Many Cham households in Phuoc Dan Town, Ninh Phuoc District, Ninh Thuan Province have boldly learned and improved low-lying fields, muddy fields into lotus fields for eco-tourism. The model attracts a large number of tourists inside and outside the province to have fun and enjoy.
About 1 km from the Cham My Nghiep Brocade Weaving village, the lotus fields are in full bloom season. Pink lotus flowers with yellow pistils, high-rise sepals and green leaves swaying gently in the wind captivate many tourists in the peaceful countryside.
Mrs. Quang Thi Kim Tin (Phuoc Dan town, Ninh Phuoc district), owner of Hoa Tin Lotus Eco-Tourism Site, said that this is a low-lying area, inefficient rice cultivation. Three years ago, her family learned the model of growing lotus from the Southwest region to do eco-tourism, combined with selling lotus products. Lotus plants grow and develop well in the climate and soil conditions of Ninh Thuan. Currently, her family has expanded the planting area to over 1 hectare.
To help visitors experience, Mrs. Quang Thi Kim Tin's family designed bamboo bridges leading to thatched huts right in the middle of the field so that they can watch lotuses, take photos to save beautiful moments with their friends and relatives.
In addition, the tourist attraction also has a service to rent Ba Ba shirt, Ao Dai, ethnic costumes to help visitors transform into village girls and garden boys sitting on a canoe and moving deep into the lotus field, there is a common space without having to jostle to be able to watch the lotus. This is also an ideal place for couples who choose to take wedding photos.
Ms. Nguyen Huong Lan, a tourist from Binh Thuan Province who came to visit the lotus pond happily said that the lotus ponds there stretch endlessly, making her and everyone very impressed. Coming there, she had peaceful moments, comfortably enjoying the fresh and green air amidst the sunny and windy sky of Ninh Thuan.
On average, there are dozens of visitors every day, at the peak of weekends, holidays and Tet, there are hundreds of visitors to visit, take photos, enjoy lotus tea, lotus seeds, lotus root, Vietnamese lotus rootlets & chicken salad, or lotus tea… Especially, visitors have the opportunity to experience the culinary culture of the Cham people, which is processed in a very unique flavor that is not available everywhere.
Mrs. Quang Thi Kim Tin added that growing lotus is more leisurely than growing rice, with low investment costs, almost all parts of the lotus plant can be harvested. Currently, every day her family collects more than 100 kg of lotus seeds, selling for 50,000 VND/kg (unshelled), lotus rootlets for 40,000 VND/kg, lotus flower for 3,000 VND/stem, lotus embryo is sold for 600,000 VND/kg… Her family has a good income from growing lotus.
Not far away, the lotus fields of Mr. Quang Ngoc Nhien's family are also blooming. Mr. Quang Ngoc Nhien said that from the idea of wanting to build an eco-tourism area to enrich local tourism activities, he built it into the Ninh Thuan Charaih Lotus Cultural and Ecological Tourist Area of more than 1 hectare. To create a highlight, he built the tourist area with landscape and country-style cottages of Cham village to increase its attractiveness with an investment cost of more than 500 million VND. Currently, the entrance ticket price is 20,000 VND/person, 30,000 VND rental service of photography costumes... Along with organizing many food service activities, learning about the culture and folk performing arts of the Cham people, his family has a stable source of income to continue to develop the scale of the tourist area in a professional direction and organize new more types of tourism in the near future.
It is known that about 10 households are Cham ethnic people participating in the model of growing lotus in combination with developing eco-tourism. According to calculations, the economic profit per acre of lotus (1,000 m2) is 5-6 times higher than that of rice. The lotus village ecotourism model creates a highlight in the tourism connection chain in the town, from the ancient pottery village of Bau Truc to the brocade-weaving village and the My Nghiep lotus field.
Mrs. Dang Sinh Ai Chi, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Phuoc Dan Town, Ninh Phuoc District said that people have boldly learned and exchanged to switch to a model of growing lotus in combination with developing eco-tourism which is very promising. All products made from lotus are well received by the market, helping households to increase their income. In the coming time, the locality will promote the conversion of inefficient rice and crop fields to lotus cultivation associated with eco-tourism, building a cooperative group to develop a model of linking lotus cultivation according to VietGAP standards, including output product consumption.
Ninh Phuoc District cooperates with all divisions and functional branches to open training courses, fostering skills for staff of tourism business establishments in a professional direction; continue to perfect the model, invest and upgrade the facilities. Along with that, the locality has increased the promotion of the lotus village eco-tourism model, well implemented the work of ensuring the hygiene, landscape and environment of the My Nghiep lotus village eco-tourism area.
Source: baotintuc.vn
