Dalat Tourism Development Associated with Flower Villages

It is not coincidental that Da Lat is lovingly given lots of names by friends and domestic & international tourists, of which the most intimate and closest name is perhaps “the City of a a Thousand Flowers”; for flowers have been closely associated City for with Da Lat founding and development. Over the past century, the trade name “Da Lat Lat Flower” has been rooted in the heart of those lovers of Da Lat. In order for this trade name to be increasingly known and contemplated by more people, more countries, should we carry out the new model tourism associated with Da Lat Flower Village?

The Flowers is one of Da Lat tourism products

We can confirm that floriculture in Da Lat is more than one hundred years old, after the founding of the city. Flowers have fed several generations of farmers and growers in Da Lat. Over the years, the trade name “Da Lat Flower” has confirmed its foothold in the domestic market and gradually dominated the world market. Together with other fresh, clean vegetables, flowers are the plants and key products of Da Lat and occupy a rather large area over total agricultural land area in the whole province. Flowers quickly developed and gradually “replaced” vegetables, which used to feed and make fortune for many households on their first days setting foot on Da Lat as their second hometown. And, until now. flowers have helped farmer households and many growers to make fortune and become wealthy.

Currently, floriculture is not purely a way of earning one’s living in Da Lat, but it has contributed to making Da Lat richer, more beautiful, adorning the exalted and poetical life of the people.

Looking at all angles of different domains, De Lat has all advantages of “good weather favorable terrain-harmonious people Da Lat climate and so can admit almost all varieties of flowers originating from different continents in the world, and when they are naturalized” in the good soil of Da Lat, almost all flower varieties grow very well, even better than from their original land. At present, Da Lat has been and is carrying out diversification of flower varieties, the techniques to be applied to production are high tech greenhouse system, net greenhouse for growing and producing flowers have been generally developed. Additionally, the skills and expertise of flower growers have been enhanced considerably. These basic conditions sufficiently allow Da Lat to produce high-class flowers and meet the demand of tourists visiting flower villages to be more exact, tourism development should be associated with flower villages and Da Lat flower products.

During major celebrations, or flower festivals in the past years, the organizing committee usually had several activities to introduce, honor, promote floriculture, flower growers and endemic flower varieties of Da Lat. of course, famous flower villages such as Thai Phien, Van Thanh, Ha Dong, Da Thien… have occasions to display and are considerably known by domestic and foreign tourists. Through international conferences, investment promotions, lots of scientists, biologists, expert researchers in the world get a better understanding and love Da Lat flowers more and more. However, we need to have a new promotion model…

Dalat Tourism associated with flower villages

There are many famous flower villages in Vietnam, for instance, Ngoc Ha, Nghi Tam, Nhat Tan, Quang Ba, Tay Tuu, Me Linh… (Ha Noi); Ninh Phuc flower village (Ninh Binh), the famous Sa Dec Bonsai Garden Dong Thap… several localities throughout the country and some countries internationally famous for their floriculture have got the model “crafts village tourism”. Da Lat is honored to have some famous traditional flower villages. Besides alternating varieties of flowers to increase additional income, each flower village cultivates a particular flower variety for their own, for instance, roses of Van Thanh, An Son, chrysanthemums of Ha Dong, Thai Phien; gladioluses of Xuan Tho… Hence the forming of cultivating a particular flower and the application of growing flowers in greenhouse and net greenhouse systems by the high tech process of Da Lat farmers, from small-scale to planned production. Through talks with flower growers, we get to understand that the owners of theses flower villages want their products to be known by tourists besides bringing in more profits to their family.

If Da Lat develops the model of tourism development associated with flower villages, the people will certainly support it. Once this model is implemented, the local government will make the planning roadmap and invest in it. This will facilitate farmers in their production of flowers, applying hi- tech agricultural cultivation process. In terms of trade name promotion, the establishment of flower villages associated with tourism and service development is a condition to fully and substantially introduce the flowers and floriculture in Da Lat to tourists. The farmers themselves also have opportunities to receive sound and positive comments from tourists in order to continuously enhance production level, meeting the needs and tastes of the tourists and the market.

Once the model of tourism development associated with flower villages is carried out, Da Lat flower growers will directly act as tourist guides. And the trade name “Da Lat flower” will have a chance to spread further. This is a new kind of tourism in Da Lat with profound potentials and prospects.

By Phuong Thanh

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