The resort city of Da Lat welcomed about 153,000 tourist arrivals from February 8 to 12, the first five days of the Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday, rising 22.4% year on year, reported the municipal People’s Committee.

Da Lat is a popular tourist attraction in Lam Dong province.

About 10,800 of the arrivals in the city, located in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, were international visitors while 142,200 others were Vietnamese, respectively increasing 8% and 20.16%, statistics show.

Visitors to Da Lat are likely to continue rising in the coming days as the Tet holiday will last through February 14, the fifth day of the Year of the Dragon, the People’s Committee said.

It forecast the occupancy rate will reach 90 - 95% at local three- to five-star hotels and 75 - 85% at other types of accommodation facilities during this occasion.

Located on Lam Vien Plateau at an altitude of 1,500m above the sea level, Da Lat, a popular tourist attraction, spans 394sq.km and has a population of about 260,000 from many ethnic groups.

The city and other localities in the Central Highlands are home to the cultural space of the gongs, recognised by UNESCO as a masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage of humanity in November 2005.

Da Lat, also linked with many famous musicians and singers of Vietnam, is working to become a member of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the field of music.