The Vietnam-Korea Tourism Exchange and Cooperation Forum took place in Da Lat, Vietnam, a city recently honored as the UNESCO Creative City of Music.

Held on January 28, 2024, in the meeting room of the Ben Doi Creative Studio, the forum revolved around the theme "New experiments for the development of tourism in Dalat City". The workshop was successfully organized, introducing innovative solutions for advancing tourism in general and Da Lat in particular, providing opportunities to enhance tourism exchange and cooperation between the two countries.

The forum attracted participation from state agencies, media, local businesses, and tourism experts from South Korea and Vietnam, sharing diverse and helpful experiences and ideas. The main discussion topics included cultural exchange, tourism product development, marketing strategies, and promotion of South Korean tourism in Dalat.

Professor Youn-taek Lee presented the keynote speech (Photo: Nguyen Minh Tan)

The keynote speech of the program came from Professor Youn-taek Lee, Chairman of The Korea-Vietnam Tourism Exchange Research Institute (KOVET), an honorary professor at Hanyang University, South Korea. Professor Lee presented the keynote address "Trends in tourism paradigm have changed since the COVID-19 pandemic".

Through this, the forum provided essential updates and creative directions to meet the needs of the South Korean tourism market to Dalat in particular and Vietnam in general in the future.

The forum also had valuable discussions and Q&A sessions contributing to directing solutions to some difficulties regarding the current tourism situation and trends, as well as suggesting new experiments for future tourism trends. Participating in the discussion session with Professor Lee were Dr. Na-young Song, CEO of the Local Impact Research Institute, South Korea, and Mr. Nguyen Minh Tan, CEO of TGROUP TGROUP Trade & Travel Jsc.

From left to right: Interpreter, Dr. Na-young Song, Professor Youn-taek Lee, CEO.Nguyen Minh Tan in the workshop (Photo: Nguyen Minh Tan)

The forum's conclusion offered new directions for tourism after the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on a sustainable tourism development model, emphasizing quality growth, cultural and social values, along with environmental protection. Additionally, the new tourism paradigm based on digital technology, shifted from the past mass tourism to small-group tourism and private tourism industries.

This indicates that Dalat City needs to be prepared to embrace new trends and experiment together to build a 'Local Tourism Ecosystem', which is seen as a key solution for the development of Dalat's tourism industry in the future.

Guests attending the forum (Photo: Nguyen Minh Tan)

The Korea-Vietnam Tourism Exchange Research Institute (KOVET) is an expert organization specializing in research on tourism cooperation policies between Korea and Vietnam, headquartered in Seoul, South Korea.

The Korea-Vietnam Tourism Exchange Research Institute is a branch of KOVET in Vietnam, with an office located in Da Lat.