At Xuan Thuy National Park, an international 'bird stopover' in the Red River Estuary, environmental awareness campaigns play a vital role in conserving and promoting ecological values.
Integrating environmental communication and education
Xuan Thuy National Park in Ninh Binh covers a total area of approximately 15,000 hectares, including 7,110 hectares in the core zone and more than 7,200 hectares in the buffer zone. The core zone comprises 3,100 hectares of forested emerged land and around 4,000 hectares of land that remains submerged even at low tide. The buffer zone includes the remaining area of Con Ngan, the entire inner mudflat, and the natural areas of five communes in the former Giao Thuy District.
Recognized as an ASEAN Heritage Park in September 2025, Xuan Thuy National Park not only contributes to conserving and promoting the ecological values of the Red River Delta’s coastal area, but also opens up opportunities to promote ecotourism and sustainable economic development while protecting the environment and supporting local livelihoods.
Xuan Thuy National Park diversifies its environmental protection communication activities. Photo: Xuan Vu.Vu Quoc Dat, Deputy Director of Xuan Thuy National Park, said that most visitors come in groups and take the “Estuary Cruise” route. Smaller groups typically follow birdwatching and photography tours, while some groups from non-governmental organizations and universities visit to conduct research activities.
The park has organized and managed ecotourism activities in the area in compliance with relevant regulations, while providing consultation and support for groups visiting for sightseeing, learning, research, conferences and workshops. Environmental protection communication has also been integrated into visitor activities.
In addition, the park coordinated activities to raise mangrove seedlings at its nursery, contributing to future efforts to propagate, restore and expand mangrove forests. These activities also helped raise awareness among youth union members of the important role of forest ecosystems in protecting the environment and responding to climate change.
Strengthening cooperation and experience sharing
According to Vu Quoc Dat, Xuan Thuy National Park is strengthening coordination, information sharing and collaboration with the tourism sector of Ninh Binh Province to stay updated on tourism development orientations and exchange experience in management, environmental education and sustainable tourism development.
The park has also developed tailored tour programs for travel agencies, schools and individual visitor groups, taking into account weather conditions and designing experiential activities suitable for the summer holiday period.
Xuan Thuy National Park is an international “bird stopover” at the Red River estuary. Photo: Xuan Thuy National Park.Xuan Thuy National Park actively supports and participates in scientific research. In collaboration with the Vietnam National University of Agriculture, the park conducted a survey and research on “Public-Private Partnerships in Tourism Management and Development.” During the working session, the research team collected information on the current state of tourism activities in the area and examined both opportunities and challenges. Based on these findings, the team proposed new orientations for developing Xuan Thuy National Park as a tourism destination, while recommending stronger image promotion, expanded cooperation and greater mobilization of resources for sustainable tourism development.
During long public holidays, the international Ramsar site at Xuan Thuy attracts a large number of visitors. The park has therefore proactively developed plans to coordinate the management and operation of visitor activities in the area. These efforts contribute to promoting the image of Xuan Thuy National Park, protecting natural resources and the environment, and improving the quality of visitor services.
Tourism activities in the area have gradually become more attractive to visitors, while tourism services have begun to meet their needs, particularly hands-on experiences such as forest trekking, exploring mangrove ecosystems and clam harvesting, as well as birdwatching tours featuring migratory birds.
Xuan Thuy National Park steps up environmental education activities. Photo: Xuan Vu.Environmental education and ecosystem services provided by Xuan Thuy National Park help raise community awareness and empower people living in the buffer zone to become a key force in managing and protecting wetland and mangrove ecosystems.
These efforts also help local residents and visitors better understand the importance of Vietnam’s first Ramsar site, while discouraging illegal fishing and the use of prohibited fishing gear in the strictly protected zone.