This section of the web site contains information about Vietnam written by Vietnamese people. It has two main purposes - firstly, to describe our country to a general audience who are curious about Vietnam, and secondly, to assist people who are thinking of visiting Vietnam and other countries in Indochina. We believe that the more people know about our country, the more they will want to see for themselves.

• The pages dealing with the country's history, culture, religion have been interpreted to make them more accessible to people who are not familiar with Asian culture. The topics are treated thematically, presenting our views about the events and beliefs that have shaped Vietnam in the past, and now influence it in the present.
• The pages about Vietnam's geography, weather, ethnic people, traditional arts and crafts, and the Vietnam war have been written with tourism in mind.
• The remaining pages briefly describe Vietnam today – its politics, government, and the challenges it faces.

The Viet Nam Tourism slogan is 'A Destination for the New Millennium', a view obviously shared by the many foreign visitors who discover its many attractions and find it hard to leave. They are drawn by the image of a country previously associated with war and conflict, but now revealed as a place of unspoilt natural beauty and culture. It has much to offer holidaymakers - friendly people, exotic ethnic cultures, spectacular scenery and beaches, plenty of things to see and do, and a well-deserved reputation as the safest country in Asia.

Viet Nam's turbulent past, and nearly a century of foreign occupation and warfare, left the country in a cultural time warp. Although it is modernising rapidly, centuries-old traditions, customs and practices have survived, and many are still thriving, hand in hand with modern technology. Perhaps one of Vietnam's greatest attractions for foreign visitors is the refreshing absence of the more obvious evidence of globalisation – so far, ‘McDonalds' and 'Starbucks' and other manifestations of multinational companies are nowhere to be seen.

Vietnam is changing, and changing rapidly. It's a young country – 65% of its population is under 25 - and has made remarkable progress since opening its doors to foreign investment in the 1990’s. Vietnam’s progress in reducing poverty has far outstripped that of any other country. It has drastically reduced poverty, become the world’s second largest exporter of rice and coffee, and consistently maintained a high GDP growth rate.

For we Vietnamese, the pace of development is bewildering at times. We recognise that change must come, but fear that it may damage the precious culture and heritage for which so many of our predecessors fought and died. This is why we welcome tourism. When the eyes of the world look upon our country’s buildings, traditions and natural beauty with approval, it builds pride and self-confidence among our people, and encourages us to treasure our past and conserve it for future generations.

We want this website to be an information database for people who are interested in Vietnam. If you think there’s a topic that's missing, or something that needs expanding, please let us know. We’ll be pleased to add more pages!