According to the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Son La province, in order to take advantage of the opportunities from the 4th industrial revolution to develop tourism, in recent years, the unit has organized many consulting workshops, seminars, training courses, and tourism development networking events, helping to suggest good solutions in managing and developing tourism service businesses.

In addition, business activities are implemented through various forms, both direct and online, including marketing, product promotion, market research and expansion, consulting, customer care, and online transactions such as printing brochures, leaflets, books, and maps. This helps save costs for businesses and meets the needs of tourists anytime, anywhere.

Son La province is stepping up the application of digital technology in business operations, management, and the promotion, introduction, and business of tourism services.

In addition to supporting businesses in many aspects, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism has also built a voting portal for tourism products and brands in Son La province at the address: https://binhchondulich.sonla.gov.vn/ to allow people and tourists to participate in evaluating and voting on service quality, service prices, service attitude, environmental hygiene, etc.; and developed a database software to serve the organization of online competitions, such as logo and slogan design competitions; competitions for excellent tour guides, competitions for creating beautiful tourism videos and photos, and designing Son La tour packages...

Through these activities, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Son La province aims to affirm its brand, promote information about tourism resources to the people, and create trust, reassurance, and assurance for tourists when they come to visit and experience the area.

In 2024, the total number of tourists visiting Son La is estimated to reach 4.9 million, an increase of 7.5%; revenue is estimated at 5,800 billion VND, an increase of 22.1% compared to the previous year.

Mr. Tran Xuan Viet, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said that the Department is currently reviewing and standardizing data to serve the construction of a smart tourism system in Son La province. At the same time, they are planning to build an interactive 2D electronic tourism map providing information and directions to tourist areas and attractions to promote and introduce destinations, and support tourists in the Moc Chau National Tourist Area. In particular, they are building a Son La tourism portal, creating an online platform to provide comprehensive information about destinations, services, events, and activities related to tourism, integrating many smart features to both promote and support state management of tourism.

Currently, 12 districts and cities in the province maintain electronic information portals, updating detailed information about the districts and tourism activities. Most businesses and individuals operating tourism services, as well as tourist areas and destinations, build their image and promote themselves through websites and social media.

In Moc Chau district, tourism activities have quickly embraced and leveraged the strengths of the internet to widely promote its image, making it easy for tourists to learn about, discover, and explore Moc Chau. For example, the website https://dulichmocchau.net/, operating since 2007 and upgraded several times, remains a reputable information channel, continuously updating the latest information and images about Moc Chau tourism.

In addition, the district has completed and put into use a smart 3D/360 interactive tourism map of Moc Chau district; many tourism businesses in the area have also built and developed reputable websites to introduce and promote tourism.

Recently, Quynh Nhai district launched the "Quynh Nhai Tour" smart tourism software, aiming to optimize tourism management and experiences in the area. The software boasts outstanding features such as online booking of tourism services; detailed tourism information; virtual tour guide functionality; and business support tools... helping tourists search for information, book hotels, and experience tourism services in Quynh Nhai district conveniently and quickly through images, videos, and artificial intelligence (AI).

It can be said that Son La's tourism sector has proactively seized opportunities from the Fourth Industrial Revolution to develop smart tourism, aiming for sustainable socio-economic development of the locality.

Hien Luong