Quang Binh has the "Best Tourist Village in the World."

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As of 2022, over 70 villages from nearly 40 countries have been recognized by the World Tourism Organization as the "Best Tourism Villages."

On the afternoon of October 19, the People's Committee of Quang Binh province held a press conference to announce that Tan Hoa village, Tan Hoa commune, Minh Hoa district – the only village in Vietnam honored as the "Best Tourism Village in the World" by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in 2023.

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The press conference announced that Tan Hoa is the only village in Vietnam honored by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) as the "Best Tourism Village in the World" in 2023.
Yesterday (October 18), in Samarkand (Uzbekistan), UNWTO officially announced Tan Hoa as the "Best Tourism Village in the World" after evaluating 260 profiles from 60 countries.
Vietnam had 4 tourism villages submit applications from the provinces of Quang Binh, Son La, Lai Chau, and Hoa Binh, but Tan Hoa (Quang Binh) with its "climate-adaptive tourism village" model was the only one recognized.
Tan Hoa village is considered the "flood hub" of Quang Binh. In 2010, Tan Hoa witnessed a historic flood with water levels rising to 12 meters, submerging most homes. The villagers had to evacuate to caves and cliffs to wait for the water to recede.

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A view of Tan Hoa village from above

By 2011, the people of Tan Hoa came up with the idea of using inflatable rafts to live with the floods. In 2012, they improved this into floating houses, allowing residents to carry out normal activities during flood conditions.
As of 2023, Tan Hoa has constructed 620 floating houses built entirely from donations from benefactors. Currently, Tan Hoa is also developing a seasonal flood tourism experience model.
Mr. Ho An Phong, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Quang Binh province, evaluated Tan Hoa being honored as the "Best Tourism Village in the World" in 2023 as a great honor for Vietnam in general and Quang Binh in particular.
"This is a village that is both familiar, close-knit, and remote, a valley surrounded by rocky mountains, with layers of majestic scenery. And it is the most 'affected' village in Quang Binh when floods arrive. Despite facing such difficulties, Tan Hoa is gifted by nature with rare forests, beautiful caves, rustic and peaceful landscapes, along with unique, distinctive local culture and cuisine. Being recognized as the 'Best Tourism Village in the World' will open a significant opportunity to welcome a large number of tourists to Tan Hoa in the future," Mr. Phong shared.

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A peaceful life in Tan Hoa village

The award for the "Best Tourism Village in the World" is a global initiative of UNWTO to honor villages where tourism preserves, promotes values, products, and lifestyles based on community and rural contexts, while also encouraging innovation and sustainability.
As of 2022, over 70 villages from nearly 40 countries have been recognized by UNWTO as the "Best Tourism Village." These villages exemplify rural tourism destinations that offer authentic, diverse experiences for visitors while creating opportunities and benefits for local people and the environment.

According to information from the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, after evaluating the application, UNWTO recognized the rich and outstanding cultural and natural resources of Tan Hoa village. Additionally, the village's commitments and actions towards sustainable tourism development also played a role in its recognition.

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Tan Hoa is developing under the model of a climate-adaptive tourism village, providing diverse experiences for tourists such as homestay
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Tan Hoa is developing under the model of a climate-adaptive tourism village, providing diverse experiences for tourists such as homestay

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The people of Tan Hoa have started to business homestays, farm experiences, eating at local households, and souvenir stalls.

At the end of 2022, following a field visit to Tan Hoa, representatives from the Vietnam National Tourism Administration (now the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism) proposed that Tan Hoa participate in UNWTO's "Best Tourism Village in the World" award.

Recognizing this as a great opportunity to promote Tan Hoa and the region, representatives from Oxalis Adventure Company coordinated with the People's Committee of Tan Hoa commune, the People's Committee of Minh Hoa district, and the Quang Binh Department of Tourism to plan to build the tourism village model according to UNWTO standards to participate in the award.

"Winning this prestigious award is a solid step for the village to step onto the world stage, gradually becoming a key tourism center in the northwest of Quang Binh," said a representative from Oxalis Adventure.
The representative from Oxalis Adventure stated that Tan Hoa is aiming to develop under the model of a climate-adaptive tourism village, providing diverse tourism experiences such as homestaying, farm experiences, dining at local households, and souvenir stalls.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/thoi-su/quang-binh-co-lang-du-lich-tot-nhat-the-gioi-20231019181458001.htm