For many tourists around the world, Vietnam is known for its bewitching charm and natural beauty apart from the warmth and hospitality of its people. There are so many destinations across the globe where tourists could spend their holidays in. Vietnam’s neighbors, even, have better roads, taller skyscrapers and more modern visage. But that’s the very reason why they choose to visit Vietnam - - - to have a taste of nature. Sadly, travel operators who are marketing the country’s tourism, along with all other sectors involved - - - seem to have missed that point.

Endlessly modernizing every corner of the country they could get their hands on, many fear that Vietnam will become too commercialized and lose its charm and traditions - - - the very things that attracts the tourists. Ironic as it sounds, but in its eagerness to develop the country’s entirety, it is slowly losing its history and culture. If it continues to fail in maintaining all the historical attractions and natural landscapes, there would soon be too little left to hold the interests of tourists who need to feel and experience a country’s richness in history and culture.

That is a problem soon to go out of proportion if nothing is done today. But apart from that, being aware of all the presently existing shortcomings in Vietnam’s tourism is another important thing for all sectors involved in the trade. Tourists who come to Vietnam often complain about almost the same things: poor services from tourist guides, overpriced hotels, too little infrastructure and lack of facilities among the most common.

But in an interview done by Thanh Nien Weekly with Paul Levrier, Managing Director of Destination Asia, a reputable travel destination management company specializing in Indochina operations, he stated that despite any infrastructure limitation, as long as travel service providers focus on their guests’ interests and provide them with quality services no matter how basic, the satisfaction of tourists will surely be met. But he also admits that visa processing upon arrival in the country is another problem that needs to be addressed.

Presently, Vietnam lacks a strong governing tourism body, something its neighbors like Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong strongly takes pride on. With that, the burden of creating worthwhile tours falls in the hands of travel agents. Poorly planned tours often end up with guests complaining how commercialized and damaged the destination they’ve been to. Such bad experiences results to lost chances for second visits and recommendations, and even end up discouraging other travelers to visit the country.

But for Destination Asia, a good approach is to create tours that still include the popular must-sees, yet put more emphasis on local experiences and culture. Vietnam’s cultural attractions indeed lie in the locals’ day to day life and society - - - not in the zoned, commercial tourist sites. With the country’s beautiful history, interesting culture and heritage experienced by visitors, guests are better ensured to bring home something memorable.

Vietnam is a wonderful tourist destination especially during the times when tourism in the country was relatively young. Its potential for beach tourism, in fact, is very high. But for such same reason, the coastal areas are now the focus of recent hotel and resort constructions, particularly along Da Nang to the strips of Hoi An. Developers are looking into putting up more high profile establishments in the mentioned areas to rev up the demand for more flights into the region.

If the scale of these developments are more managed and regulated, the country’s history and charm could still be well-preserved. Countries like Thailand, China, Indonesia and a few others have set quite a good example in preserving their national relics, historical and cultural attractions despite the fast-pace modernization these countries are going through. In fact, they did a pretty good job in even enhancing these historical sites to beautifully fit into their now modern landscape. Europe is to be commended as well. Far from being perfect, yet how it nurtured its history through arts, architecture and local culture is truly impressive. Perhaps that’s the very reason why France attracts over 50 million tourists each year.

If Vietnam continues to reinvent itself into a more modern visage by destructing and isolating its cultural and historical sites, it will steer the face of its tourism to an entirely different direction. Sure, tourists would still come even if Vietnam is completely transformed, but the newer breed of travelers that will arrive by that time will come for a much different reason than to experience the country’s interesting culture and beautiful history.

Change is always good, but for those concerned, they truly hope that as Vietnam moves forward, it should be in the right direction. Development is possible while protecting and even enhancing the country’s cultural and historical attributes. The responsibility lies not only in the hands of authorities, but to the private investors and developers as well. Instead of looking more into opportunities to rake in quick profits, carefully set out construction plans and sensitive approaches to development will better urge tourists to re-visit, and in fact would offer more long-term benefits in the country’s tourism.