Call to improve access to tourist sites

The US hotel and resort management group Starwood Hotels & Resorts recently held an official inauguration for its Sheraton Nha Trang Hotel & Spa, the first five-star hotel in the coastal central city. On the occasion, Viet Nam News spoke to Wayne Buckingham, regional vice president of Starwood Hotels & Resorts for Thailand, Viet Nam, Cambodia and Singapore on his company’s tourism development and growth plan of in this country.

How do you assess the tourism potential of Viet Nam and Nha Trang?

Viet Nam is emerging as a destination for those who want to have different authentic experiences.

There is a lot of undeveloped coastline with beautiful scenery and beaches that we will see developed in the years to come.

Nha Trang offers superb coastline well-protected from some of the rough weather that hits in some parts, and with so much sunshine, it provides relaxation from the hustle and bustle of HCM City and Ha Noi. Sheraton Nha Trang Hotel and Spa is the first international upscale hotel in a resort to open in Viet Nam, and is the perfect place to stay and enjoy all of the comforts of Sheraton while enjoying the panoramic views of the bay from your room and sampling the best cuisine and spa in town.

What do you think Viet Nam should do to improve the performance of the industry?

Continue to improve airports and infrastructure and road access to open up tourist spots. People today have limited time and want to get from the airport to their hotel without travelling a long distance. The frequency and convenience of flights and the opening up of air routes to allow charter flights and international airport status is critical to tourist strategy (e.g. Phuket) of providing mono-destination trips from within Asia.

China will grow very fast and is predicted to become the third-largest outbound tourism source globally by 2015. Strategies to tap into this will be important. Visa should be made easier to obtain, which would make arrival more convenient.

What is your Starwood development plan in the Viet Nam market?

We are currently developing hotels in Cam Ranh, Hoi An and HCM City, and we are looking at extending our portfolio to Da Nang and Da Lat in the near future. At this moment, there are two confirmed projects including Le Meridien Saigon and The Westin Cam Ranh Resort&Spa. There are still opportunities in both the main centres of Ha Noi and HCM City, particularly for mid-scale.

We are continuing working with key partners in the region for new hotel proposals and the marketplace is very competitive with many international operators coming in.

What do you plan to do to help boost tourism together with the growth of Starwood in the country?

We opened our first hotel, Sheraton Saigon Hotel and Towers in 2003. The reputation of this hotel has assisted us in being able to work with developers to grow our portfolio.

We see Viet Nam as the biggest opportunity to expand in the Thailand-Indochina region. We will add value to the country’s tourism industry through our distribution networks, our loyalty programme and our well-established brands and customer relationships.

We also see our role in supporting the Vietnamese workforce through hiring local people and providing extensive training in hospitality.

We also encourage our hotels to be active in their local regions supporting the community through our corporate social responsibility programme. — VNS

Tags: Starwood Hotels & Resorts