The UK five-star cruise ship Minerva carrying 500 tourists and a crew of 200, docked at Quy Nhon port in the southern province of Binh Dinh on January 31.
This is the first five-star tourist ship to dock at Quy Nhon port. More than 300 passengers went ashore to visit tourism sites Banh It Cham Towers Complex in Tuy Phuoc district, and Quang Trung Museum in Tay Son district.
Minerva recently departed Hong Kong for the Hai Phong-Ha Long-Da Nang-Quy Nhon-Nha Trang-HCM City cruise. After a stopover in HCM City, Minerva will head on to Cambodia.
At each stop, Minerva's passengers disembark for several hours to see the key sights, go shopping and experience the local culture. The ship will stop for a longer stay of two days in HCM city.
Van Trong Hung, director of the Binh Dinh provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said that tourist numbers to the province increased by 24 percent and revenues over 30 percent in 2012.