Bokeo links tourism to investment

Bokeo authorities plan to develop the province’s tourism industry through stronger links with culture, nature and investment in other Mekong countries.

The stunning landscape in Bokeo province.

While attending a tourism meeting on January 27 in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone, the Governor of Bokeo province, Mr Bounkhong Nammavong, said the province will create various sightseeing activities that link with tourism initiatives in other provinces and countries.
The province will also seek to boost trade and investment in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone as well as build facilities that strengthen links with China, Thailand and Vietnam.
A senior tourism official in Bokeo province, Mr Somsack Mahaphom, said tourism has become one of the main pillars of Laos’ development.
Bokeo province is located in the centre of the Mekong sub-region and is also using tourism as a central focus of it social and economic development through the production of tourism-related goods, transport and services.
Tourism is also creating jobs, generating income, and improving the quality of life for the province’s ethnic groups.
This year, the province’s Visit Laos Year tourism programme comprises 14 special events, one of which was the kapok blossom festival which took place at the end of January.
Provincial authorities plan to attract 345,705 tourists throughout 2024, an increase of 67,547 tourists from the 278,158 figure recorded last year.
Mr Somsack said facilities and services at some of the province’s main tourist destinations have been upgraded, as well as accommodation and restaurants, in a bid to ensure visitor satisfaction and encourage people to return.
Bokeo province has many places of interest to tourists, including the Nam Kan protected area in Huayxai district, which offers adventure activities such trekking, ziplining and a stay in a treehouse, and is becoming better known as a tourist destination.
Many visitors to Laos begin their journey in Huayxai district after entering the country from Thailand. They pick up a slow boat to Pakbaeng district in Oudomxay province where they spend the night before travelling further downstream on the Mekong to the world heritage town of Luang Prabang.
Bokeo has 77 officially designated tourist sites, including 53 nature-based attractions, 14 cultural sites and 10 places of historical interest, and is well worth exploring due to its relative lack of development, enabling visitors to discover the real Laos.

By Times Reporters
 (Latest Update February 1, 2024)