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| Chan May Port. Photo: Bao Chau |
Choosing Its Own Way
Not competing on scale; not developing at any cost; not chasing mass industrialization, Hue is choosing to upgrade value - grounded in advantages that cannot be replicated: heritage as the soul, the sea as the space for development, knowledge as the foundation, technology as the tool, and people as the center. Hue develops for sustainability - for longevity – to create value for generations to come. It is not an easy choice. But it is the right path, a singular positioning: a heritage city - a truly maritime city.
Few would think of Hue as a coastal city. Yet Hue possesses a vast and rare maritime space: from Thuan An, Tam Giang, Cau Hai to Lang Co, Chan May. The sea is not merely scenery. It is an economic space. To develop sustainably, Hue must become a truly maritime city - where the blue marine economy becomes a long-term engine of growth for hundreds of thousands of residents. And in that development landscape, Tam Giang - Cau Hai lagoon and Chan May - Lang Co Economic Zone are the two great gateways opening the way to Hue’s prosperous future.
Tam Giang - Cau Hai blue marine ecological and economic zone is one of the largest brackish lagoon systems in Southeast Asia. It is not only an invaluable natural asset, but also the city’s “green lung” and a buffer against climate change. With proper planning and investment at the right scale, Tam Giang can become a high-tech aquaculture hub, a national center for aquatic breeding, a center for marine ecology and climate change research, an eco-tourism zone featuring fishing village culture and coastal cuisine, and a green economic region that provides sustainable livelihoods for hundreds of thousands of people. There, residents will not only go to sea based on inherited experience, but will engage in marine livelihoods through science, technology, and knowledge. Tam Giang will be Hue’s pillar of green economy, fisheries, and eco-tourism in the 21st century.
Expanding Development Space
If Tam Giang represents the ecological and green economic zone, then Chan May - Lang Co serves as Hue’s gateway for industry, logistics, and marine economy. Located between Hue and Da Nang, with direct links to Lien Chieu Bay - a nationally strategic deep-water port - Chan May - Lang Co enjoys a location of exceptional advantage. It is the only area where Hue can develop large-scale industry, advanced logistics, a deep-sea port, and a premium coastal urban center. Over the next 2 decades, Chan May - Lang Co is set to become Hue’s new growth engine - creating high-value employment, drawing international investment, and shaping a modern industrial and marine services value chain.
Heritage - the Soft Power Underpinning Hue’s Economy: Hue is the only city in the world to possess 3 UNESCO heritages in 3different categories: the Complex of Hue Monuments, Royal Court Music, and the Nguyen Dynasty Woodblocks. Together, they form a complete heritage ecosystem: architecture, music, rituals, and archival records, fully reflecting an Eastern imperial civilization. Alongside this is an exclusive treasury of cultural intellectual assets: more than 1,700 royal cuisine dishes, a largely intact system of Nguyen Dynasty rituals, and Royal Court Music with a history spanning over 400 years; this is sufficient to shape the internationally distinguished brand of “Imperial Hue” if properly leveraged.
More notably, Hue is not standing still with the past. The city currently ranks second nationwide in digital transformation and is listed among the Top 50 Smart Cities in ASEAN - a rare advantage where heritage meets technology.
Hue’s New Economic Momentum
In 2025, Hue is projected to post GRDP growth of 8.5-9%, attracts around 6.3 million visitors, and generates over VND 13 trillion in tourism revenue. However, per capita income remains below VND 70 million per year, still a modest figure when compared with leading global heritage cities such as Kyoto, Edinburgh, and Hangzhou.
For Hue to achieve sustainable prosperity, the city must expand its development space toward the sea: building wealth from high-tech aquaculture and eco-tourism in Tam Giang lagoon; making fortune from industry, logistics, and Chan May - Lang Co deep-sea port complex; and strengthening connectivity with the central coastal urban corridor from Danang and Hue
That will serve as the hard economic foundation underpinning Hue’s soft power of heritage.
Hue 2045 is not a distant dream. It is a clearly defined pathway built upon three irreplaceable pillars: Heritage - Sea - Knowledge.
A Hue that grows without losing its soul.
A Hue that prospers from its blue seas and modern industry.
A Hue where people have quality jobs, higher incomes, and a secure, stable life.
A new spring for a smart, blue-sea heritage city - for Hue today and for generations to come.