assessment of the current situation of tourism development in mang

European Journal of Social Sciences Studies

ISSN: 2501-8590

ISSN-L: 2501-8590

Available on-line at: www.oapub.org/soc

DOI: 10.46827/ejsss.v9i3.1604

Volume 9 │ Issue 3 │ 2023

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION

OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN MANG DEN TOWN,

KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

Ly My Tien

Nguyen Thi Be Ba

Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong

Le Thi To Quyen

Nguyen Huynh Y

Thai Cong Dan

Department of History-Geography-Tourism,

School of Social Sciences & Humanities,

Can Tho University,

Can Tho City, Vietnam

Tour Guide,

Can Tho City, Vietnam

Senior Lecturer, Dr.,

School of Foreign Languages,

Can Tho University,

Can Tho City, Vietnam

Abstract:

This study surveyed 120 domestic tourists in Mang Den Town, using the convenience

sampling method. The method used to analyze primary data was descriptive statistics.

The research results have proposed six factors to evaluate the current situation of tourism

development in Mang Den Town, Kon Plong District, Kon Tum Province, Vietnam

including: (1) Quality of tourism services and tourism resources; (2) Perceived prices; (3)

Human resources; (4) Security, order, and safety; (5) Quality of tourism services and

tourism infrastructure; (6) and Tourism resources and perceived prices, in which "Human

resources" is the factor that has the strongest impact on the current situations of tourism

development in Mang Den Town. Through research results, the article has proposed

some solutions to develop tourism in Mang Den Town more effectively in the future.

Keywords: current situation of tourism development, Mang Den Town, Kon Tum

Province, tourism potentials

Correspondence: email : [email protected]u.vn

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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1. Introduction

1.1 Rationale

From the Resolution of the 13th Party Congress, Resolution 08-NQ/TW of the Politburo

and the Vietnam Tourism Development Strategy, it is determined that with many

existing potentials and advantages, by 2030 tourism promises to become a key economic

sector, an important driving force for economic growth, contributing to the country's

development. In recent years, Vietnam has always focused on exploiting and using

tourism potential appropriately, bringing practical benefits to the locality. Among those

tourist destinations, Mang Den Town, Kon Tum Province is considered a potential land

of the Central Highlands with abundant tourism resources, waiting to be exploited most

effectively. (Vietnamese Politburo Committee, 2017).

The development of Mang Den tourism (Xuan Tung, 2020) is receiving attention

from many tourists, and more importantly, Mang Den has received more attention and

investment from leaders at all levels. There have been many studies and specific planning

steps to help Mang Den develop tourism more effectively. But from practice, it can be

seen that Mang Den's development speed and service quality are currently progressing

very slowly and many plans are currently left open, unable to fully and effectively exploit

the potential available.

This study aims to analyze the potential and evaluate the current situation of

tourism development in Mang Den Town. From there, suggested solutions would be

proposed to help Mang Den develop better tourism in the future.

2. Literature review

In the world, there have been many research works as well as projects on tourism, the

first of which are studies on types of tourism, surveys on the role of territory, history, and

other factors affecting tourism activities by Poser (1939). Also, Christaleer (1955)

conducted in Germany in 1930, carrying capacity and stability of tourist destinations by

Khadaxkia (1972) and Sepfer (1973). In addition, American geographers such as Bohart

(1971), British geographer H. Robison (1976), and Canadian geographers, cited in Do Thu

Trang (2011), also conducted assessments of various types of resources. Nature serves

tourism purposes. Besides, an important aspect of tourism research that has received

attention is the issue of organizing tourism territory. And with the continuous

development of the world, research projects respond to change such as applying AI,

Robotics, and Blockchain to tourism by Pencarelli (2019).

In Vietnam, some typical authors with research works on the organization of

tourism space, theoretical basis, and methods of tourism research (Nguyen Minh Tue &

Le Tong, 2019) in organizing Vietnam tourism territory and Vietnam tourism geography,

and Pham Trung Luong, 2000 with the research about environmental resources and

tourism in Vietnam and Vietnam tourist destination route by Bui Thi Hai Yen, 2017 with

sections Vietnam tourism aspects by Phan Huy Xu and Vo Van Thanh, 2019 or book

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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works promoting Vietnam tourism such as "Vietnam's 63 provinces and cities" 2021 by

Vietnamese Knowledge Group in 2021 with the experiences from "Vietnam along the

travelogue" by Le Rin, 2022.

Research projects have identified the research objects of tourism geography as the

system of tourism territories at all levels or the synthesis of tourism territories and

analyzing the structure and synthesis of factors in the area for the development of

tourism. Therefore, with the desire to inherit the contributions of previous research

works, this study on the tourism development in Mang Den Town, Kon Plong District

aims to clarify the potential and current situations of tourism development in Mang Den

Town, Kon Plong District, Kon Tum Province; thereby proposing directions, which helps

to develop tourism in the research area.

3. Research methodology

3.1 Research questions

The study will be carried out with the following questions:

1) What is the current situation of tourism development in Mang Den Town, Kon

Plong District, Kon Tum Province?

2) What are suggested solutions to developing tourism in Mang Den Town, Kon

Plong District, Kon Tum Province?

3.2 Participants

This study surveyed 120 domestic tourists in Mang Den Town, using the convenience

sampling method

3.3 Instruments

3.3.1 Collecting and processing secondary data

The data were based on documents collected from scientific journals, books, the Internet,

projects, theses, newspaper articles, statistical reports and data provided by tourism

management boards, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Kon Tum

Province, website of Kon Tum Province, website of the Department of Culture, Sports

and Tourism of Kon Tum Province and so on, about issues related to tourism in Mang

Den Town, the authors conducted analysis, evaluation, and synthesis to exploit

information and data to serve the research article.

3.3.2 Field survey

During the research period, the authors conducted field surveys to observe the current

situations of tourist areas, tourist attractions, technical facilities, roads, means of

transportation, power grid systems, current status of tourists and service providers in

Mang Den Town.

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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3.3.3 Questionnaire survey

The study has developed a questionnaire to conduct a tourist survey, the questionnaire

includes 4 parts:

1) General information: this section exploits the personal information of visitors to

Mang Den Town, Kon Plong District, Kon Tum Province.

2) Tourism activities: this section explores the travel behaviours of tourists to Mang

Den Town, Kon Plong District, Kon Tum Province such as the number of visits to

Mang Den, forms of travel, communication information about Mang Den,

purposes of trip, and activities.

3) Visitors' assessment of the current state of tourism development in Mang Den

Town: this section includes six criteria and 24 variables, measured on a 5-level

Likert scale.

4) General assessment of tourists: this section asks questions about tourists' feelings

about tourism in Mang Den Town namely general satisfaction, intention to return,

intention to recommend, and comments from visitors.

4. Findings and discussions

From the first research question, below are the results.

4.1 Tourist satisfaction level towards Mang Den tourism development

Here are the responses from the domestic guests surveyed.

Table 4.1: Tourist satisfaction with tourism in

Mang Den Town, Kon Plong District, Kon Tum Province

Level of assessments

Percentage

Very dissatisfied

0.8

Dissatisfied

4.2

Normal

20.8

Satisfactory

63.3

Very satisfactory

10.8

Total

120

100

Source: Results of analysis of domestic tourist survey data (2022).

Statistics show that the majority of tourists are satisfied with tourism in Mang Den Town,

because this opinion accounts for the highest percentage. Mang Den tourism can at least

meet the expectations of tourists about a destination but has not yet made tourists truly

impressed with tourism here. Typically, the proportion of tourists who feel the

destination is at a normal level accounts for the second highest proportion in the data

collection. Mang Den tourism is still not really impressive and unique, while tourists

want to experience more like that. The rate of tourists who are dissatisfied and very

dissatisfied with the destination is very low, but it is necessary to further reduce this rate

and increase the rate who are very satisfied with the destination. To achieve that goal,

specific directions and measures are needed.

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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4.2 Tourist’s intention to return Mang Den Town, Kon Plong District, Kon Tum

Province

From statistical data, the majority of tourists choose to return to Mang Den tourism. These

are tourists who feel satisfied with Mang Den tourism. Mang Den tourism meets their

needs and desires, so it's natural for them to return to travel. But next to that are tourists

who are wondering and will consider returning to visit Mang Den, with the mentality

that Mang Den tourism has not really impressed them enough to decide to return to travel

here, but still not to the point of making a bad impression on tourists, so if they intend to

travel, Mang Den is still one of the options for tourists to consider. For tourists who love

this tourist destination, they will come back. These are potential customers because they

can come back many times. The percentage of tourists who choose not to and certainly

will not return to travel is the lowest, but it is necessary to find out the problems they

encounter, and their bad experiences and resolve them quickly to travel in Mang Town.

4.3 Tourist publicity to Mang Den Town, Kon Plong District, Kon Tum Province

The highest rate of tourists deciding to introduce Mang Den tourism to their

acquaintances is that this will attract many potential tourists in the future because this is

from a reliable source of information. The majority of tourists think that Mang Den is a

tourist destination worth experiencing once, and of course, for tourists who are truly

impressed with Mang Den, they plan to return more than once and they always would

like to introduce to relatives and friends. Tourists who are hesitant about their intention

to introduce themselves to their acquaintances still do not really feel like they have had a

good experience when traveling to Mang Den, so it is necessary to improve the remaining

issues in order to improve tourist satisfaction, intention to return and accordingly the rate

of referral to relatives and friends will be increased.

4.4 Potentials for tourism development in Mang Den Town

Mang Den (Nguyen Thi Be Ba et al, 2023a) is considered the starting point of the "Central

Highlands Green Road" tourist route, connected to the "Central Highlands Heritage Road

and "Central Highlands Heritage Road" tourist routes, and “Legend of Ho Chi Minh

Road” to form a transnational tourist route. In particular, from Mang Den, the "Central

Highlands Green Road" will cross Bo Y international border gate to form the "Indochina

Heritage Road" tourist route, connecting Vietnam's world heritage sites with other

heritage sites to the neighboring countries, Laos and Cambodia.

Naturally, Mang Den has a system of rivers, streams, and many lakes, located at

an altitude of 1200 m above sea level, the average annual temperature ranges from 16 –

C, average humidity is 82-84%. Surrounded by mountain ranges and primary forest

flora, the town has a cool, temperate mountain climate all year round and a diverse

ecosystem. With rich and diverse potentials, Mang Den is one of three key socio-

economic development areas of Kon Tum Province. This area has been approved by the

Vietnamese Government to be planned into a national tourist area with 11 clusters, eco-

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

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MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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tourism spots and attractive resorts, serving domestic and foreign tourists (A Le Kham,

2022).

In terms of culture, the culture of ethnic groups and the living environment here

still retains traditional indigenous culture and activities, with long-standing folk musical

instruments such as vertical flute, drums, gongs, pilings, percussion pipes, and pipe

trusses operated by water power; indigenous costumes of the Xe Dang, Mo Nam, Ka

Dong, Hre peoples. The architectural culture of communal houses, long houses

associated with natural mountain and forest space is a great potential to be exploited to

create community tourism destinations with bold indigenous characteristics of the

mountains and forests of Mang Den (Center for Culture - Sports - Tourism and

Communications of Kon Plong District, A Le Kham, 2022).

Mang Den tourism resources are diverse from nature to humanities, which is

suitable for developing many different types of tourism from ecological to the resort,

community tourism, or spiritual tourism, featuring indigenous culture, featuring many

experiential activities in the community, and learning about the local culture of ethnic

minorities. There is diversity in the type of tourism, from which visitors can fully

experience the trip with many different tourist destinations. Tourist destinations that

grasp modern tourism trends, develop beautiful landscapes and diverse activities,

contribute to satisfying the needs of tourists, meeting the needs of many different types

of visitors of different ages. together. The diverse ecosystem is one of the suitable places

for learning and research in the current era (Duong Nuong, 2022).

4.5 Current situation of tourism development in Mang Den Town

Tourists coming to Mang Den Town are mostly domestic tourists as mentioned above in

Table 4.1, most of them are tourists from neighboring provinces, including the Central

Highlands and provinces on the South Central Coast, partly a large proportion are

tourists from Hanoi Capital and Ho Chi Minh City. In the structure of tourists coming to

Mang Den Town, international tourists account for a relatively low proportion compared

to domestic tourists.

According to statistics from the Center for Culture - Sports - Tourism and

Communications of Kon Plong District, room occupancy in recent years has averaged 45-

70%, with guests' stay lasting from two months, to three days, leading to increased

spending. At prominent times of the year, namely riping myrtle season, cherry blossom

season, Culture and Tourism Week, and the feast of Our Lady of Mang Den, attract a

large number of tourists to visit and generate revenue for tourism activities contribute to

the socio-economic development of Kon Plong District (Nguyen Thi Be Ba, 2023b).

The main form of travel is self-organized by family and friends (51.7%), 41.7% stay

for 2 days, traveling by company or personal car accounting for 36.7%, the most attractive

factor for tourists is beautiful scenery (accounting for 75%), the activity experienced by

many tourists is visiting natural landscapes (Dak Ke Lake, Pa Sy Waterfall, Dam Bri

Lake), nature experience activities (accounting for 85%).

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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Table 4.2: Visitors' assessment of the current quality

of tourism services and tourism resources of Mang Den Town

Variables

Mean (M)

Level

Easy shopping service, diverse types of goods

and souvenirs.

3.46

0.92

Agree

Diverse food service, ensuring hygiene,

many delicious and attractive dishes.

3.72

0.90

Agree

The local culture - distinctive, unique, and new.

3.96

0.81

Agree

Diverse, new, and unique sightseeing, experience

and entertainment services.

3.64

0.94

Agree

Local cuisine - typical and diverse, the dishes are

uniquely and attractively prepared.

3.90

0.92

Agree

The natural landscape is diverse and unique,

with many attractive places to visit.

4.19

0.65

Agree

Source: Results of analysis of domestic tourist survey data (2022).

The current situation of the factors "Quality of tourism services and tourism resources"

in Mang Den Town is rated by tourists as "Agree" over M=3.81. This shows that tourists

feel that the current state of tourism development in Mang Den Town is closely linked to

tourism resources. According to the evaluation results (Table 4.2), it shows that tourists'

highest assessment of the current state of tourism development in Mang Den Town is the

diverse and unique natural landscape, with many attractive places to visit (M = 4.19, SD

= 0.65) and has a unique, new and unique local culture (Mean = 3.96, SD = 0.81). From the

data, visitors realize that this place has a high attraction of natural landscape resources,

and can experience many attractive sightseeing places, causing curiosity and impression

on visitors, with many waterfall tourist destinations, endless natural scenery with typical

mountains and forests of the Central Highlands. Another factor that also makes tourists

choose Mang Den is the culture here, with the interference of different ethnic cultures in

the same location, associated with many ethnic minorities. Therefore, when coming here,

visitors are exposed to a lot of local culture, things they have never been exposed to

before, making a strong impression with its newness and uniqueness. These are two

important factors that need to be preserved and strongly promoted.

Visitors also agree that it is easy to shop here, with a variety of goods to choose

from, mainly specialties and souvenirs, which can be easily found and bought at the local

market or tourist areas, tourist attractions, shops specializing in selling specialties,

souvenirs or right at the accommodation facility. But there is a high difference in the

quality of products, inexperienced tourists will easily buy poor quality goods. The food

service is highly appreciated with many delicious dishes, ensuring hygiene with many

delicious and attractive dishes, but according to some visitors, the specialty dishes served

here are quite few. It is possible to participate in many experiential and sightseeing

activities, but there need to be many other new activities to keep tourists staying longer

and making them come back again and again.

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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Table 4.3: Visitors' assessment of the perceived price status of Mang Den Town

Variables

Mean (M)

Level

Food service prices are reasonable.

3.47

0.91

Agree

Reasonable prices are for accommodation

services.

3.27

0.90

Neutral

Reasonable prices are for shopping services.

3.45

0.96

Agree

Source: Results of analysis of domestic tourist survey data (2022).

The current situation of the "Perceived Prices" factor in Mang Den Town is rated by

tourists as "Neutral" with over M= 3.40. This shows that prices in the current state of

tourism development in Mang Den are not good. According to the evaluation results

(Table 4.3), tourists feel that the price of accommodation services is not reasonable (M =

3.27, SD = 0.90). According to the research team, there are many accommodation services

operated in Mang Den town is most popular as a hotel, and most of these accommodation

services have quite high prices per night, many times higher than other locations.

Tourists complain about service prices. When staying for more days, the amount of

money spent on accommodation services accounts for a high proportion of the entire trip.

Next is the price of shopping services (M = 3.45, SD = 0.96), shopping prices are

considered reasonable but consideration is needed in choosing shopping businesses that

ensure reasonable prices. and there is no price challenge with tourists, because they are

people from other places, so it will be impossible to know what the average price of the

product is. As for food service prices, tourists rated them as reasonable (M = 3.47, SD =

0.91). For most visitors, the food service here is reasonably priced, not too expensive. To

improve the development situation and satisfy customers in the coming time, it is

necessary to adjust the prices of some specific criteria, especially the prices of

accommodation services.

Table 4.4: Visitors' assessment of the current state of human resources in Mang Den Town

Variables

Mean (M)

Level

Tour guides have good qualifications, skills

and knowledge.

3.97

0.81

Agree

The tour guide is friendly, thoughtful, polite,

and professional.

4.00

0.82

Agree

Service staff are friendly, hospitable, have

good professional qualifications and skills, and are

ready to meet customers' needs and assist.

3.82

0.80

Agree

Source: Results of analysis of domestic tourist survey data (2022).

The reality of the factor "Human Resources" is rated by tourists as "Agree" with over M =

3.93. This shows that tourists have a positive assessment of the current state of human

resources in Mang Den Town, proving that the human resources here are good.

According to the evaluation results (Table 4.4), tourists' opinions about tour guides

participating in Mang Den tourism are friendly, thoughtful, polite, and professional (M

= 4, 0, SD = 0.82). Tour guides have good qualifications, skills, and knowledge (M = 3.97,

SD = 0.81), ensuring tourists have complete and interesting information about tourist

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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destinations. Finally, there is the factor of friendly, hospitable service staff, with good

professional qualifications and skills, ready to meet the needs and assist customers (M =

3.82, SD = 0.80), and attentive staff and care about customers at an appropriate level.

From the actual survey, the research team found that the majority of tour guides

in groups are dedicated and bring good experiences to tourists, but it can be seen that

there are not many tour guides at the destination. Tourist attractions do not have tour

guides on site. To exploit tourism resources well, increase revenue, and improve the

quality of tourist experiences, it is necessary to arrange on-site tour guides, as well as

local tour guides because they understand them well. about the destination. Service staff

also need to be more professional in their service, because it can be seen that they only

assist guests when requested, but are not really proactive in understanding the needs of

visitors and communicating. and the majority's attitude is still very poor. There needs to

be training activities on skills and knowledge for human resources participating in

tourism.

Table 4.5: Visitors' assessment of the current state

of security, order and safety in Mang Den Town

Variables

Mean (M)

Level

There is no theft or robbery.

4.60

0.62

Strongly Agree

There is no begging or soliciting tourists.

4.64

0.54

Strongly Agree

Guests always feel happy and comfortable.

4.56

0.60

Strongly Agree

Source: Results of analysis of domestic tourist survey data (2022).

The current situation of the factor "Security, order and safety" is rated by tourists as

"Completely agree" with over M = 4.60. This shows that tourists' opinions on the security,

order, and safety situation in Mang Den are completely satisfied. According to the

assessment results (Table 4.5), it shows that Mang Den does not have a situation of

begging or soliciting tourists (M = 4.64, SD = 0.54). Next, there is no theft or robbery (M =

4.60, SD=0.62). From two highly appreciated opinions, it can be seen that Mang Den

tourism really makes visitors feel safe and enjoy the trip without any problems with

security and order. In fact, the control of security and order at night is strictly controlled

by the security forces in Mang Den. The above creates a very safe tourism environment

for tourists, on the streets there are not even street vendors or situations of encroaching

on the sidewalk or begging. Therefore, according to tourists' feelings, it is natural that

guests always feel happy and comfortable (M = 4.56, SD = 0.60).

Table 4.6: Visitors' assessment of the current quality of

tourism services and tourism infrastructure of Mang Den Town

Variables

Mean (M)

Level

Modern, comfortable, convenient and safe means of transportation.

3.77

0.96

Agree

Public services are fully provided (toilets, parking lots)

3.70

0.79

Agree

Good electricity and water supply system.

3.86

0.83

Agree

Source: Results of analysis of domestic tourist survey data (2022).

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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The current situation of the factor "Quality of tourism services and tourism

infrastructure" is rated by tourists as "Agree" with over M=3.80. Visitors feel that the

services provided meet the minimum requirements. Although not excellent, they still

ensure adequate provision of services. According to the evaluation results (Table 4.6), it

shows that modern, comfortable, and safe means of transportation (M = 3.77, SD = 0.96)

make tourists satisfied with the quality of transportation services.

Destinations have fully provided public services (M = 3.70, SD = 0.7) and visitors

can easily find parking lots arranged at tourist destinations and other public services. The

electricity and water supply system is good (M = 3.86, SD = 0.83). Power and water

outages at Mang Den rarely occur and are usually fixed immediately afterward, without

affecting or causing discomfort to the customers. traveler. Since the water in Mang Den

is very cold, most accommodation services are at least fully equipped with hot and cold

showers for tourists; but to make tourists more satisfied in the future, there should be

proposals to add more public services and improve the quality of transportation services

further.

Table 4.7: Visitors' assessments of the current state of tourism

resources and perceived tourism prices of Mang Den Town

Variables

Mean (M)

Level

The air is fresh, cool, and comfortable.

4.49

0.80

Strongly Agree

Reasonable prices are for sightseeing and

entertainment services.

3.97

0.60

Agree

Source: Results of analysis of domestic tourist survey data (2022).

The current situation of the factor "Tourism resources and perceived price of tourism" is

rated by tourists as "Strongly Agree" with nearly M = 4.00. Tourists completely agree with

the opinions given about the current state of tourism resources and the prices of the two

factors. According to the evaluation results (Table 4.7), the factors of fresh, cool, and

comfortable air are highly appreciated by tourists (M = 4.49, SD = 0.80). The climate in

Mang Den is cool and fresh, most tourist seasons have ideal weather to attract tourists,

so in fact, visitors to Mang Den really like the climate here. The factor of reasonable price

of sightseeing and entertainment services (M = 3.97, SD = 0,60) is satisfied by the majority

of tourists because the ticket prices of tourist destinations are quite cheap, some locations

do not sell tickets, but the authors’ observation is that although ticket prices are cheap,

the services are not diverse and attractive. Tourists feel satisfied with the tour price but

are not really satisfied with the services provided.

5. Suggested solutions

The following would be the responses to the second research question.

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

MANG DEN TOWN, KON PLONG DISTRICT, KON TUM PROVINCE, VIETNAM

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5.1 Solutions for tourism resources

It is necessary to exploit resources reasonably and use available resources with great

potential to develop tourism. Natural landscapes should be taken advantage of, and

places with beautiful landscapes should create many activities for tourists to experience

and visit. In addition to exploiting nature for tourism activities, it is necessary to pay

attention to the impact of tourism on the natural environment. And there is a need to

enhance and integrate environmental activities into tourism activities, typically tours on

greening Mang Den, afforestation, experiencing rowing boats into the forest, and

experiencing streams and waterfalls, to raise awareness. visitors' consciousness. Also,

Waste from tourism into the environment needs effective treatment measures so as not

to affect the natural environment. Then, there should be revenue from tourism to

conserve and pay for environmental conservation and management activities. Moreover,

it is to enhance environmental responsibility in promotion and development activities

and to preserve natural resources, while not exploiting and integrating many activities

that negatively affect the natural environment, aiming at tourism development but not

changing in a negative direction, preserving the unique wildness.

Local culture needs to be preserved, requiring cooperation from all levels of

government and local ethnic minorities. Local leaders should create profound cultural

characteristics and many experiential activities for tourists to participate in regularly.

Also, the authority should encourage tourists and strongly promote tourism during times

of good weather for tourists to experience, along with developing services and activities

typical of the tourist season. Local cuisine needs to be more diverse, using and creating

local dishes in tourism, especially typical dishes of ethnic minorities for tourists to

experience. These are exciting activities.

5.2 Solutions for tourism service quality

Transportation requires more investment. Bus services from big cities should invest in

additional trips during peak periods to avoid cramming more passengers than the

prescribed number on one trip. Also, it is necessary to invest more in the quality of the

vehicle, the service attitude of the driver and assistant. The service support switchboard

needs to be more professional, and list prices of bus tickets for tourists to know. Also,

there should be investment and supplement car rental services and transportation

services such as taxis and motorbike taxis. It is also to consider investing in the Mang Den

airport project to facilitate the travel of tourists, connecting many tourist routes from the

Northern and Southern Provinces of Vietnam. Bus routes need to be regularly upgraded

and repaired, equipment and seats need to be replaced to ensure hygiene and prices for

routes should be publicly posted on the bus and included in automatic ticket purchasing

services, ensuring travel time of routes.

Accommodation services need to be more professional in service, and the quality

of accommodation facilities needs to be improved. It is necessary to expand the scale to

meet the needs of tourists during peak occasions, and need to promote and post products

for sale on e-commerce applications to make it easy for tourists to choose. The

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT SITUATION OF TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN

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architecture of the accommodation facility should be built with characteristics of local

architecture to create an impression and closeness to tourists.

Food services need to be diverse, adding more local dishes, encouraging food

services with home delivery and night business for tourists. Food and beverage services

need to be certified and must be censored regarding food safety and hygiene, processing

processes, and origin of dishes.

5.3 Solutions for human resources

Customer service departments need attention and improved attitudes, and they need to

be encouraged to participate in behavioral and professional training courses to

participate in tourism more effectively. It is seriously to handle and prevent cases of bad

attitudes that affect Mang Den tourism while creating a friendly tourism environment

with cooperation from local people, up to leaders at all levels, which gives tourists a

certain comfort when traveling to Mang Den.

They, ethnic minorities, also need to be trained in participating in tourism, conduct

courses, and in the future if they can attract many international tourists, they need to

improve Vietnamese and foreign languages, especially English, to develop and promote

community culture to everyone.

It is also necessary to have human resources as tour guides at the site to help

tourists access information effectively, especially in community tourism villages. Local

leaders should choose and invest in young human resources in ethnic village

communities because they have the ability to learn and understand their ethnic cultures.

If invested professionally, they will be a bridge to the community, both generating

income and contributing to preserving culture. What’s more, the local authority should

create close, beneficial activities for local people to participate in learning and improving

their skills. Tour guides, whether on-site or leading tours from companies, need to

constantly update knowledge about the locality because of the local culture.

5.4 Solutions for tourism infrastructure

Roads to tourist destinations need to be upgraded because they pose a danger to tourists

in bad and adverse weather. The roads are too small and rough and not suitable for multi-

seat service vehicles. Roads should be arranged and installed with many dangerous

warning signs. Parking lots at tourist attractions need to be spacious and have parking

services for visitors. Toilets need to be upgraded and regularly checked for quality,

adding more toilets in tourist locations. The water supply system needs to be more

professional; priority should be given to the quality of water sources and power sources,

generators should be arranged for use when power is lost, and there should be specific

information when power is lost to minimize risk. Then, there would be to develop and

invest in additional entertainment areas and additional services. It is necessary to invest

and develop shopping areas, shopping, and dining areas need to be professionally

invested.

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5.5 Solutions for tourism planning

It is necessary that detailed planning of functional subdivisions has been implemented

synchronously with actively calling for and promoting investment attraction and

development of all types of tourism, focusing more resources on infrastructure

investment, and connecting tourist destinations. The local authority might carry out

planning and planning management well, apply policy mechanisms, and effectively

mobilize investment resources to build infrastructure and technical facilities to serve

tourism development. Also, it should proactively coordinate closely with provincial

departments and central ministries to adjust the planning of the Mang Den national eco-

tourism area and the general planning of Kon Plong urban area to ensure a strategic

vision for development in the long run.

It is necessary to review and create new plans for tourist areas, attractions, and

resorts, associated with the potential and advantages of the district, especially the forest

ecosystem, water surface, climate characteristics, landscape, terrain, and landscape.

traditional culture of ethnic minorities; planning multi-functional entertainment and

commercial shopping areas; connecting tours and tourist routes inside and outside the

province with Mang Den.

5.6 Solutions for tourism product development

There should improve the quality and development of tourism products, prioritizing

typical tourism products with their own identities, and combining potential and

advantages with trends and tastes of the tourism market to build and develop new

tourism products with unique characteristics, focusing on sightseeing tourism products,

cultural research, history, spirituality; adventure sports tourism; ecotourism and resort;

community tourism, agricultural tourism, associated with learning and experiencing the

cultural values and life of the community. And, it is a good idea to build "Night Economy"

activity points, and Mang Den cultural park. From this aspect, it should gradually

position the national eco-tourism brand Mang Den through tourism products based on

the comparative advantages of eco-tourism resources and the district's unique culture.

Furthermore, it is to prioritize creative solutions in product development and encourage

businesses to invest in research and development of creative tourism products to

optimize the province's resources.

6. Conclusions

The research results reflected the reality of the tourism situation in Mang Den Town and

the opinions of tourists, their wishes, and feelings about the destination. Although there

are many conditions for tourism development, there are proposals and projects for

development, but in general, resources have not been effectively exploited, and attractive

resources have not yet become a characteristic of the region and the region. These projects

have not been implemented strictly according to the proposed plan. Poor service quality

and tourism products that are not so outstanding, not new and boring, traffic, and other

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

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problems are still some of the factors that prevent this place from developing to an ideal

level.

Therefore, the tourism industry in general, or Mang Den tourism in particular,

needs to have measures to quickly and effectively overcome outstanding problems and

the reasons why tourists are not truly satisfied and impressed with Mang Den tourism to

be able to meet the higher demands of future travelers. At the same time, it is possible to

take advantage of existing conditions and turn difficulties into motivation to turn Mang

Den into an attractive destination of Kon Tum and the Central Highlands, contributing

to economic development, improving the lives, and increasing the income of local people

for the common cause of the country.

Acknowledgements

To have this paper done successfully, this study, firstly, was supported by the teaching

staff of Department of History-Geography-Tourism (DoHGT), School of Social Sciences

and Humanities (SSSH), Can Tho University (CTU), Vietnam, especially the Mang Den

research team from DoHGT, SSSH, CTU, Vietnam. Also, this study received the funding

from CTU-Mang Den Project. And, lastly, their respectful thanks would go to the

European Journal of Social Sciences Studies for this paper to be published to the public

worldwide, especially those interested in doing research and teaching about tourism,

especially tourism development in the central highlands of Vietnam, in which there

would be models called Good Practices to be replicated towards tourism stakeholders

who help bring Vietnamese tourism development worldwide.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The author declares no conflicts of interest.

About the Authors

Ly My Tien is currently a lecturer at DoHGT, SSSH, CTU, Vietnam. The main research

interests are tourism teaching and learning, tourism and hospitality issues, tourism case-

studies, and tourism project management nationwide and worldwide as well.

Correspondence email: [email protected].

Le Thi To Quyen is currently a lecturer at DoHGT, SSSH, CTU, Vietnam. The main

research interests are tourism teaching and learning, tourism and hospitality issues,

tourism case-studies, and tourism project management nationwide and worldwide as

well.

Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong is currently a lecturer at DoHGT, SSSH, CTU, Vietnam. The

main research interests are tourism teaching and learning, tourism and hospitality issues,

tourism case-studies, and tourism project management nationwide and worldwide as

well.

Nguyen Thi Be Ba, a chairwoman of Department of History-Geography-Tourism

(DoHGT), School of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSSH), Can Tho University (CTU),

Vietnam, has held her doctoral degree. Her main interests are tourism teaching and

Ly My Tien, Nguyen Thi Be Ba, Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, Le Thi To Quyen, Nguyen Huynh Y, Thai Cong Dan

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learning, tourism and hospitality aspects, community-based tourism, and ecotourism

development. She can be reached at [email protected].

Ms. Nguyen Huynh Y, tour guide, in Can Tho City, Vietnam. Her interests are tour guide

skills, tourism and travel management, and professional development.

Mr. Thai Cong Dan, senior English lecturer, School of Foreign Languages, Can Tho

University (CTU), Vietnam, is currently both a lecturer in English and an expert in

Tourism. He has held his PhD at Naresuan University, Thailand since 2010 in Educational

Administration (English program). He got his MA in Cultural Aspects and Literature

from University of Notre Dame du Lac, Indiana, USA in 1999. His main research interests

are TEF/TESOL issues, intercultural communication, high school and higher education

levels in English learning and teaching, English program management, curriculum

design, testing and evaluation, professional development, educational administration,

and ESP for Tourism, Political Education. He can be reached at [email protected].

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