A US$92 million golf resort, considered to be the largest of its kind in Vietnam, opened for play on January 9 in northern Ninh Binh Province after two years of construction.
The Yen Thang Lake 54-hole Golf Course, also known as Royal Golf Club, is developed by state-run real estate developer PV-INCONESS, a subsidiary of oil monopoly Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group.
The 670 hectare complex is surrounded by the lush natural surroundings of the Yen Thang Lake in Tam Diep Town, about 100 kilometers away from Hanoi.
It includes three international standard 18-hole golf courses, two of which are designed for professional golfers, and a clubhouse, a five-star hotel, restaurants, shopping malls and villas.
The golf resort also offers facilities for picnic, camping and water sport activities, from cruising to boat racing.
The complex’s first 18-hole golf course is currently open for golfers while the remaining facilities are expected to come online in 2013.
Tran Huu Binh, deputy chairman of Ninh Binh Province’s People’s Committee, told Vietnam News Agency the launching of the golf resort would offer more tourist attraction for the province and help provide more employment opportunities for the locals.
The Royal Golf Club will also play host to a golf tournament which will attract the participation of 144 local officials later this year when Vietnam takes the chairmanship of the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations.
Vietnam is expected to have 89 golf courses by 2020, most of which will only be licensed in highland and coastal areas or on land deemed unsuitable for agriculture, according to a zoning plan approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung late last year.
Under the plan, golf courses will no longer be licensed on land formerly used for rice cultivation, industrial zones, urban zones and forests, especially protective forests and special-use forests.
A report by the Ministry of Planning and Investment last year said Vietnam’s both operational and under construction golf courses covered 45,000 hectares of land – most of which had been used for crops.
The rush to build golf courses started three years ago as Vietnam’s tourism officials were working to position the country as Asia’s next big golf destination.
It has forced farmers off their land to make way for ritzy new clubhouses, and raised concerns over scarce water resources and run-offs from pesticide use.
In 2009 alone, the ministry revoked 77 out of 166 licensed golf course projects across the country.
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