The tour “Take a helicopter to see Ho Chi Minh City from above” was opened by the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism and travel agencies on the occasion of the 30/4/2022 holiday. With a ticket price of more than 4 million VND for a flight time of about 40 minutes on a helicopter to see the beauty of the city from above.
Immediately after its launch, this tour was “sold out” when thousands of visitors inquired and more than 300 customers bought tickets in advance.
Customers line up to board the plane to take a tour to see Ho Chi Minh City from a helicopter
However, after only 5 trips organized with over 50 guests, the tour “Going by helicopter to see Ho Chi Minh City from above” had to be suspended. The main reason most mentioned by tour operators is that they have not found an official landing site for helicopters.
Previously, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism coordinated with Military Hospital 175 and Southern Helicopter Company to organize a survey flight to build this tour. In which, Military Hospital 175 supports the helipad and medical safety for passengers on flights. Southern Helicopter Company is responsible for the flight schedule, flight safety and flight regulations as prescribed by the Ministry of Defense. Travel agencies are responsible for building tours and transporting guests to participate.
Two types of aircraft entered service in the program are the AW-189 (maximum 16 passengers) and EC-155B1 (maximum 12 passengers).
According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, this is a new tour with an experimental nature, but the success of the tour “Take a helicopter to see Ho Chi Minh City from above” will be a catalyst for tourism workers in Ho Chi Minh City towards building new tourist attractions. Other tours such as Ho Chi Minh City sightseeing tour by 20-minute, 60-minute or 90-minute itinerary…
The extended flight journey will bring visitors to experience more distant landscapes such as Can Gio mangrove biosphere reserve, Endless Fields, Tan Lap tourist area (Long An)…
Guests take pictures before boarding the plane (Photo by Pham Nguyen)
However, according to some tour operators, currently the most difficult is the landing area for helicopters because the yard belonging to Military Hospital 175 is only suitable for transporting patients, while the landing area at Tan Son Nhat is only suitable for transporting patients currently facing legal difficulties.
According to a representative of a travel company, there are currently about 200 guests who have bought a tour, but the flight time has yet to be determined. And now, tour operators are looking for new landing sites to continue organizing.
It is expected that a new landing site for the tour “Going by helicopter to see Ho Chi Minh City from above” will be selected in District 7, where it is more convenient to organize transportation for tourists of travel companies.
Source: CafeBiz
Source: Vietnam Insider