On the morning of June 1, following consultations between the Guangxi region of mainland China and Vietnam’s Quang Ninh province, the cross-border self-driving tour along the Guilin–Ha Long Golden Tourism Route was officially launched at the Dongxing Port in Fangchenggang City.
The Belt and Road Initiative has not only accelerated commercial exchanges between mainland China and neighboring countries but also expanded people-to-people interactions, with tourism being at the forefront of such exchanges. On the morning of June 1, a convoy of 48 self-driving vehicles from mainland China and 18 from Vietnam drove across the China-Vietnam Friendship Bridge, kicking off a five-day cross-border road trip.
This new cross-border self-driving route connecting Guilin in mainland China with Ha Long in Vietnam traverses six cities in Guangxi — Fangchenggang, Qinzhou, Nanning, Laibin, Liuzhou, and Guilin — as well as two locations in Vietnam: Mong Cai and Ha Long City. This route marks a significant milestone in the development of Guangxi’s tourism industry. Industry insiders noted that the stretch from Guilin to Dongxing in Fangchenggang is a key tourism corridor in Guangxi. Quang Ninh Province, on the other hand, is the most resource-rich tourism destination in northern Vietnam, home to the world-famous Ha Long Bay — one of the “New7Wonders of Nature” and a UNESCO dual World Heritage Site. The introduction of self-driving tours allows mainland travelers to drive directly to these attractions, making travel more convenient.