DTU collaborated with the World Cultural Association and the Korean Society of Culture and Tourism to host the 3rd World Tourism conference and the 17th International Joint World Cultural Tourism Conference on November 20th and 21st.
Participants included scientists, business executives, lecturers and postgraduates in Tourism, including forty international speakers. With a research paper entitled “The Servqual Model to Measure Service Quality at the Danang Sun Wheel”, the DTU Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism was awarded Best Paper of all seventy-six at the conference.
DTU leaders and scientists give speeches
International academics, professionals and policy-makers shared ideas and made suggestions on how to develop cultural tourism. Discussions on human resource development, culture preservation, cultural tourism development and others highlighted the urgency to focus on cultural Tourism in addition to others, such as Eco-Tourism and Medical Tourism.
Distinguished Teacher Le Cong Co, DTU President and Provost, said: “Tourism has been considered a 'smokeless industry'. But today visitors want to enjoy beautiful places and, at the same time, explore the cultures and customs of local people. Tourism helps to expand relationships, broaden our perspectives and boost international relations, which is to everyone’s advantage. Conference participants should therefore advise us on how to refine tourism in Danang and all around our ever-evolving world for the better.”
Professor Sung-Chae Jung, President of the Korean Academic Society of Culture and Tourism, said:“The theme of this year’s conference is “Tourism: Differentiation and Diversification”. We are here to share our ideas and make suggestions on how to develop culture and tourism. Our output will be invaluable for managers and marketers. I want to thank DTU and others who helped make this conference a reality. I am sure the results will provide an effective and insightful platform for future developments in culture and tourism.”
The Cultural Tourism Society presents first prize to DTU lecturers, Ms. Cao Thi Cam Huong and Mr. Le Huu Luat
Papers were presented by international researchers, including “Medical Tourism. Compatibilities and Incompatibilities when Medical Services are Provided with Tourism Services”, by Polyxeni Moira of Piraeus University of Applied Sciences in Greece; “Community Development and the Role of Tourism”, by Dr. Sunil of the Department of Commerce at the University of Delhi in India; “Tourism in Northern Korea as a Way of Promoting National Culture”, by Simon Potter of the Graduate School of Languages and Cultures at Nagoya University in Japan. Participants were also interested in Vietnamese tourism research projects, including “Festival and Pilgrimage Tourism as a Global Trend”; “The Values of Cultural Heritage in Central Vietnam in Conjunction with the Strategy of Tourism Development in the East-West Economic Corridor”; “The Quang Food Culture in the Integration of the 21st Century”; “The Ba Chua Xu Temple Tourism Strategy” and others. The seven papers presented by DTU lecturers were well-received.
Ms. Cao Thi Cam Huong, a DTU lecturer in the Faculty of Hospitality and the research team leader of the “The Servqual Model to Measure Service Quality at the Danang Sun Wheel” paper, said: “As our standard of living improves, we will be more concerned about the quality of tourism services. It is the impressions that are created at the actual tourist destinations that will decide the future of special types of tourism. As the Sun Wheel Entertainment Park attracts more and more visitors, research into the tourists’ satisfaction is crucial. We surveyed various factors, such as the design of the facility, the interaction between staff and tourists and the advantages of its location and then built a Servqual model to measure service quality. The Sun Wheel Board of Management can now adjust and improve its long-range plan in accordance with ongoing visitor requirements.”
The 3rd World Tourism and 17th International Joint World Cultural Tourism conferences provided new ideas and strategies to develop Tourism in the future. It also enables Duy Tan University to deliver more enhanced educational programs to its students.
(Media Center)