Journey of the Senses is a social enterprise in hospitality businesses in Ho Chi Minh that makes a positive social impact on people with disability. The business operates various innovative hospitality projects including restaurants, café, flower shop, and spa business as a means to support visually and hearing-impaired staff for a better life.
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The tourism ministry is urgently working on a plan for welcoming international tourists with the so-called Covid-19 vaccine passports to Phu Quoc Island in Kien Giang Province.
Nguyen Van Hung, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said Thursday that any plan to receive tourists must abide by coronavirus prevention measures.
Previously, on Tuesday, the tourism ministry and Kien Giang authorities had been requested to prepare a plan to receive foreigners to Phu Quoc and submit it to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh next month.
The health ministry would cooperate with other relevant entities to trial the use of vaccine passports allowing foreigners to travel to certain tourism destinations that have managed the novel coronavirus pandemic well, it was announced.
The National Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control had already decided in April that three groups of entrants: vaccinated Vietnamese citizens stranded overseas; foreigners wishing to enter Vietnam for investment and business purposes, and international tourists would be eligible to use vaccine passports.
The vaccine passport is currently envisaged as a digital document issued by the country where the vaccine has been administered.
Vietnam plans to receive people coming from countries that have managed Covid-19 outbreaks well, including those that have achieved herd immunity thanks to their vaccination programs. Such people will be able to visit tourist sites and resorts designated for their ability to control the flow of tourist traffic well and be able to manage guests’ itineraries efficiently and safely.
Last week, Kien Giang authorities had announced plans to vaccinate the island’s population against Covid-19 so that it can reopen its doors to foreigners.
Phu Quoc, Vietnam’s largest island, has become a top tourist destination after the government rolled out a 30-day visa-free policy for foreigners in 2014.
In 2019, the last year before the onset of the pandemic, it received over five million visitors, including 541,600 foreigners.
Vietnam closed its borders and cancelled all international flights in March last year. Only Vietnamese repatriates, foreign experts, diplomats, investors, and highly-skilled workers have been allowed in since with stringent quarantine requirements.
By installing an app named Du Lịch Việt Nam An Toàn (A Safe Trip in Việt Nam), visitors can provide feedback on issues in tourism services including those related to fake and poor quality products, fraud, price pressure, improper advertising and food safety.
The information will be collected, verified and handled by the Việt Nam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) in coordination with the Việt Nam Directorate of Market Surveillance (VNDMS) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
The VNAT and VNDMS earlier signed a co-operation agreement to boost and promote the application of digital technology in tourism services, ensuring the interests of tourists and with a focus on strengthening coordination in receiving and processing feedback from tourists through the app Du Lịch Việt Nam An Toàn.
Accordingly, the app is linked to the professional information system of the VNDMS, allowing the two parties to easily exchange information, coordinate in receiving and dealing with tourists’ feedback ensuring the protection of their rights.
VNDMS will quickly receive the information and solve problems related to fake goods, poor quality goods, fraud, price pressure, improper advertising and food safety, thus contributing to promoting a healthy tourism market and improving service quality and the tourism reputation of the country.
A representative from the VNDMS said this was the first time the tourism and market management sectors signed a coordination regulation to strengthen State management, rectify acts of trade fraud, and protect tourists’ rights ensuring a healthy tourism business environment in Việt Nam.
The event has marked a new step in the model of cooperation between the two units based on the exploitation of modern digital technology, according to the official.
The app Du Lịch Việt Nam An Toàn will help connect tourists, service providers and state management agencies, the official said.
This new co-operation model promises to create a breakthrough to meet the requirements of tourism and help the industry develop more sustainably, the official added.
The app Du Lịch Việt Nam An Toàn was launched last year to provide a useful tool for tourists in Việt Nam. It is expected to improve tourists’ experience while travelling in the country.
The app is easy to find and on both Android and iOS with the image of a lotus, a symbol of Vietnamese tourism.
Tourists can use Vietnamese or English to find information on destinations in the country, estimate the safety level and how the pandemic is controlled in the places they are about to go and find suitable services.
COVID-19 has changed demand and the way people travel, so many people prioritise safety instead of competitive prices as they did before, according to Nguyễn Lê Phúc, vice chairman of the VNAT.
Read more: https://vietnamnews.vn/life-style/938505/system-kicked-off-to-receive-feedback-in-tourism.html
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KOTO is an internationally recognized and awardwinning
social enterprise in Vietnam which operates
as a training restaurant and a vocational training
centre. KOTO stands for “Know One, Teach One”,
a name that reflects strongly in their core belief,
values. KOTO operates two inter-connecting entities
which support each other through a well-designed
business model. The two parts comprise the KOTO
training center (the non-profit organization), and the
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