Pedestrian areas in the capital: Innovating to be more inviting

Hanoi authorities have made efforts to innovate in the design of activities and products, as well as procedures to encourage business investment, to make local pedestrian areas more attractive.

In the Dao Ngoc-Ngu Xa culinary pedestrian area, visitors will find tourist exhibits that evoke the image of Hanoi during the subsidy years.

A facelift for the areas

A live art performance on Hoan Kiem Lake at night. Photo: Archive

Recently, the Hanoi Tourism Department and the Ba Dinh District People's Committee jointly organized a night tourism promotion activity and launched Tram Line 6 in the Dao Ngoc-Ngu Xa culinary pedestrian area. The re-creation of a means of public transportation in Hanoi during the subsidy years brought a different feel that attracted a large number of visitors.

The event also featured a series of activities reminiscent of a historical period experienced by the whole country in general and Hanoi in particular, such as decorating with subsidy coupons, taking vintage-style photos, or eating subsidy-era food. These unique features turned the walking space into a photo opportunity spot sought by many people.

"The areas that evoke the old Hanoi way of life are vividly, beautifully, and very meaningfully decorated, which helps young people understand more about a difficult time in the past," said Tran Thu Trang from Dong Da District, who attended the event.

Hoan Kiem Lake at night. Photo: Chuyen cua Ha Noi Group

According to Ta Nam Chien, Chairman of the Ba Dinh District People's Committee, Tram Line 6 was an attempt by the local government and people to refresh tourism products and promote pedestrian streets as new creative spaces.

Currently, Hanoi's pedestrian areas are striving to innovate and make their mark. The Son Tay Ancient Citadel Pedestrian Zone in Son Tay City is a beacon of creativity, as it has become the venue for many quality programs, such as the music program entitled "Doai Melody" in the Hanoi Concert event series or the activity themed "Ancient Citadel Mid-Autumn Festival - Son Tay Xu Doai."

Meanwhile, Tran Nhan Tong Pedestrian Street in Hai Ba Trung District has recently hosted many major events, such as the Hanoi Tourism Gift Festival and the Hanoi Culinary Culture Festival. Similarly, the pedestrian area around Hoan Kiem Lake and its surroundings, as well as Hanoi's Old Quarter, has become a creative art space for young people, regularly hosting street performances and major events in the capital.

Mechanisms needed to encourage business investment

A visitor to the Temple of Literature at night. Photo: Huy Pham/ The Hanoi Times

Hanoi currently has 6 walking areas, namely the Hoan Kiem Lake Pedestrian Zone and its vicinity, Hanoi Old Quarter (Hang Dao Street to Dong Xuan Street, Hanoi Old Quarter Level 1 Preservation Area, and the extended area south of Hanoi Old Quarter), Son Tay Ancient Citadel Pedestrian Zone, Tran Nhan Tong Pedestrian Street and its vicinity, Dao Ngoc-Ngu Xa Culinary Pedestrian Quarter, and Trinh Cong Son Walking Street.

Thanks to certain advantages in terms of location, culture, history, and scenery, the Hoan Kiem Lake area, the Old Quarter of Hanoi and the Son Tay Citadel are frequently visited by 10,000-20,000 people every weekend night.

However, the remaining walking areas are often empty, which makes it difficult to advocate for funding for innovation. Tay Ho District downgraded "Tay Ho District's Street Food and Art Performance Space" to "Tay Ho District's Creative Cultural Space" on Trinh Cong Son Walking Street because it is usually not as crowded as expected.

The interior of the Temple of Literature at night. Photo: Huy Pham/ The Hanoi Times

The district is devising offers to improve the attractiveness of the space, such as the Hanoi Lotus Festival or the newly opened Tay Ho District OCOP Product Promotion and Sales Center.
Experiencing the same fate as Trinh Cong Son Walking Street, on weeks without events or festivals, the number of visitors to Tran Nhan Tong Pedestrian Street is very low.

The environment, human resources, product development, event management, and recreational activities are some of the issues that experts say make it difficult to manage and maintain pedestrian areas and attract tourists.

How to enhance their charm in a regular and sustainable way is not an easy question. As a participant in many community art projects for Hanoi's creative spaces, artist Nguyen The Son suggested transforming walking spaces into creative spaces that bear the unique cultural mark of each locality while avoiding repetitive activities.

The vibrant Old Quarter of Hanoi at night. Photo: Nguyen Van At/ Tri Thuc Ha Noi Group

Meanwhile, Le Thanh Thao, Chairman of the Hanoi Travel Association, said it is crucial to have mechanisms to encourage the participation of organizations and businesses in investing and organizing regular activities in the zones, with priority given to cultural and creative activities for the benefit of the community.

Currently, the Hanoi Tourism Department and the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports are working with localities to run cultural and tourism activities in pedestrian zones.

To increase the operational efficiency of Hanoi's walking spaces, Dang Huong Giang, Director of the Hanoi Tourism Department, confirmed that they will continue to support localities in organizing and promoting appropriate tourism products and combining itineraries in the coming period.