Dreamy beauty of the lake dubbed as “Ha Long Bay of Central Highlands”
	Na Hang lake, spectacular inland Ha Long Bay for a peace of mind
	Ta Dung Lake, Ha Long Bay of Central Highlands

Sunrise in Ha Long Bay. Photo: Vietnam Insider

UNESCO-recognised Ha Long Bay in Vietnam’s northern province of Quang Ninh is a nominee for Asia's leading tourist attraction category at 2021 World Travel Awards (WTA).

The heritage site will compete with 11 other regional tourist destinations – Angkor Temples (Cambodia), Borobudur Temple Compounds (Indonesia), Great Wall (China), Intramuros (Philippines), Sengan-en and Shoko Shuseikan Museum (Japan), Taj Mahal (India), teamLab SuperNature Macao (China), Terracotta Warriors (China), The Forbidden City (China), Tokyo Imperial Palace (Japan) and Victoria Peak (Hong Kong).

Limestone karst mountains rise out of the waters in Ha Long Bay. Photo by Shutterstock/Jimmy Tran.

The winner will be determined by votes from travel professionals, media and consumers around the world. Voting is open online on the WTA website, and will close on September 1 this year. Voters are required to register for an account on the website before casting their ballot.

This year’s awards ceremony for Asia will take place on October 6 in Dubai.

The bay helped Quang Ninh attract14 million tourists, including 5.7 million foreigners, in 2019. Photo by Shutterstock/namanh

Ha Long Bay, literally “descending dragon” bay, was twice recognised as a World Natural Heritage site by UNESCO in 1994 and 2000.

According to UNESCO, it includes some 1,600 islands and islets, forming a spectacular seascape of limestone pillars. Because of their precipitous nature, most of the islands are uninhabited and unaffected by a human presence. The site's outstanding scenic beauty is complemented by its great biological interest.

Ha Long Bay's outstanding scenic beauty is complemented by its great biological interest. Photo: VnExpress

The bay helped Quang Ninh attract14 million tourists, including 5.7 million foreigners, in 2019, a rise of 14 percent from the previous year.

By 2030, the province is set to welcome 3 million domestic visitors and 1.8 million foreigners, with revenue reaching VND12.1 trillion (US$530 million).

Ha Long Bay's outstanding scenic beauty is complemented by its great biological interest. Photo: Thanh Son

Currently celebrating its 28th anniversary, WTA was established in 1993 to acknowledge excellence across all sectors of the tourism industry. Today, the WTA brand is recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of quality, with winners setting the benchmark to which all others aspire.

Ha Long Bay won the title of Asia’s Leading Tourist Attraction in 2019. Meanwhile, Vietnam was named Asia’s leading culinary, culture and heritage destination at the 2020 World Travel Awards ceremony.

Quang Ninh temporarily closes tourist destinations due to Covid threats

People swim at Hon Gai beach in Ha Long, Quang Ninh Province, July 2021. Photo: VnExpress

Since earlier this month, Quang Ninh Province has imposed a swimming ban and close all tourist destinations as a tougher measure to contain the pandemic.

The move came as the northern province, around two hours from Hanoi, has gone 37 days without new community transmissions while the pandemic situation in many localities, including the capital, remain complicated with new Covid clusters, VnExpress said.

Street-side eateries and coffee shops are only allowed to serve takeaways while restaurants and in-door dining establishments can serve customers on the spot but must ensure pandemic prevention measures.

Provincial authorities also banned gathering of more than five people in public at once and ordered all arrivals to furnish negative PCR Covid test results./.

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