Lotte Hotel in Hanoi was voted the best hotel in Vietnam, according to the annual 2022 ranking compiled by the U.S. online booking site Tripadvisor, based on millions of reviews and opinions collected. Situated on the upper part of a 65-floor building in the downtown area near Hanoi's iconic tourist destinations, the hotel has 235 standard rooms and 83 suites with each offering a panoramic view of the capital. It also has a fitness center, outdoor swimming pool, basketball court, kids play center, and 24-hour gym service. The lowest price for a night's stay is VND2.23 million ($96.45). Vinpearl Discovery Ha Tinh in Loc Ha District of north-central Ha Tinh Province came second in the list. This upscale resort along Xuan Hai Beach is 19 kilometers from Huong Tich Pagoda, a vast mountainside temple complex and popular spiritual site. It has 42 well-equipped rooms featuring private pools and offering views of long, … [Read more...] about Top 10 Vietnam hotels selected by Tripadvisor
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Wildlife trafficking rife in southern Vietnam
Tam Nong Market in Tram Chim Town, Dong Thap Province used to be a hotbed of wildlife trafficking in southern Vietnam. Nowadays, however, the flood of endangered wildlife flowing into local markets from nearby Tram Chim National Park and Cambodia seems to have slowed, but across the region traffickers still breed and butcher rare animals. Any animal in demand Though the wildlife trade in Dong Thap is not what it once was, some vendors at Tam Nong Market still deal in rare animals. Tam is one of these vendors. Keeping a watchful eye of the turtles for sale at her stall, she agreed to deliver a large shipment of endangered turtles to an undercover reporter, provided that they would be set free at pagodas. Tai, a vendor at the market who primarily deals in both live and frozen copperheads and banded kraits, claims himself as the biggest wildlife seller in Tam Nong. Turtles up for sale at the Thanh Hoa bird market in Long An Province, southern Vietnam. Photo: … [Read more...] about Wildlife trafficking rife in southern Vietnam
Vietnamese tech retailers manage to survive Covid-19 pandemic
Many retailers in phone and electronics segments focus on developing online channels to survive during the coronavirus pandemic period. To survive adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic, many Vietnamese tech retailers have quickly boosted their sales on online platforms as their physical stores nationwide have to close until April 15 to comply with the prime ministerial directive stipulating measures to combat the pandemic. Photo: MWG Significant demand on tech products Mobile World Investment JSC (MWG), the largest tech retailer in Vietnam, saw a surge in demand in online shopping since the beginning of April as more than 10% of its 2,000 phone and electronics stores, mainly in Hanoi, have to close. Dang Thanh Phong, PR manager of MWG, told Hanoitimes that its revenue from online sales accounted for 13% of the total phone and electronics revenue in March, higher than that of the previous months. Due to the closure of its stores, sales in … [Read more...] about Vietnamese tech retailers manage to survive Covid-19 pandemic
All to play for in e-commerce rise
The pandemic has pushed forward the trends of e-commerce in Vietnam 2-3 years earlier than forecast with the sector growing in size four times over last year, according to a 2021 Lazada report. “Some of the e-commerce trends we expected would happen in 2025, such as in edutech and fintech, have already happened in 2022,” noted Nguyen Huy Hoang, chief business officer at OnPoint E-commerce. “Hence, all e-commerce platform companies are investing hugely in Vietnam.” However, as shopping centres and small brick-and-mortar stores are now reopened, many investors are concerned that the boom in e-commerce was just a short-term fad and the majority of consumers could quickly shift back to offline shopping. On May 12 at the Vietnam Online Business Forum, the general consensus amongst experts was that e-commerce will continue to boost the economy after the pandemic. Specifically, in the first quarter of 2022, the industry saw more than 8 million new online consumers. A survey … [Read more...] about All to play for in e-commerce rise