The central Thua Thien Hue Province\'s People Committee hopes to get 43 projects completed to host National Tourism Year 2012.

Thua Thien Hue is famous for its ancient relics

The projects, costing a total VND49 trillion (USD2.3 billion), include 22 on which work has already started or the projects have been completed. Five hotels of the Mercure and Mondial groups are already in use while others are in progress.

Hue national tourism year 2012, themed "Hue ancient capital city, new experiences", is a major tourism event that is expected to be held all year round.

It aims to promote Vietnam\'s tourism products and cultural heritage to both international and domestic tourists.

Hue Festival 2012, a biennial event of Vietnamese cultural heritage, is expected to be a major cultural drawcard.

Lying on the north-south railway and the main road to Laos and north-eastern Thailand, and having Phu Bai international airport and the Chan May seaport, the province is a noted stopover for tourists.

It plans to reach an annual tourism turnover of more than VND3 trillion (USD145 million) with arrivals of at least 1.2 million international tourists a year by 2015.