Hotel investment still booming in Luang Prabang
Hotel investment still booming in Luang Prabang
Investment in hotel construction and tourism in World Heritage listed Luang Prabang is continuing to grow, with another 15 hotels under construction this year.
According to the Head of the provincial Information, Culture and Tourism Department, Mr Phonesavanh Jelakha, once they are complete the new hotels will provide another 200 rooms to accommodate visitors to the town.
In 2013, the number of overseas visitors to Luang Prabang reached 343,000 people and the province has set an ambitious goal for tourist arrivals to hit the 500,000 mark this year.
In the first quarter of the 2013-2014 fiscal year, the number of foreign tourist arrivals in Luang Prabang increased by 24 percent compared to the same period the previous year.
The province expects to gain a revenue increase of more than 1.41 trillion kip in the next five years from the income of tourism operations and due to flow-on growth in other sectors.
This will include around 85-90 percent of tax and duty collection from the trades and services sector, according to the provincial Finance Department.
Mr Phonesavanh explained the growth in hotel investment has come as the province has improved its infrastructure as well as reformed its marketing strategy to promote tourism though various channels.
This year, province has seen an ever increasing stream of Chinese tourist arrivals along with more visitors from Australia and South Korea.
The establishment of direct flights from Laos to China and South Korea has been a significant factor in the increasing numbers of tour groups coming to the city.
Data shows the number of Chinese visitors exceeded 111,000 in the first quarter of 2014, an increase of 50 percent compared to the same period last year.
The massive influx of Chinese tourists has seen the Chinese business sector making increasingly frequent visits to Laos to enter the market in businesses related to hotels, restaurants and accommodating their visiting nationals.
These factors will aid in pushing investment growth for further hotel construction in Luang Prabang in the years to come.
According to a Tourism Development Department report in 2013, Laos has 419 hotels and 1,788 guesthouses and resorts but there are only three five star resorts in Vientiane.
vientiane times
