Total Tourism Revenue Growth Rate (2009

• Average spending level

During the period from 2009 to 2018, the average spending of a tourist increased significantly compared to previous periods; the average spending of international tourists ranged from 1 - 1.5 million VND/day (equivalent to 50 - 60 USD), the average spending of domestic tourists was from 700 - 900 thousand VND/day (30 - 40 USD) (Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Phu Yen, 2018); showing that the spending capacity of tourists is very large while the level of meeting the needs of local tourists is very limited. Therefore, Phu Yen needs to develop more tourism products and tourism services to further increase the spending level of tourists at the destination.

• Total tourism revenue

Table 3.2. Total tourism revenue of Phu Yen (2009 - 2018)

Year

Total revenue (billion VND)	Growth Rate (%)
2009	253.8	54.6 (vs. 2008)
2010	249.5	-1.7
2011	450	80.4
2012	500	11.1
2013	540	8
2014	675	25
2015	850	25.9
2016	997.5	17.4
2017	1,245	24.8
2018	1,556	25

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(Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Phu Yen, 2018)

Phu Yen's total tourism revenue has changed positively over each period, currently reaching nearly 1,600 billion VND.

Compared to 2009, in 2010, although the growth rate of tourists reached over 50%, total tourism revenue decreased by 1.7%.

In 2011, total tourism revenue skyrocketed by more than 80%; immediately after that, in 2012 - 2013, total tourism revenue dropped sharply, from 11% to 8%.

From 2014 to present, total tourism revenue has been relatively stable and maintained an average growth rate of more than 20%.

Compared to other provinces in the South Central Coast region, the above figure is quite modest but also marks a new stage in the current tourism development process of Phu Yen.

However, instead of maintaining a stable level of development, the locality needs to make a breakthrough in improving the quality of specific tourism products, on that basis forming a destination tourism brand to attract more tourists.

To see more clearly the growth rate of total tourism revenue in Phu Yen during this period, you can observe the chart below:

2009

-10

Rate of increase

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

year

Figure 3.2. Growth rate of total tourism revenue (2009 - 2018)

(Author's analysis, 2018)

In the past 10 years, Phu Yen province's total tourism revenue has fluctuated a lot. Total tourism revenue has periods of rapid growth but also periods of slow growth. This is directly related to the number of visitors, length of stay and spending level of visitors at the destination.

Previously, Phu Yen tourism was not known to many tourists; from 2009 onwards, Thuan Thao Eco-tourism and Entertainment Center has hosted many unique national cultural and artistic programs such as Sao Mai Diem Hen, Duyen Dang Viet Nam... starting to attract the attention of tourists.

In 2010, tourism activities were suspended because the locality was focusing all its efforts on preparing for the National Tourism Year of Phu Yen - South Central Coast (2011) "Paradise of Sea and Island Tourism", so total tourism revenue decreased sharply.

2011 was a year of great success for Phu Yen tourism industry with outstanding total tourism revenue thanks to promotional activities and attracting tourists to participate in the national tourism festival.

From 2012 to 2016, total tourism revenue maintained a stable growth rate; by 2017, Phu Yen's total tourism revenue reached nearly 1,300 billion VND; currently, total tourism revenue is increasing steadily by about 25%/year.

Regarding the proportion of total tourism revenue, food and beverage services account for 45%, accommodation services account for 35%, and other services are insignificant (Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Phu Yen, 2018). Over the years, the tourism industry in Phu Yen province has mainly met a part of the demand for accommodation, food and transportation; travel services are limited. Therefore, tourists often do not stay here for long, which significantly affects the total revenue of the tourism industry and shows that the ability to meet the needs of entertainment, shopping, etc. in Phu Yen is quite modest.

It can be seen that there is a close correlation between the number of visitors, length of stay, visitor spending and total tourism revenue: the more visitors, the longer they stay, the more they spend, the more total revenue increases; it can also be seen that tourism products and tourism services are the decisive factors in the choice of destinations of visitors. Therefore, developing specific tourism products in Phu Yen province is currently an urgent task to boost total tourism revenue, contributing to improving the material and spiritual life of local people.

3.2.2.2. At different tourist resource points

Previously, Phu Yen province did not charge entrance fees at tourist attractions. In 2015, after the movie “Yellow Flowers on Green Grass” was shown, tourists flocked to the locality, concentrating most at tourist attractions such as Ganh Da Dia, Mui Dai Lanh, Mang Lang Church, Tuy Hoa Beach, Thanh Luong Pagoda, Thom Hill, Bai Xep, Nhat Tu Son Island, Nhan Tower...

Realizing the tourism potential at these locations, the province invested in a number of projects to serve the needs of tourists. From January 1, 2016, the province began selling tickets.

Visit 2 different natural tourist resource sites, Ganh Da Dia and Mui Dai Lanh, with ticket price of only 10,000 VND/tourist; from January 1, 2017, increase to

20,000 VND/tourist, regardless of international or domestic tourists; free tickets for children under 5 years old, seniors over 60 years old and local residents. However, the number of tourists and ticket sales at these two locations are still quite modest.

Table 3.3. Number of visitors and ticket sales

Unique tourist resource points

Year	Number of visitors			Ticket sales (billion VND)
Year	International	Inland	Total	Ticket sales (billion VND)
Ganh Da Dia and Mui Dai Lanh	2016	11,000	389,000	400,000	3
	2017	13,000	389,000	402,000	4.5
	2018	15,000	540,000	555,000	8.5

(Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Phu Yen, 2018)

In 2016, the total number of tourists visiting the two tourist attractions reached 400,000; in 2017, it increased by 2,000, this number came from international tourists; in 2018, the number of international and domestic tourists increased simultaneously, pushing the total number of tourists to

555,000. Accordingly, ticket sales also increased rapidly, from 3 billion VND (2016) to 4.5 billion VND (2017) and 8.5 billion VND (2018). Although the number of visitors is not much and ticket sales are low due to cheap entrance fees, it shows the effectiveness of upgrading infrastructure and technical facilities at the two above tourist destinations. If the locality continues to develop special tourism services, invest in unique exploitation techniques and technologies and supplement local community culture, these two distinct tourism resources will develop into very attractive specific tourism products.

In addition to selling tickets at the two tourist attractions above, Phu Yen has assigned the right to manage and exploit other tourist attractions to the private sector such as Bai Xep, Nhat Tu Son Island, Hon Yen, Da Bia Mountain, Thom Hill... with consistency in revenue and expenditure and taxes; in Tuy Hoa Beach area, businesses generate total revenue through the dining, resting, entertainment, and recreation activities of tourists.

At different spiritual and cultural tourism resource points such as: Luong Van Chanh Temple, Mang Lang Church, White Stone Pagoda and Thanh Luong Pagoda

No ticket sales. Phu Yen Museum still allows visitors to visit every day without selling tickets. Stone instruments and stone trumpets are occasionally brought to Nhan Tower to perform every Saturday night without collecting tickets. Quang Duc pottery village has not been restored to exploit tourism. Go Thi Thung horse racing festival is only held once a year mainly to celebrate spring and does not sell tickets for horse racing. In Phu Yen, only the local culinary specialties at night are the most bustling.

Phu Yen province also calls for the socialization of tourism, encouraging people to design and sell their own tourism products with reasonable content and prices. Accordingly, many places have their own tourism products such as Quang Duc Ancient Villa, Bu Farm, Bambi Film Studio... contributing to creating more jobs, increasing revenue, developing the local socio-economy and tourism.

3.2.3. Results of sociological investigation

3.2.3.1. Visitors' opinions

To support the development of unique tourism products in Phu Yen province, the project conducted a survey of tourists' opinions (Appendix 3) at a number of different tourism resource locations. The survey results provide a lot of useful information, which is the basis for orientation and solutions for developing unique tourism products in Phu Yen province.

• Tourist personal information

The topic of this research is to find out personal information of tourists about gender, age, occupation and place of residence with the aim of understanding the target tourists of the tourist destination: who are they, male/female or other, what is their age, what is their occupation and where do they live? This information is very important to the tourist destination, because in order to form/develop or exploit/use specific tourism products, it is necessary to clearly understand information about the target tourists. All specific tourism products need to target specific tourist markets with specific needs in order to exploit effectively and develop in the long term.

Table 3.4. Tourist personal information

Information

Classify	Quantity	Ratio (%)
Sex	Male	75	46.9
	Female	80	50
	No reply	5	3.1

Age

Under 18	20	12.5
18 – 30	48	30
31 – 45	52	32.5
46 – 60	25	15.6
Over 60	15	9.4
Job	Politician, businessman	10	6.3
	Civil servants, state officials	68	42.5
	Business staff, workers	43	26.9
	Students	22	13.7
	Other	17	10.6
Domestic Place of residence Foreign	Hanoi	36	31.3
	Other Northern provinces	10	8.7
	Ho Chi Minh City	35	30.4
	Other Southern provinces	9	7.8
	Thua Thien Hue - Khanh Hoa	13	11.3
	Central Highlands	12	10.5
	Australia	3	6.7
	Russia	12	26.7
	Other European countries	2	4.4
	North American countries	8	17.8
	Northeast Asian countries	13	28.9
	Southeast Asian countries	7	15.5

(Author's research results, 2018)

From the results of the survey of tourists' personal information about gender, age, occupation and place of residence, it can be seen that:

- About gender

The proportion of female tourists is 3.1% higher than that of male tourists, especially there are 5 non-answered votes, also accounting for 3.1%, showing that the trend of traveling is becoming more and more popular among all genders and tourists do not hesitate to express themselves at the destination. This poses a new problem for the locality: how to diversify and

Specialize in tourism types, products and services not only for men and women but also for other special groups of tourists.

- About age

The age group from 31 to 45 accounts for the largest proportion with 32.5%, from 18 to 30 accounts for 30%, from 46 to 60 accounts for 15.6% and under 18 accounts for 12.5%, showing that young and middle-aged tourists travel quite commonly, children often go with their parents; notably, the number of tourists over 60 years old, although accounting for the lowest proportion with 9.4%, also shows that Phu Yen is an attractive and friendly destination for tourists of all ages to visit and relax...

- About career

The group of tourists who are civil servants and state employees accounts for the largest proportion at 42.5%; followed by the group of business employees and workers at 26.9%; the group of students also accounts for a relatively large proportion of 13.7%. Meanwhile, the group of politicians and businessmen accounts for only 6.3%; groups of tourists with other occupations account for a small proportion of 10.6%, showing that Phu Yen does not have a high-end tourism product and service line that satisfies the needs of politicians and businessmen and has not yet met the diverse requirements of tourists with multiple occupations.

- About where to live

Domestic tourists from Hanoi capital accounted for the largest proportion with 31.3%, followed by tourists from Ho Chi Minh City accounting for 30.4%, tourists from Thua Thien Hue - Khanh Hoa accounting for 11.3% and the Central Highlands accounting for 10.5%, tourists from other Northern provinces (8.7%) and Southern provinces (7.8%) had a low proportion, indicating that Phu Yen tourism products, especially sea and island tourism, are attractive to tourists from big cities and provinces far from the sea. The tourist market of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City is geographically far away with high spending capacity, so it is necessary to pay attention to linking airlines to increase flights to facilitate short-term visitors.

International tourists coming to Phu Yen province from Northeast Asian countries (mainly China, Japan, Korea) account for the largest proportion of 28.9%, followed by Russian tourists with 26.7%, tourists from North American countries (mainly the US and Canada) are 17.8%, tourists from Southeast Asian countries account for a relatively large proportion of 15.5%, the market

Australian tourists (6.7%) and other European countries (4.4%) have a modest proportion. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to exploiting the unique tourism resources to develop specific tourism products in the direction of modernity, experience, and specialization to attract these groups of tourists in the coming time.

• Purpose of travel

The topic of research on the purpose of tourists' travel is to know what tourists want/need at the tourist destination. They can visit, explore nature; learn about culture, history; go to temples, participate in festivals; work, conferences, trade; visit friends, relatives; relax, take a weekend break or for some other purpose... This helps to orient the development of specific tourism products according to tourists' needs; not only pay attention to the characteristics of the tourist market but also pay attention to the needs of the tourist market, so that suitable specific tourism products can be developed.

Table 3.5. Purpose of travel

Purpose

Quantity	Ratio (%)
Sightseeing, exploring nature	120	75
Learn culture, history	60	37.5
Go to church, participate in festivals	20	12.5
Business, conference, trade	40	25
Visit friends and relatives	23	14.4
Rest, weekend break	32	20
Other	55	34.4

(Author's research results, 2018)

Studying the purpose of tourists' travel to grasp their needs and motivations for travel, thereby developing a variety of tourism activities to meet the diverse needs of tourists. The survey results showed that the demand for sightseeing and exploring nature accounts for a high proportion (75%); the demand for learning about culture and history (37.5%); business, conferences, trade (25%) and rest, weekend (20%) is quite high; the demand for visiting friends, relatives (14.4%) and going to temples, participating in festivals (12.5%) is low; showing the potential for developing local tourism types.

Total Tourism Revenue Growth Rate (2009 - 2018)

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