Hanoi (VNA) – With nine UNESCO-recognised heritage sites, including five cultural, three natural, and one complex heritage, Vietnam has won the World’s Leading Heritage Destination 2023 title of the World Travel Awards.

This is the 4th time that Vietnam has obtained the title, as it did in 2019, 2020, and 2022.

Being hon♑oured as "World's Leading Heritage Destination" for four consecutive years, Vietnam once again affirms its natural t✅ravel sites as well as its long-standing cultural heritage.

At the 2023 WTA awards ceremony, Vietnam is honoured for the 4th time as "The World's Leading Heritage Destination." (Photo: WTA)

Vietnam has attracted visitors not only with its amazing landscape of mountains, forests, seas, and islands but also its natural and world cultural heritages recognised by UNESCO, traditional festivals, long-standing craft villages, cuisine, and architectural works.

Acr🦄oss the S-shaped country, visitors can explore a diverse heritage system starting with the capital of Hanoi with a one-thousand-year-old civilisation. Then, the Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago in the northern province of Quang Ninh province and neighbouring Hai Phong city come into view. This is followed by the Trang An Landscape Complex in the northern province of Ninh Binh, Ho Dynasty Citadel in the north-central province of Thanh Hoa, Hoi An ancient town and My Son Sanctuary in the central province of Quang Nam, and finally the Complex of Hue Monuments in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue.

This year, the World Travel Awards also granted different awards to several destinations in Vietnam.

Among them, Hanoi won the ✤World’s Leading City Break Destination title while Phu Quoc in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang was named the World’s Leading Nature Island Destination. Moc Chau in the northwestern province of Son La was listed as the World’s Leading Regional Nature Destination, Ha Nam province the World’s Leading Regional Cultural Destination, and Tam Dao in the northern province of Vinh Phuc the World’s Leading Town Destination.

Moc Chau in the northwestern province of Son La is listed as the World’s Leading Regional Nature Destination. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

Spreading cultural heritage values

Immediately after Vietnam was honoured as "The World's Leading Heritage Destination" in 2023, folk artisans joined an effort to promote special values of Vietnam's cultural heritage from localities across the country. They gathered and performed at the Arts and Culture Centre at No.22 Hang Buom Street, Hanoi.

Attending the event for the first time, Dinh Thi Hien, from the Thai Folk Artisans Group in Nghia Lo town, Yen Bai province, said she learned Xoe Dance when she was a child.

“We established a team and regularly practiced and performed together to make people more aware of the dance.

Dinh Hdot, a gong performer from the Ba Na ethnic group in To Tung commune, Kbang district, Central Highland province of Gia Lai, said that whenever he plays gong, he is proud of the traditional culture of his hometown.

Studying the culture of ethnic groups in Vietnam, Professor, Dr. Bui Quang Thanh from the Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts said that when it comes to the Central Highlands, two heritage that need to be preserved and promoted the most are epics and gongs.

“In addition to the majestic natural landscape, what leaves the most impression on visitors when coming to the Central Highlands is the Gong culture,” Thanh said.

Meanwhile, the Xoe Dance of the Thai ethnic group is part of important rituals and has become the soul of Thai ethnic cultural values. Thai people have created many extremely lively Xoe Dances that contain many meaningful and profound symbols.

Thanh expressed his hope that there will be more and more programmes for folk artisansᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚ to perform various types of intangible cultural heritage so that people, especially the younger generation can join in contributing to the preservation and development of the nation's precious cultural values.

Artisans perform Xoe dance in Hanoi. (Photo: VietnamPlus)

For years, cultural heritage has been identified as one of the main product lines of Vietnamese tourism and a core element that creates the Vietnamese tourism brand.

Depuꦚty Director of the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT) Nguyen Le Phuc said that localities, destinations, tourism and travel businesses, and communities must preserve and promote the cultural heritage and attract tourists./.