MoU to strengthen border links [between Cambodia and Laos]

November 1, 2012 
By Rapeepat Mantanarat
TTR Weekly

STUNG TRENG, 1 November 2012: Cambodia and Laos’ border provinces, Stung Treng and Champasak will join hands to promote two-way tourism.

The plan will eventually extend cooperation to include Ubon Ratchathani in Thailand bordering with Champasak and Phreah Vihear province in Cambodia, next to Stung Treng.

Stung Treng Provincial Tourism Office director, Theany Loun, told TTR Weekly at the close of an official meeting between Cambodian and Lao officials in Pakse, yesterday, that they had agreed to hold another meeting in December to sign the Memorandum of Understanding on tourism cooperation.

“The MoU will endorse efforts by tour companies in the border provinces to generate tourism by sharing business. If a tour operator in Stung Treng has customers who will cross the border to Champasak, then a Lao tour operator will handle the guests from the border; Stung Treng’s tour operator will not cross the border to run the tour by themselves,” said Ms Theany.

The preferred business model, in the past, was for tour operators to continue to guide their clients after they crossed the border, mainly for logistic and economic reasons. Sharing the business will also require companies to offer compatible service standards and equipment.

She added Champasak province pledges to invite the Tourism Authority of Thailand to come on board to promote  linked routes between the three countries as Thailand is a main gateway for tourism in this area and Thai tourists have been a major supplier already to Champasak in Laos. In January, officials also plan to meet again, but in Stung Treng province.

Cambodia’s government is upgrading a road and constructing a bridge across the Mekong River to link Stung Treng and Preah Vihear provinces, Ms Theany said once it is complete, it will be a good opportunity for Stung Treng to receive more tourists from southern Laos or from Thailand via Laos.

“The new road and bridge will facilitate travel to Phreah Vihear and onwards to Siem Reap, giving visitors another travel option,” said Ms Theany.

Stung Treng was previously limited to being a transit point from Laos to Phnom Penh, but now tourism products are being developed by NGOs and the Tourism Ministry’s Mekong Discovery Trail Project, which has helped to improve length of stay to around two days.

Ms Theany hopes tourists will stop in Stung Treng for at least two days to explore attractions in the province before heading onwards to Preah Vihear or Siem Reap.

“Since 2007, tourism products have been developed and we still have  potential for further development to help us change from transit point to a destination.”

“When the new Tropeang Kriel immigration checkpoint opens early 2013, the provincial tourism office and a local tour operator, Explore Asia will open a booth there to provide information on tourism products,” said Ms Theany.

Currently, it is possible to go to Preah Vihear by road, but  conditions are not good and  it involves crossing a river by boat. The upgrade work is expected to finish by 2014 with the bridge  ready in 2015. The road from Preah Vihear to Siem Reap is already completed.

There is also a plan to revitalise Stung Treng Airport to become a gateway to the northeast as it is strategically located near the border and surrounded by several provinces — Ratanakiri, Kratie and Preah Vihear. The tourism director said a Canadian consultant  has already done a survey. Before it was  understood that Ratanakiri Airport would be the regional gateway, but that has now  been scrapped.

In addition, Stung Treng  has four hotels (two-star). The newest one, Gold River Hotel opened in 2011 with around 50 rooms. There are about 30 guesthouses in town.

Tourist arrivals to the province stood around 100,000, domestic and international during the January to September. Domestic tourists increased 29% while international,  increased 16%.