Museums and historical destinations tend to attract a variety of foreign visitors, while they are not able to appeal to local residents. There are several culprits causing this problem, however, measures always exist to help tackle this phenomenon.
Local dwellers are not interested in visiting historical galleries due to their brief time and the culture’s popularity. Regarding the former, residents have hectic schedules for their work and family, limiting their time for museum trips. Monotonous information and artifacts would fail to captivate people due to various burdens and stresses. Instead of engaging with these boring destinations, they may entertain themselves with several alternatives such as malls or cinemas, providing them with comfortable and relaxing experiences. Concerning the latter, historical sites and museums may display the tradition and culture of the locals, which only attract curious tourists instead of the residents, who are already familiar with these and seeking for other leisure options.
To combat this tendency, various efficient strategies could be implemented, including organizing various approaches, and offering discounted entrance fees for local people. Museums and heritage sites should enhance their media coverage and prevalence by unique and trendy contents to attract local residents. For example, Hoa Lo Prison in Hanoi has organized various activities such as “Dem Thieng Lieng”, which was a filming event about the site, integrating several up-to-date contents via media platforms that captivated youngsters. Besides, the discount frenzy in entrance fee would also attract the locals, thanks to the affordability compared to other options and respectful feelings in their hometown. Hue city would be a testament to its success through this measure, appealing to local tourists visiting their historical structures on special occasions.
In conclusion, their limited spare time and the familiarity of tradition among local residents lead to the poor attendance rate of historical sites. Meanwhile, there are various applicable measures to tackle the phenomenon including improving media coverage and reducing entrance fees for the locals.