Tourism in Vietnam is a significant

component of the modern

Vietnamese economy. In 2012,
Vietnam received more than 6.8
million international arrivals, up from
2.1 million in the year 2000. The
annual increase represented a strong
rebound from a slight decline in 2008
Great Recession. The Vietnam
National Administration of Tourism is
following a long-term plan to
diversify the tourism industry, which
brings needed foreign exchange into
the country.
Activities:
Ha Long Bay
Ha Long Bay is situated in north
Vietnam round a 120 kilometer long
coast line and is literally translated as
Bay of Descending Dragons. The
top tourist attraction in Vietnam, Ha
Long Bay features thousands of
islands, each topped with thick jungle
vegetation, forming a spectacular
seascape of limestone pillars. Several
of the islands are hollow, with
enormous caves, others islands
include lakes and some support
floating villages of fishermen
Cu Chi Tunnels
The Cu Chi Tunnels are an immense
network of connecting underground
tunnels located about 40 km
northwest of Ho Chi Minh City
(Saigon). The tunnels were used by
Viet Cong guerrillas as hiding spots
during the Vietnam War, and were
the base of operations for the Tt
Offensive in 1968. The tunnels have
become a popular tourist attraction,
and visitors are invited to crawl
around in the safer parts of the
tunnel system.


Environmental Issues
Environmental issues in Vietnam number
many, due to the effects of the Vietnam
War.
Between 1961 and 1971, U.S military
forces dispersed more than 19 million
gallons of herbicidal agents over the
Republic of Vietnam, including more than
12 million gallons of the dioxin-
contaminant commonly known as Agent
Orange. Research that studied
subsequent effects of the contamination
have been comparatively limited. Data
from 2009 totalled the amount of arable
land for total land use to be
approximately 20 percent, while
permanent crops that do not require
replanting after harvest total
approximately 7 percent of the entire
available land.
The people of Vietnam have shown
significant growth in development
through economic reform plans that
were initiated in 1986, known as Doi
Moi. The business and agricultural
reforms successfully created more than
30,000 private businesses, and poverty
declined from about 50 percent to 29
percent of the population from the early
1990s to 2005. However, reports have
shown that due to the significant
population growth as a result, protected
areas within the environmental sector
are often overlooked when nearby land
is developed, which creates conflict
between area conservation plans versus
land development and planning.


Weather Conditions
There are no good or bad seasons to visit
Vietnam. When one region is wet, cold or steamy
hot, there is always somewhere else that is sunny
and pleasant. Because of its geography, stretching
1,650km from north to south and from sea level
to mountain tops at 3,143m, you can imagine the
wide range of climate zones.
The south has a wet season from May to
November, the wettest month being from June to
August, and the dry season from December to
April. The wet is characterized by high humidity
levels and a refreshing afternoon downpour.
Humidity in the South during the months of June
and July ranges between 75% and 85%. The
hottest months are from March to May.
Polotical Aspects
Vietnam's political culture has been determined
by a number of factors of which communism is
but the latest. The country's political tradition is
one of applying borrowed ideas to indigenous
conditions. In many ways, Marxism-Leninism
simply represents a new language in which to
express old but consistent cultural orientations
and inclinations. Vietnam's political processes,
therefore, incorporate as much from the national
mythology as from the pragmatic concerns
engendered by current issues.