Happy Land Moc Chau tourist area.

My connection with Moc Chau plateau

Open, friendly, dynamic, and passionate about his work, Nguyen Manh Hung, a young man born in the 1980s and Director of Happy Land Moc Chau, captivated me with his sincere sharing about his journey in the tourism industry in the highlands. In our conversation, he told us: "I was born in Thuong Tin District, Hanoi City. In 1991, my parents moved our family to Moc Chau to live."

In 2012, after graduating from the University of Foreign Trade and earning a Master of Business Administration from RMIT University Hanoi, he worked in Hanoi for five years, serving as the Deputy Director of Human Resources at a well-known company in Hanoi. 2014 marked a turning point when he decided to return to Moc Chau and apply for a job at the Long Sap Border Customs Office. He later resigned and pursued his own path.

On November 12, 2014, the Prime Minister issued Decision 2050/QD-TTg, approving the "Master Plan for the Development of Moc Chau National Tourist Area in Son La Province until 2030". Seizing the opportunity, Mr. Hung and his family built Hung Anh Specialty Gift Supermarket – the first and largest specialty gift supermarket in Moc Chau at that time. With a wide variety of designs and high-quality products, his family's supermarket attracted tourists from all over the country who came to visit and shop in Moc Chau. During the course of his business, he also organized tours for tourists to various tourist destinations in the area.

Mr. Nguyen Manh Hung, Director of Happy Land Moc Chau.

During my tour guiding trips, I noticed that the buckwheat and white mustard flower gardens attract a large number of visitors, sometimes 1,000-2,000 people a day. However, these flower gardens only bloom seasonally, each season lasting only about two months before tourism can no longer be exploited. Tourists mainly visit Moc Chau in the winter.

Furthermore, the way tourism was developed in Moc Chau at that time was simply to exploit the natural beauty of existing, designated flower gardens, with little development of accompanying services. Young Nguyen Manh Hung pondered: Why did a locality with so many favorable conditions for tourism like Moc Chau only develop tourism seasonally? Couldn't it develop and attract tourists throughout the year?

Groundbreaking ceremony for Happy Land Moc Chau tourist area in 2015.
Photo: Provided by the subject

Mr. Hung shared: "In 2015, I discussed with my family the idea of ​​investing in the Happy Land Moc Chau tourist area because I realized that Moc Chau, which had just been designated a National Tourist Area, was lacking attractive destinations. My goal was to create a valley of flowers that blooms in all four seasons, balancing Moc Chau tourism between the peak season – the flower season at the end of the year – and the off-peak season – summer. This would contribute to a more colorful Moc Chau tourism landscape and enhance the visitor experience."

Sharing his startup idea, he said: "The initial period was the most difficult, from finding land and building infrastructure to establishing a brand. Then there was the land issue because at that time, many projects were pouring into Moc Chau, making it difficult to find a large plot of land like the one I had envisioned."

After surveying the area for some time, he chose a valley in Lun village, Muong Sang commune (now Na Lun residential area, Muong Sang ward, Moc Chau town). This is a pristine valley, surrounded by majestic mountains, bordered by the Sap stream, with a very cool climate, isolated from residential areas. He decided to choose this place as the location for his project called "Happy Land".

Bauhinia flowers are in full bloom at Happy Land Moc Chau.

Mr. Hung shared: "Initially, implementing the project faced many difficulties because transportation was not convenient at that time, and electricity, water, and internet infrastructure were not readily available. We had to invest in everything ourselves, which was very costly. Tourism in Moc Chau was still in its infancy, so there were no friends or colleagues to learn from; we had to go to developed tourist areas like Da Lat, Sa Pa, and Da Nang… I even went to Thailand and China to learn about their models and find flower varieties suitable for Moc Chau's soil and climate that could thrive all year round."

In the very first year of planting flowers in 2016, Moc Chau was hit by a snowstorm, destroying the entire first crop. Undeterred, Mr. Hung went to the Agricultural Academy to seek technical assistance and flower varieties from experts. After many years, he successfully selected and cultivated flower varieties such as violets, sunflowers, marigolds, and hydrangeas, which thrive in Moc Chau throughout all four seasons.

Attractive destinations on the plateau

The land did not disappoint those who worked there, as Happy Land Tourist Area quickly became known to both local and national tourists. At the time, in 2016, most destinations in Moc Chau relied on natural beauty, such as Dai Yem Waterfall, Ban Ang pine forest, and Bat Cave. This area was still very pristine and undeveloped, making Happy Land an unmissable destination for visitors to Moc Chau.

After 10 years of construction and development, Happy Land Moc Chau, covering an area of ​​10 hectares, is an attractive entertainment, recreation, and resort complex on the plateau. A highlight is the vibrant flower fields, meticulously cared for and harmoniously arranged within a spacious area. Many different types of flowers are grown here, including fragrant purple violets, bright red cockscomb flowers, and cheerful sunflowers, creating a colorful landscape for visitors to admire and capture memorable photos.

Happy Land Moc Chau is a popular destination for many tourists.

At Happy Land Moc Chau, visitors can experience thrilling activities such as ATV racing, the "happy slide" dry slide, or the "happy sky" motorized paragliding experience to admire the panoramic view of the resort, the beautiful scenery, and the peaceful, picturesque villages of the Moc Chau plateau.

Participate in many fun, unique, and exciting games, including adventurous activities for young people such as grass rolling, water rolling, and bumper balls; traditional games; and experience being a farmer at Happy Farm. Experience the local market at the tourist area, showcasing and selling specialty products ranging from traditional foods like smoked buffalo meat, five-colored sticky rice, and dried bamboo shoots, to souvenirs.

Visitors can also choose to stay at Happy Land Moc Chau in brightly colored rooms, in traditional stilt houses of the Thai ethnic minority, with full amenities and a cozy atmosphere for rest and relaxation.

Tourists take souvenir photos at the "Traditional Tet Village" at Happy Land Moc Chau.

Along with her family, Ms. Lam Phuong Lan, a tourist from Hanoi, shared her experience at Happy Land Moc Chau for a weekend getaway: "The resort has a very beautiful, romantic, and peaceful setting. Here, we were able to take photos, admire the flowers, and enjoy the specialties of the ethnic groups of Northwest Vietnam at the market held within the resort. I found it very interesting and impressive. There were also many exciting games organized, such as water zorbing and grass zorbing. When night fell, everyone gathered around the campfire, singing and dancing, which was a lot of fun."

ATV racing track.

The unique combination of nature and attractive entertainment facilities has created a distinct identity for Happy Land Moc Chau. For many consecutive years, Happy Land has been recognized as a model tourism business, receiving commendations and certificates of merit from the People's Committee of Moc Chau District, the People's Committee of Son La Province, the Vietnam Tourism Association, and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI). Currently, Happy Land provides regular employment for 40 workers and 15 seasonal workers, 80% of whom are ethnic minorities, with stable wages.

Keep burning with passion.

Driven by a passion for tourism and aiming to "constantly innovate products to serve tourists," Mr. Hung is researching investment in cultural tourism at Happy Land Moc Chau. This involves reviving cultural aspects through community cultural performances, folk games, and street costume festivals.

Specifically, the project aims to revive Moc Chau's intangible cultural heritage such as the Rain Prayer Festival, the Het Cha Festival, and the Tha Khenh dance, to be performed on weekends and major holidays. It also involves building cultural villages, relocating disadvantaged families to stabilize their lives, and reviving traditional crafts such as weaving, embroidery, culinary arts, rượu (rice wine) making, and blacksmithing to serve tourists.

It is even more commendable to know that Mr. Hung also serves as the Chairman of the Best Tour - Moc Chau Tourism Alliance. The alliance originated from the Best Tour 2017 collaboration, and in 2018, it was established as the Best Tour Tourism Joint Stock Company with 5 members. Currently, it is the Moc Chau Best Tour Tourism Alliance comprising 11 outstanding units and individuals in Moc Chau tourism.

Mr. Nguyen Manh Hung (third from the right), along with tourism businesses from Son La province, Hua Phan (Lao People's Democratic Republic), and the Hanoi UNESCO Club, signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation to develop tourism in Son La - Hua Phan.
Photo by PV

Mr. Hung informed: Best Tour Moc Chau has actively participated in the activities of the Provincial Tourism Association and the People's Committee of Moc Chau town in promoting and developing tourism. They organize annual famtrip tours for tourism businesses to survey and update new services to plan tours for each year. They consistently lead in creating service linkages to improve service quality, customer experience, and especially to promote sustainable tourism and develop green tourism products.

The famtrip group had an experience at Happy Land Moc Chau.

In 2019, at the 2nd Congress of the Son La Provincial Tourism Association, Mr. Nguyen Manh Hung was elected as Vice President of the Provincial Tourism Association. In this role, Mr. Hung actively advised the Standing Committee of the Provincial Tourism Association on presiding over and coordinating the organization of events to promote and advertise tourism products for its members.

At the same time, we will collaborate with businesses and travel agencies to organize tours and routes, creating unique and distinctive tourism products that attract more and more domestic and international tourists to Son La. We will unite our members to jointly develop the Moc Chau National Tourist Area into one of the leading tourist areas in the Northern Midlands and Mountains region; develop the Son La hydroelectric reservoir area with the aim of becoming a National Tourist Area; and contribute to making Son La an attractive destination on the tourism route through the Northwest region.

Happy Land Moc Chau received the award for outstanding eco-tourism and community tourism destination in 2018 from the Vietnam Tourism Association. Photo: Provided by the subject.

Mr. Le Trong Binh, Chairman of the People's Committee of Moc Chau town, assessed: Happy Land Moc Chau tourist area is a reputable tourism brand on the plateau. Happy Land's tourism products have contributed to diversifying the town's tourism activities and making Moc Chau more well-known, creating momentum to promote sustainable and effective tourism development.

Nguyen Manh Hung's entrepreneurial journey has become an inspiration for many young people to learn from and follow. Offering advice to young entrepreneurs, Hung shared: Young people starting a business need to choose a field they are truly passionate about, be creative, and start with the smallest things that bring value and great potential opportunities. Invest enough time and dedication to thoroughly understand your chosen field. First, you need passion, then set specific goals and be determined to achieve them.

Viet Anh