PHÚ THỌ — Following the mergence with former Vĩnh Phúc and Hòa Bình provinces on July 1, 2025, the northern midland province of Phú Thọ now boasts one of Việt Nam’s most diverse tourism ecosystems, providing a strong foundation for the locality to emerge as a major tourism hub in both the region and the country.

Located at the gateway to the northern midland and mountainous region, with convenient connectivity to Hà Nội and the Red River Delta, Phú Thọ possesses abundant tourism resources. The province is home to nearly 1,000 ranked historical and cultural relic sites, six national treasures and five UNESCO-recognised cultural heritage elements.

As the ancestral land of the Vietnamese people, Phú Thọ is renowned for the Hùng Kings Temple Historical Site, where the UNESCO-recognised Worship of the Hùng Kings and xoan singing are preserved. The province also features a rich tapestry of traditional festivals, craft villages and ethnic cultural traditions that contribute to its unique identity.

Beyond its cultural heritage, Phú Thọ offers diverse natural attractions. Tam Đảo, often referred to as the “Đà Lạt of northern Việt Nam,” enjoys a year-round temperate climate, while Xuân Sơn National Park is known for its pristine forest ecosystem. Hòa Bình Lake, frequently dubbed the “Hạ Long Bay in the mountains,” and the picturesque Long Cốc tea hills further enrich the province’s tourism portfolio.

According to Dương Hoàng Hương, Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the administrative mergence has created a rare and diverse tourism landscape that offers exceptional opportunities for the province to develop its integrated tourism routes and products capable of meeting the demand of both domestic and international visitors.

The province is seeing strong growth in high-end resort tourism. Major resorts such as Flamingo Đại Lải Resort, Serena Resort Kim Bôi, Mai Châu Hideaway and FLC Vĩnh Phúc, together with internationally standard golf courses, are attracting visitors with high spending power.

Community-based tourism is also emerging as a highlight, with traditional Mường hamlets, the highland communities of Xuân Sơn, and a rich network of craft and ancient villages, and indigenous cultural traditions.

Alongside efforts to diversify tourism products, the province has continued to invest in and upgrade its accommodation facilities and tourism services, enabling it to better meet the growing demand of visitors.

As a result, tourist arrivals have risen steadily in recent years. In 2025, Phú Thọ welcomed approximately 14.5 million visitors and generated nearly VNĐ14.8 trillion (US$562.5 million) in tourism revenue. During the first six months of 2026, the province is estimated to receive more than 10.5 million visitors, including over 3.2 million overnight guests and around 74,000 international arrivals. Total tourism revenue during the period is estimated at VNĐ10.7 trillion.

Despite these advantages, tourism development has yet to fully match the province’s potential. Infrastructure remains uneven, service quality requires improvements, and the sector still lacks highly distinctive and competitive products.

Recognising tourism as a strategic economic sector, Phú Thọ has rolled out a series of breakthrough measures aimed at transforming tourism into a spearhead economic sector and a new driver of growth for the 2026–2030 period. The province aims to build a comprehensive and competitive tourism ecosystem, positioning itself as a national centre for cultural and festival tourism and a leading destination for spiritual, ecological and resort tourism in northern Việt Nam.

By 2030, it targets at least 20 million tourist arrivals, including 7.8 million overnight visitors, with tourism revenue reaching VNĐ26.5 trillion. The sector is expected to support approximately 30,000 direct and indirect jobs.

To achieve these goals, Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Phạm Đại Dương said Phú Thọ has prioritised attracting strategic investors, upgrading transport and digital infrastructure, developing smart tourism services, and diversifying tourism products. In addition to cultural and spiritual tourism, the province plans to expand wellness, golf, MICE, community-based, waterway and adventure tourism.

It also aims to digitise all recognised tourist sites, develop integrated tourism databases, and deploy digital maps, QR-code services, automated tour guides and virtual reality applications to enhance visitors' experiences.

With coordinated efforts in planning, infrastructure development, product diversification, human resources training, digital transformation and destination branding, Phú Thọ is well-positioned to transform tourism into a spearhead economic sector and a new engine of sustainable growth in the years ahead. — VNA/VNS