ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT QUARTERLY
common factor in visitation to Hue stems from the
intention to participate in a cultural experience. But,
how to expand on that experience and activate
‘place’ involves a better understanding our who are
the visitors to Hue.
According to (Nguyen and Chang 2014), visitation
to Hue has expanded from 8000 arrivals in 1990 to
1.5 million in 2010. Rofe et al. (2017), state Hue
received 1.2M visitors in 2014 with the majority of
international tourists from Europe and the Asia pacific
region with cultural heritage the primary draw card.
However, with the majority of visitors on packaged
tours the length of stay of two days remains relatively
unchanged. McKercher (cited in Nguyen and Chang
2014) poses a model in which cultural tourism is
divided into five classifications in which the packaged
sightseeing tour is most likely to have a superficial
and entertainment orientated experience. Whereas,
the serendipitous cultural tourist is more likely to
have a more immersed experience.
transformation and recovery from a war-ravaged
landscape, it is the combination of these elements
that form what is the unique identity and local
character. Therefore, it is challenging to balance
the conflicting interests of stakeholders and their
interpretation of ‘local character’. In a comparison
with the work undertaken by Dovey, Woodcock &
Wood (2009) on Fitzroy in Melbourne Australia, the
success of Hue as a tourist attraction exacerbates
the tensions between stakeholders. On one
hand, UNESCO’s requirement of preservation
can be restrictive in terms of renovation and
renewal, whereas, the other extreme is unchecked
development. As an example, the construction of
illegal dwellings on the rampart walls has lead to
forced resident relocation. Another more visual
example in the gentrification in areas where
traditional housing is being lost to more glamourous
townhouse developments. Whilst gentrification can
be a signal of success in desirability of ‘place’, it is
often at the loss of local identity.
It is the latter that provides more opportunity for
tourism development, specifically for extending
lengths of stay and supporting the proposed
UNESCO model of Sustainable tourism
development (UNESCO 2014).
It is this model that proposes local community
engagement to empower and engage in site
conservation, supported by findings of work
undertaken by Group 2 in 2017 (Economic,
development, tourism and heritage) that indicated
anecdotal support for the tourism industry by the
local community, especially if it helped to beautify
the citadel and improve infrastructure for walking.
Also, Ngo Quang Duc & Phan Thuy Van (2017,
p.79) state ‘…it is important to rebuild the general
landscape environment so that the lakes in the
Capital City are not only water reservoirs but also
green, clean and beautiful parks with cultural and
historical significance for the people to enjoy.
The challenge for developing the tourism market is
to understand who is visiting and to collate better
data for market development. Our Australian group
whilst posing models of walking tours were witness
to group after group arriving in buses or on cyclo
tours leading me to think we need to be flexible
on our thinking of how people would undertake a
Citadel Trail.
THE LOCAL EXPERIENCE AND
RETAINING LOCAL IDENTITY.
Hue has a complex history of imperial rule,
colonisation, regional influences, political
Traditional home within the
Citadel Preserved roofline of the old town
Hoi an
Traditional home undergoing
renovation with height increase New townhouse development
within the Citadel
Source: Author
Development controls exist within the Management
Plan of the Complex of Hue Monuments (Thua
Thein Hue Provincial People’s Committee 2015) in
regard to setbacks and building heights, however
does it need to preserve all of the citadel housing
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