By March 4 afternoon, all 11 hotels on the Han riverside with 321 rooms were fully occupied for the days of the Da Nang International Fireworks Competition (DIFC) 2009, according to the Da Nang Culture, Sports and Tourism Department.

Nearly all hotels, big or small, on the Han riverside have been fully occupied for DIFC

Ngo Thi Hoang Anh, Deputy of the Tourism Division under the Da Nang Culture, Sports and Tourism Department, said that to date, only hotels far from the city’s centre like ones in Thanh Khe and Lien Chieu districts still have available rooms, with the occupancy ratio of 20%.

The department has forecast that the number of travellers coming to the city to attend DFIC will increase by 10% over last year.

The programme of DFIC is expected to see some new changes in comparison with the initial plan. From March 23-29, there will be the festival of craft villages at March 29 Park, gathering 60 craft villages from the north, south and central region. On March 25-May 15, there will be a festival of flower garlands and colour lanterns.

Prior to that, the Da Nang Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism asked all the hotels in the city not to raise hotel room rates and service fees during DIFC (March 26-29 will be the peak days). The department has also asked hotels to meet the demands of clients and not to keep ‘virtual’ rooms.

Hoang Anh said that there are 140 hotels in the city with 4,634 rooms, 8,063 beds, up by 200 rooms of 1-3 star standard in comparison with last year’s fireworks competition.

Moreover, there are 12 guest houses (475 rooms and 713 beds) in the city. In general, Da Nang can provide accommodations for over 10,000 travellers.

Da Nang authorities have also worked with neighbouring localities, Hoi An ancient town in Quang Nam province, and Lang Co (Hue city city) on cooperation to serve travellers. With the cooperation, accommodations for 20,000 travellers are within reach.

Hotels and restaurants in Da Nang city have confirmed that they are ready to receive clients.

Hai Chau