On the morning of October 16, 2026, the Department of Science and Technology, in coordination with the Department of Tourism, organized the Conference “Connecting Innovation in Ninh Binh Tourism: From Practical Challenges to Solutions and Pilot Models.” The conference aimed to strengthen connections among management agencies, tourism businesses, experts, and technology solution providers, with the goal of improving the quality of products and services and the competitiveness of local tourism.
Attendees included leaders of the Department of Science and Technology; representatives of the leadership of the Tourism Association; the Ninh Binh Culinary Culture Association; the Provincial Tourism Information and Promotion Center; and the Provincial Innovative Startup Club. Also present were experts and speakers in technology, tourism, cuisine, and healthcare, as well as representatives of tourism businesses, hotels, and travel companies in the province.
In his opening remarks, Mr. Nguyen Toan Thang, Deputy Director of the Department of Science and Technology, stressed that Ninh Binh has many tourism development potentials and advantages, with rich and diverse resources and a distinctive appeal. As visitors’ needs and expectations keep rising, diversifying products, improving service quality, and creating distinctive experiences have become urgent requirements for the tourism sector.
Therefore, promoting innovation and applying science, technology, and advanced solutions will not only help resolve difficulties in business operations, but also improve management efficiency, optimize resources, increase the value of the visitor experience, and drive tourism development toward quality and sustainability.
In the spirit of taking practical needs as the foundation, the conference focused on identifying the issues currently facing tourist attractions and accommodation establishments in the province. It then connected them with experts and technology companies to find suitable solutions that can be implemented and piloted in practice.
The discussions centered on three key groups of issues. For tourist attractions, the conference addressed applying innovation to improve the visitor experience, enhance smart destination management, and combine heritage conservation and promotion with modern technology. For 3- to 5-star accommodation establishments, the solutions of greatest interest aim to optimize operating processes, personalize services, and improve business efficiency, while promoting digital transformation and green transformation. In addition, the pilot model “Massage Vietnam” was introduced as a new approach to developing wellness tourism products, helping diversify services and expand room for growth in Ninh Binh tourism.
The highlight of the conference was the networking panel discussion “Destination Challenges – Business Solutions,” which created a forum for direct exchange between destination management units, tourism businesses, and accommodation establishments on one side, and experts, scientists, and technology solution providers on the other. Rather than merely introducing new trends or technologies, the panel aimed to clearly identify the problems that organizations encounter in operating, doing business, and serving visitors, and thereby find highly applicable solutions suited to each organization’s real conditions.
From the destination’s perspective, the issues raised relate to the need to improve the quality of experiences, increase the appeal of tourism products, improve the efficiency of resource management and use, and promote the value of heritage in connection with sustainable tourism development. Applying technology to providing information, assisting visitors, managing operations, and building new experiences was seen as a necessary direction to meet the increasingly diverse needs of the market.
For accommodation establishments and service businesses, the innovation challenge is approached from the need to improve operational efficiency, control costs, improve service quality, and create differentiation in the customer experience. Digital transformation solutions, technology applications in management, service personalization, and green development practices were considered in relation to business efficiency, competitiveness, and the businesses’ long-term development requirements.
Based on these practical needs, experts and solution providers had the opportunity to discuss and analyze the applicability of technologies and propose options suited to the scale, resources, and operating characteristics of each organization. The networking content focused not only on choosing technologies but also on feasibility, practicality, expected effectiveness, and opportunities for cooperation among the parties in piloting, evaluating, and refining solutions.
Through dialogue and networking, the panel aimed to form a cooperation mechanism among management agencies, destination operators, accommodation establishments, and solution providers. The goal is to gradually turn practical problems into innovation opportunities, proposals into implementation plans, and potential models into scalable solutions. This also lays the groundwork for stronger links among technology, tourism, cuisine, and healthcare, opening opportunities to develop new products and services in line with the orientation of improving the quality of Ninh Binh tourism.
At the conference, experts and businesses actively exchanged views and discussed, contributing many opinions and solution proposals grounded in real operations. The shared content helped clarify innovation needs at destinations, accommodation establishments, and service businesses, while strengthening connections among stakeholders in the tourism and innovation ecosystem.
The conference was an occasion to promote cooperation among science, technology, and tourism, enabling businesses to access new solutions, seek partners, and gradually pilot suitable models. In doing so, it contributes to improving the quality of products and services, making effective use of the locality’s potential and advantages, and building Ninh Binh tourism along quality, sustainable, and modern lines.