Dong Nai has the advantage of developing agricultural tourism

​ (E. Portal of Dong Nai) Dong Nai has large fruit-growing regions, in which there are many kinds of delicious fruits to develop models of eco-tourism and garden tourism. Exploiting available advantages, many eco-tourism and garden tourism sites in the province are increasingly diversifying products and services to catch up with the current new trend of agricultural tourism.

Visitor joints an agricultural tour at a specialty garden in Xuan Loc district.

This is a new model that helps to increase value for gardeners because in addition to exploiting the available advantages of delicious fruit gardens, garden tourism establishments also care about cuisine as well as a variety of products and services attracting guests.

 Encourage farmers to do tourism

 Many localities of the province are famous for delicious fruits such as: grape fruits at Tan Trieu; durians and rambutans in Long Khanh… Accordingly, the development of garden tourism is being encouraged by many localities in the province. Farmers are supported to make model garden samples, trained in doing garden tourism…

Accordingly, garden tourism is attracting a lot of farmers and cooperatives in the province to invest because this is a channel for consuming specialty fruits and agricultural products with great potential; contribute to increase the income for farmers.

New countryside program, remote communes are invested in infrastructure, spacious traffic roads to the production areas, causing many gardeners in Binh An and Binh Son communes (Long Thanh district) boldly invest in garden tourism model. Exploiting the advantages of soil to grow many delicious fruits, many farmers in these localities have just exploited the available specialty gardens such as: gardens of low-seeded durian trees, mangosteen trees, and langsat trees investing large capital to plant new specialty varieties. In particular, many gardeners grow more Musang King durian varieties originating from Malaysia, which at one time sold to the market for millions dong per kilogram. Mr. Tran Thanh Tung, a good farmer in Binh Son commune (Long Thanh district) shared: “This year's harvest, I have Musang King durians to supply to the market. I also grow a variety of fruit products in the garden, open more food services to welcome tourists to come for fun, and go to the field to experience life as a farmer."

Mr. Van Thanh Toan, owner of Bon Mua flower garden at Xuan Bac commune (Xuan Loc district) said: "Although the highlight of the tourist site is the diversity and uniqueness of flower seasons, we also invest in planting more orchards; diverse cuisine to serve tourists. Our long-term goal is to expand our business with local gardeners; forming a closed service chain from sightseeing, dining, providing tourism specialties to add value to local agricultural models".

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Tourists visit tourism fruit garden at Binh Loc commune, Long Khanh City

Adding value to garden tourism

In the past, many garden tourism models only stopped at welcoming guests to enjoy delicious fruits and rustic cuisine. In order to raise the bar for garden tourism, many farms and gardeners are constantly diversifying products and services to create added value. In which, there are a number of agricultural tourism models that have been formed.

It can be said that Doc Mo Tourism Cooperative (Thong Nhat district) is a pioneer in effectively implementing the agricultural tourism model in Dong Nai province. Here, visitors can experience being a farmer when directly participating in farming and breeding activities; hand making products such as shampoo, shower gel, toothpaste from entirely herbs grown in the garden... This farm organizes many seasonal festival activities such as: countryside New Year festival, mid-autumn festival with various activities such as making Banh Xeo, Banh Khot; making Banh Tet, making butterfly pea flower tea; picking and making jelly; participate in slapping for fishes and enjoy grilled fishes from the labor achievement…

Mr. Hoang Cong Phuoc, Director of Doc Mo Tourism Cooperative shared that the farm operates follow the principle of kindness agriculture is respecting nature, respecting farmers, plants and animals. The produced agricultural products will be processed into delicious and healthy products for users. The farm is building a chain of links from production and processing combined with community tourism to improve the value of agricultural products.

Also developing in the same direction, Truong Phat Agricultural Service Cooperative (Long Tan Commune, Nhon Trach District) is investing in perfecting the model of organic lotus cultivation in association with ecotourism development. Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Le, Director of Truong Phat Agricultural Service Cooperative said that in the past, the cooperative focused on processing dozens of products from lotus plants. Up to now, the cooperative is expanding the area of organic lotus cultivation in association with eco-tourism. With this model, visitors come back to the lotus fields to witness the clean lotus growing process as well as the harvesting and processing process. Exploiting tourism not only helps the cooperative to add added value to the home country's lotus fields, but also contributes to promoting and building consumer confidence with products processed from organic lotus fields of the cooperative.​​