Nam Ngum Lake tourism investment to flow in
Nam Ngum Lake tourism investment to flow in
Investment in tourism services at Nam Ngum Lake in Vientiane Province is expected to increase, including the construction of hotels and resorts, on the back of strong growth in visitor numbers last year.
A manager of Longngum View Resort Hotel, Mr Saksavang Saona recently explained that his resort's year on year bookings had risen by around 40 percent in 2014, on top of a 20 percent increase in 2013.
Mr Saksavang expected his resort would continue to see strong bookings growth for another two years ahead.
With the strong growth in visitor numbers he believed this would attract more investors to build hotels and resorts to service them.
He thanked tourists who were good word-of-mouth promoters of the lake, highlighting its beauty and its many islands over social networks.
The growth has come from tour groups from Europe and Korea, along with backpackers and especially domestic tourists who are the main markets booking various accommodation around the lake.
Nam Ngum Dam Lake is not far from Vientiane capital so it is easy to attract local visitors who travel there to relax on their weekends.
Mr Saksavang said the resort was now offering several activities to serve guests such as kayaking, boat rides, banana-boats and it has plans to expand its operations into offering camping accommodation in expectation of further competition.
Visitors can also learn the best fishing spots among the lake's islands by booking local guides every morning.
According to staff from the Vientiane Province Tourism Department visitor numbers to the province may reach more than 450,000 when 2014 was fully tallied, compared to 445,636 in 2013.
A majority of visitors are travelling to the popular destination of Vangvieng, but Mr Saksavang expected customer numbers to the Lake would increase for the next two years, as new investors constructed additional developments and infrastructure which would in turn also add convenience and attract more tourists.
