of Tourism, the District
People’s Committee, Trang An SLC Man-
agement Board. Some discussions between
the Management Board and street vendors,
photographers, and motorbike taxi drivers
have been carried out in order to reorganize
and put the service providing businesses
into order. According to a research in 04
borough in the heritage Core region (Ninh
Hai, Truong Yen, Ninh Van, Ninh Xuan),
in recent years, tourism related activities
has not increased the rate of crime and so-
cial evils in the locality. In particular, the
habit of smoking in the past, which existed
in some areas of the Truong Yen borough,
decreased significantly after the tourism
development had created more job oppor-
tunities for the residents. There is no longer
begging or pickpocketing delinquency tak-
ing place at tourist attractions.
4. Socio - cultural impacts of tour-
ism activities
In addition to economic, tourism ac-
tivities also have many positive socio-cul-
tural impacts. Through union activities, so-
cial activities associated with tourism, the
residential community in Trang An SLC
is ever more connected. Tourism activities
also create cultural exchange opportunities
between domestic and international tour-
ists, help to further promot Trang An tour-
ism image, enhance the pride of the local
community, reinforce the tradition of lov-
ing one’s homeland as well as one’s coun-
try. In addition, the coordination between
the state management agencies of culture
and tourism at all levels, businesses and
local residents at heritage sites in manage-
ment activities, in grasping the situation to
ensure communal security as well as the
implementation of the Code of Conduct of
Civilized Tourism in the tourist attracting
areas and destinations in Trang An QTDT,
is done quite well. knowledge about her-
itage protection, behavioral communica-
tion skills, cultural and civilized lifestyle
in tourism activities of a part of the local
community in the Core region of the SLC
is enhanced through participation in a
number of training courses organized by
However, the current state of vio-
lating laws in construction and in tourism
businesses still happened and has not been
completely overcome. Dozens of cases of
individuals disregarding the law and build-
ing without a permit or with the incorrect
permit, spontaneously changing the pur-
pose of the use of land, doing business
without a permit or without ensuring the
conditions for tourism business right in
Core regions of the SLC, are consequenc-
es of pursuing economic benefits. In addi-
tion, the fact that the quantity and quality of
the labor force in the tourism sector don’t
keep up with the growth in the number of
tourists will affect their ability to serve the
needs of tourists. Thus, it can clearly be
seen that tourism activities have basically
implemented the principles of sustainable
socio-cultural development, but the issue
of order in construction and tourism busi-
ness needs to be re-addressed, and firmly
maintained, the human resources for tour-
ism must also be improved both qualita-
tively and quantitatively.
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5. Environmental impacts of tour-
ronmental landscapes in Ninh Hai, Truong
Yen, and Son Ha communes. In general,
the environmental protection activities of
businesses, especially the food and bever-
age businesses, still lack initiative, not pay-
ing attention to waste treatment. During the
festival season, the amount of waste sharp-
ly increases (due to tourists overload) and
is collected, processed and burned right in
the Core zone of the heritage , affecting the
soil, water and air environment and causing
problems in the overall aethestic of the des-
tinations, especially in the two communes
Truong Yen and Ninh Xuan. In addition, the
cases of illegal exploitation of firewood, ex-
ploitation of ornamental plants, ornamental
stones, and hunting of wild animals have
not been completely resolved. Thus, despite
progress in the protection of landscapes and
heritage environments, the task of develop-
ing tourism harmoniously and environmen-
tally sustainable is still a big challenge for
all participants at Trang An SLC.
ism activities
In terms of environment, sustain-
able development requires protecting and
managing natural resources, conserving
biodiversity and natural heritages and
minimizing environmental pollution. Ac-
cording to Mr. Pham Sinh Khanh, Vice
Chairman of Trang An SLC, awareness
and action on environmental protection
in Trang An SLC of businesses and the
local residents has been improved sig-
nificantly. This is the result of integrating
and thoroughly understanding legal doc-
uments on environmental management
and protection, conservation and promo-
tion of heritage values into the communal
conventions; training courses on heritage
and environmental protection, especial-
ly in core communes such as Ninh Hai,
Ninh Thang ... for tourist accommodation
establishments, tourist service businesses
and residents. In addition, some business-
es also have diverse methods of contrib-
uting to environmental protection such as
linking the interests of workers with re-
sponsibility for environmental protection,
assigning people to care for trees and pay-
ing remuneration.
6. Harmonize interactive systems
- Sustainable tourism development in
Scenic Landscape Complex of TrangAn
There is no denying the significant
contribution that tourism brings to the
development in all aspects of socio-eco-
nomic life in Trang An SLC. However,
from the viewpoint of sustainable devel-
opment, the positive impact on all aspects,
especially the economic aspect is only one
of the conditions contributing to the suc-
cess of sustainable tourism development.
Sustainable tourism development requires
harmony among all interactions, includ-
ing economic, socio-cultural and environ-
mental.
However, besides the bright spots in
environmental protection activities, as for
most tourist destinations, it has been shown
that tourism development often entails en-
vironmental consequences, Trang An SLC
in this case is of no exception. Because
the goals and motivations of the parties in-
volved in tourism related activities are very
different, thus making the process of manag-
ing and protecting the environment as well
as the conservation and promotion of the
heritage very difficult. In 2018, the Trang
An SLC Management Board discovered
and made a written request to authorities
and local government to handle 06 cases of
violations of the reserve forests and envi-
The current state of tourism devel-
opment in Trang An SLC shows that, be-
sides the meaningful contributions, there
are still many limitations - a consequence
of the tourism development process, espe-
cially in terms of culture - social and envi-
Nghiên cứu trao đổi ● Research-Exchange of opinion
5
ronmental such as differentiation between
the rich and the poor, deterioration of
service quality, the quality of the natural
Partnering and cooperating:
Trang An SLC Management Board
continues to work closely with relevant
agencies, businesses, local authorities
and especially communities in the heri-
tage area to monitor and grasp the overall
situation of protecting and promoting the
legacy of the heritage. Moreover, Trang
An SLC Management Board also works
with local authorities to ensure securi-
ty, order, safety, hygiene, environmental
landscape on inland waterways, roads,
protect reserve forests, protect biodiversi-
ty; coordinate with businesses in guiding
tourists and local residents to ensure the
implementation of the Code of Civilized
Tourism Conduct in tourist spots and at-
tractions; coordinate with the authorities
in guiding the households in the heritage
site to strictly comply with the regulations
on housing construction and business
permits. Promote connection in training,
retraining both managerial and general
workers of training institutions, tourism
related businesses and enterprises.
environment, especially in the peak sea-
son. The main cause of these shortcom-
ings is identified by the perception of the
role and importance of heritage protection
associated with sustainable tourism de-
velopment and the livelihoods of a part of
the local population and of the commune
authorities is still limited; lacking initia-
tive and tenacity in the act of coordination
between the authorities, local government
and businesses in solving and handling vi-
olations, especially in the construction of
houses and business establishments and
the services provided by the local resi-
dents; The process of research and iden-
tification of key markets as well as the
ability to space and diversify the flow of
customers are not really effective. There-
fore, it is necessary to have measures to
solve these problems, in order to ensure
conditions for sustainable tourism devel-
opment.
Training and retraining human re-
source:
Improving management
The state government still continues
to perfect the management mechanism and
management model at tourist sites in the
heritage area. In particular, it is necessary to
strengthen the implementation of manage-
ment tasks, professional tasks, inspection
assignment, and supervision of the obser-
vance of legal regulations in tourism acti-
vities, construction order and tourism busi-
nesses at Trang An SLC. As for the tourism
and heritage management agencies, local
authorities must resolutely handle violations
in the construction of houses and service es-
tablishments associated with tourism of the
local residents; to put an end to the illegal
exploitation of natural resources, hunting of
wild animals and other acts of environmen-
tal encroachment in the heritage area.
Focusing on the task of training and
retraining to improve the quality of hu-
man resources for the occupation of her-
itage management; workforce planning
in the field of tourism, assess the training
requirements for the current workforce in
order to have a plan to foster profession-
al skills, foreign languages ... associated
with specific job positions. At the same
time, determine the requirement for quan-
tity, quality and structure of tourism hu-
man resources in the short, medium and
long term periods to develop appropriate
training plans and programs.
Doing research:
Research of the market needs to be
invested in in order to build a solid sci-
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7. Conclusion
entific basis, identify suitable key mar-
kets, and prioritize quality over quantity.
In addition, in order to avoid the issue of
overloading which leads to negative en-
vironmental consequences, it is essenti-
al that the process of researching the ca-
pacity of each specific tourist area in the
heritage area be carried out. In addition,
there needs to be research to assess the
environmental impact of tourism activi-
ties in order to devise a plan to make the
most of tourism within the capacity of
the environment. Finally, it is necessary
to focus on research, development and
diversification of tourism products, with
emphasis on green tourism products,
ecotourism in different tourist destinati-
ons in the heritage region to simultane-
ously address the diverse needs of the
market, and to both diversify and space
the flow of tourists while creating more
livelihoods for local people, and contri-
buting to protecting the environment of
the heritage site.
Nationwide, Ninh Binh is one of the
pioneering localities in building a set of reg-
ulations in all fields to manage the mixed
heritage site of Trang An SLC. In addition to
other results in the conservation and promo-
tion of the heritage, this is a good sign show-
ing the determination of the government and
management units in their efforts of harmo-
nizing the relationship between conservation
and development. With the consensus of all
parties involved in tourism activities in Trang
An in the process of resolving existing limita-
tions, tourism will have sufficient conditions
for sustainable development so that TrangAn
SLC can forever be an invaluable asset of hu-
manity‡.
References:
1. Trang An SLC Management Board, Sum-
mary of work in 2016, 2017, 2018.
2. Choi, H. C., & Sirakaya, E. (2006). Sus-
tainability indicators for managing communi-
ty tourism. Tourism Management, 27(6), 1274
- 1289.
3. United Nations World Tourism Organiza-
tion. (2010). Tourism high lights: facts & fig-
ures. Madrid, Spain.
Educating and promoting:
Promote the task of propagating,
providing extensive training courses on
heritage conservation and attaching the
valuable heritage with sustainable tourism
development. Publicizing is not only for
individuals who are directly involved in
tourism activities but also needs to be car-
ried out on a large scale, by the local au-
thorities, local residents and related busi-
nesses located in the heritage area with the
aim to raise awareness, adjusting behavior
in the process of interacting with the heri-
tage environment in general.
4.Yfantidou, G., & Matarazzo, M. (2016). The
Future of Sustainable Tourism in Developing
Countries. Sustainable Development, 25(6),
459-466.
5. World Council for Economic Development.
(1987). Our common future, World Commis-
sion on the Environment and Development.
Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Author address: Faculty of Tourism - Hanoi
Open University
Email: maintt@h@hou.edu.vn
‡ According to the guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention of the
UNESCO, Cultural and Natural Heritage are invaluable and irreplaceable assets. It not only belongs
to a nation, but also belongs to the humanity in general
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