Tourists visit the Son La Prison National Special Monument.

The province currently has 96 historical and cultural relics and scenic spots, including 65 classified relics and 31 unclassified relics. Among these, there are 2 special national relics, 16 national relics, and 47 provincial relics. These relics are valuable resources for developing attractive and meaningful tourism products.

Mr. Pham Van Tuan, Deputy Director of the Provincial Museum, analyzed: The historical and cultural relics of Son La province are very diverse in type, including scenic spots, architectural works of art, archaeological sites, and are distributed across all 12 districts and cities.

Over the years, local authorities have paid attention to the restoration, preservation, and documentation of historical relics. Many relics now have management boards, attracting tourists to visit, experience, and learn about history, becoming "red addresses" for educating about revolutionary traditions. Meanwhile, the Moc Chau National Tourist Area, located at the gateway to the province, is experiencing strong tourism development. Connecting the tourist area, especially the historical relics in Moc Chau and Van Ho, with historical and cultural relics throughout the province will create leverage and promote the development of heritage tourism.

Children visit and experience the historical site commemorating the 52nd Tay Tien Regiment in Moc Chau town.

Many historical sites have become attractive destinations on the "back to the roots" tourism journey in Son La, such as: the Son La Prison National Special Monument, the Temple of King Le Thai Tong (Son La City); the historical memorial site of the 52nd Tay Tien Regiment (Moc Chau); the Co Noi Crossroads historical site (Mai Son); the historical site of the resistance war against the French in the Ban Nhot forest area (Phu Yen); the Martyrs' Memorial Temple in the Pha Din Pass historical and cultural area (Thuan Chau)... Most of the valuable historical sites, currently undergoing restoration, are located along National Highway 6, creating transportation links and facilitating the connection of tourism routes from the Moc Chau National Tourist Area to historical sites in the province.

Annually, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, in coordination with districts and cities, prepares dossiers for ranking 1-2 historical sites. Simultaneously, it conducts inventories and compiles lists of newly discovered historical sites for approval by the Provincial People's Committee. To date, 58 out of 65 historical sites have been surveyed and demarcated for protection, with 38 out of 65 sites undergoing restoration and repair. The focus has been on repairing key components, contributing to preserving the original elements of the sites, creating a green, clean, and beautiful environment, and effectively serving the education of historical traditions and meeting the needs of the people for sightseeing and spiritual and cultural activities.

The Son La Prison National Special Monument is a "red address" for educating the younger generation about revolutionary traditions.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoa, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Moc Chau town, said: Moc Chau currently has 14 historical sites, including 3 national-level sites and 11 provincial-level sites. The town has focused resources on restoring, preserving, and promoting the value of these sites; digitizing historical sites by implementing QR code scanning for 5 sites, meeting the needs for information lookup about historical sites in the area. National-level sites have established management boards, effectively exploiting their value to serve tourism development, becoming destinations for many tourists, and included in tour itineraries when visiting Moc Chau by tourism companies, such as Bat Cave, the historical site commemorating the 52nd Tay Tien Regiment... Each year, these sites welcome tens of thousands of visitors, generating hundreds of millions of VND in revenue.

Regarding connecting Moc Chau National Tourist Area with historical and cultural relics in the province for tourism development, Ms. Hoa further shared: In the coming time, the province's tourism industry needs to research and develop models and tours to visit historical and cultural relics, creating linkages in the development of various types and services of tourism. Organize specialized famtrip tours to explore historical and cultural relics in the area, and from there, research and propose specific solutions to develop this type of tourism.

At the same time, we will strengthen communication and promotion efforts to introduce the value of historical sites through various forms. This includes focusing on compiling explanatory texts about the sites, linking them with historical stories to create an engaging experience for visitors. Furthermore, we will apply information technology to introduce and promote the significance and value of these sites and connect different localities and regions to develop tourism.

Educating the younger generation about revolutionary traditions at the Co Noi Crossroads Historical Site, Mai Son District.

With the desire to find positive solutions to promote the value of historical sites for tourism development, in December 2024, the Son La Provincial Historical Science Association, in coordination with Tay Bac University, organized the workshop "Connecting Moc Chau National Tourist Area with Historical and Cultural Sites in Son La Province," attracting the participation of scientists, researchers in culture and history, and those working in state management of tourism. The workshop received many papers containing in-depth research and analysis on the potential, role, and value of Son La's historical and cultural sites. This helped build a source of information, clarify the scientific and practical basis, and propose solutions to promote the value of these sites, exploit their potential, and guide the development of attractive cultural and historical tourism products for visitors.

Dr. Tong Thanh Binh, Deputy Head of the History Department, Social Sciences, Tay Bac University, shared: Promoting the value of historical and cultural relics to boost tourism in Son La needs to be done systematically and scientifically. This includes specific solutions for developing unique tourism products, combining historical site visits with experiences of local beliefs and culture; organizing spiritual tourism tours during major festivals... Creating stories about relics, linking them with local scenic spots, and telling meaningful and soulful stories to attract and retain tourists in each region. From there, create new, distinctive tourism products with high educational value, leaving a lasting impression and highlight for tourists visiting Son La.

Experiential learning activities about history at the Son La Provincial Museum.

The results of implementation in Moc Chau and several other historical sites in the province, along with the scientific and practical solutions of historical researchers, will serve as a basis and foundation for tourism managers to continue effectively implementing measures to connect the Moc Chau National Tourist Area with the province's historical and cultural sites to develop tourism. Linking tourism development with the effective promotion of the value of historical and cultural sites is also one of the solutions for the sustainable development of tourism in the province, ensuring it is properly oriented and preserves the original identity and values ​​of Son La province.

Source: Son La Newspaper