Duy T.D. Nguyen, TOUR-3210
October 31, 2025

Introduction

Nha Trang, also well-known as the “Riviera of the South China Sea” with its gorgeous beaches, is a bustling coastal destination for both domestic and international tourists (Tkachenko, 2023). There is a recent increase in tourists that has created potential employment fluctuations, cultural exploitation and industrial waste. This paper provides a critical overview of multiple tourism impacts, modern sustainable tourism solutions, and the ethical implications through the lens of Kant and utilitarianism to enhance sustainable tourism in Nha Trang, Vietnam.

Background and context

According to The World Travel & Tourism Council (2025), tourism has become one of the world’s largest economic sectors, contributing significantly to employment and cultural exchange in destinations worldwide. Despite these benefits, global destinations still face environmental, socioeconomic, political and cultural issues. This highlights the importance of implementing sustainable tourism strategies in Nha Trang, Vietnam.

Snapshot of the situation

Nha Trang offers a critical case study because it is not only a favorite tourist destination in Vietnam but also illustrates the challenges facing other coastal destinations across Southeast Asia. Figure 1 demonstrates that Vietnam attracts many global tourists in a year. Cam Ranh International Airport in Nha Trang reported that 32 international flights were conducted daily in June 2025 (Nguyen, 2025). However, the city does not have sufficient waste management system to handle tourists littering and facilities to regulate a high volume of tourists. Sustainable strategies to this problem are urgently needed to address overtourism, plastic pollution, the rising cost of living, governmental interests and the threatened identity of the Cham people.

Figure 1: International visitors by month 2023 (thousand arrivals)

Figure 2: Nha Trang Beach

Figure 3: Nha Trang tourist map

Figure 4: Piles of debris, including plastic bottles, tree branches, and seaweed, litter the shoreline.

Tourism Impacts on The Destination

Nha Trang is one of Vietnam’s most popular beach destinations. The city’s tourism sector generates employment and revenue streams. However, it can also have adverse effects on locals by harming the environment, exploiting their cultural heritage, and increasing their cost of living.

Economic and Social Tourism Impacts

As reported by the Khanh Hoa Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the number of visitors to the coastal areas has reached 4.6 million for the first five months of 2025, contributing US$900.46 million to tourism revenues (Nguyen, 2025). This growth in tourist demand can create numerous job opportunities in tourism, thereby effectively addressing unemployment issues in the city and enhancing the socioeconomic status of its residents.

Tourism directly and indirectly supports employment in the hospitality sector. Bal (2016) states that indirect employment can be seen in food producers, who supply goods consumed by tourists, generating economic value. He also acknowledges that direct employment includes the provision of jobs in hotels or restaurants and those who work there could also purchase groceries or personal necessities, which indirectly supports job creation in local shops nearby, resulting in an induced employment effect. The taxes collected from these financial contributions can be used to invest in schools, healthcare, public services, and the revitalization of the city’s infrastructure, which also provides a social benefit from tourism.

The influx of migrants entering a country on visitor visas can contribute to the expansion of informal employment in tourism. Winchenbach, Font, and Randles (2024) note that “Reasons for this include chronic labour shortages…seasonality, weak labour regulations and enforcement of laws, and low unionization. Moreover, it is often cheaper to hire migrant workers than employ local workers” (p. 16). In other words, tourism businesses may experience employment shortages and may rely on informal labor, such as temporary visitors, as hiring them is affordable during peak service times. While this can provide short-term income opportunities for individuals, it will damage the economy by reducing tax collection. and social protection systems, including tax funded benefit programs for citizens.

Asia-Pacific is ranked the second among the highest regions violating rights of workers, with a score of 4.19 (Winchenbach, Font, & Randles, 2024). See Figure 5 The State Of Global Workers’ Rights 2023. The lack of legal recognition of labor rights can expose informal workers to exploitation and unsafe working conditions. Informal economic activities are highly a violation of Visa and work regulations. These are socioeconomic issues that could negatively impact tourism in Nha Trang.

Figure 5: The State of Global Workers’ Rights 2023

Political Tourism Impacts

Nha Trang is a strategic coastal hub with geopolitical implications. It was chosen to host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in 2017, a regional economic forum where leaders and ministers engage in discussions about sustainable economic growth in the region (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation [APEC], 2024). See figures 5 and 6. According to Tran Luu Quang (2023), a deputy prime minister, Vietnam grants visa exemption to APEC card holders with Decision 09/2023/QD-TTg, highlighting how high-profile events at a dest nation can influence the government’s actions in establishing new immigration regulations to strengthen international relations in Nha Trang.

However, tourism can create political tension, particularly when tourism-related projects are heavily invested. Domareski Ruiz, Chim Miki, Añaña, and Anjos (2020) argue that corrupted politicians, for example, can abuse their authority to allow an excessive number of visitor Visas to boost profits in their personal business activities at destinations. This can lead to tourist overcrowding and exploitation of Visa policies. Restrictive travel policies that are imposed by governmental agencies can be effective in reducing international travelers; however, these immigration regulations will create political tensions and adversely affect Vietnam’s global reputation.

Figure 6: Tourism Workshop on Sustainability in Sheraton Hotel in Nha Trang

Figure 7: First APEC Senior Officials Meeting opens in Nha Trang

Environmental Tourism Impacts

Plastic has been indispensable in the hospitality industry, due to its durability, affordability, and convenience (Hendrickx & Novelli, 2024). Nevertheless, plastic can “linger for hundreds to thousands of years” (Shams et al., 2021, para. 1) in the ecosystem. Hotels and restaurants in Nha Trang always discard plastic waste, which is then sent to landfills and releases greenhouse gases. Moreover, this amount of plastic debris may accumulate in the environment, causing long-term damage to nature. Shams et al. (2021) found that “Plastic eventually breaking down in micro & nanoscopic bits… can enter animal and human food web.” (p. 1). Shams’ point is that plastic waste does not simply disappear over time. It is tiny enough to gradually enter the food web, meaning that animals and humans can consume it. As a result, plastic waste could be a growing threat to food safety and the well-being of guests in Nha Trang.

Cultural Tourism Impacts

The Nha Trang Sea Festival, which celebrates the local fishing culture, offers tremendous opportunities for cultural exchange for both inbound and outbound guests in the city (Vu, 2023). The festival promotes cultural activities that revitalize local culture by bringing visitors a genuine fishing culture in the local destination. A study of local festivals found that “festival authenticity strongly influences … satisfaction and word of mouth” among visitors (Naqvi, Jiang, Naqvi, Miao, Liang, & Mehmood, 2018). They observe that festivals not only preserve local culture but also satisfy visitors’ expectations of cultural practices by providing them with a community to showcase and discuss their traditions. In this way, well-designed cultural festivals serve both as tourist attractions and as mechanisms for cultural preservation, reinforcing the social and economic value of local traditions. In addition to raising awareness of Nha Trang’s heritage, this helps generate funds for festival organizations to develop a sustainable preservation of local culture.

However, there is a threat to cultural heritage due to tourism. Fennell (2017) remarks, “Cultural expressions are [degraded] in order to be more comprehensible and therefore saleable to mass tourism” (p. 154-155). In other words, altering cultural traditions is commodified to attract tourist audiences in pursuit of profits, such as the dancing gestures and costumes can be exaggerated to appeal to tourist consciousness. Thinh (2023) highlights that Thap Ba Ponagar is a temple to remnants of the Cham civilization in Nha Trang. See figure 5 where Cham has folk dances.

According to Goffman’s original front-back dichotomy, as discussed by MacCannell (1973), the front region is where these dances are performed daily to accommodate tourists, not adhering to traditional schedules. As discovered by Tuyen (2023), performing rituals not in accordance with the Cham calendar can have serious consequences, such as punishment from the gods, and this can be passed down to future generations. This arrangement of space and time reflects how tourist settings deliberately satisfy the tourist’ desire for consumption of authentic experiences (MacCannell, 1973). Consequently, the staged authenticity of Cham practices in tourist spaces will become a form of entertainment where visitors freely engage with these activities without understanding the rules, severely damaging the local culture.

Figure 8: Cham Dancing Ritual Performance for Tourists

Analysis and critique of sustainable practices and government incentives to reduce negative
impacts

The Vietnam Tourism Association by the government are taking measures to eliminate plastic use in Vietnam’s tourism sector by 2030 in response to sustainable tourism trends globally (Linh, 2025). This approach can also contribute to job creation for locals, since it encourages the production of eco-friendly items while preserving cultural artifacts that are plastic-free, such as those that are not commodified, thereby enhancing the green tourism culture among tourists in Nha Trang.

However, Linh (2025) also indicates that the feasibility of complete reforms remains low, given that the project is still in its expansion phase and it also requires business entities to make a considerable investment in sustainable facilities and participation of travelers who respect local sustainable practices. Hence, it is essential to preserve the environment and culture while promoting sustainable tourism development.

Ethical considerations

Liddell (1970) mentions that Kant defined moral actions as stemming from duty, a good will; however, the desire to perform good acts is not necessarily a criterion for moral conduct. Similarly, tourism operators in Nha Trang are responsible for guests’ realistic experiences, similar to those advertised, while bringing economic value to the local communities and making genuine efforts to preserve the local environment, culture, and their religious spaces.

John Stuart Mill states that actions are right when they maximize satisfaction for the greatest number of people under Utilitarianism’s framework (Mill, 1863, as cited in Pecorino, n.d.). In a study on the impacts of tourism on locals by Godovykh, Fyall, and Pizam (2025), the authors indicate that tourists’ engagement in positive tourism activities creates meaningful experiences, and they enhance residents’ well-being, and strengthen community bonds. Tourist activities that support local society can maximize overall happiness by resolving conflicts between the local hosts and guests. Therefore, local commun ties should be supported not only to achieve economic goals but ethical understanding among tourists for sustainable tourism.

Strategic recommendations to improve tourism results and possible barriers to overcome

It is essential to control visitor numbers and address the harmful effects of excessive tourism on destinations and communities in Nha Trang. In particular, travel companies can help promote rural destinations to combat overtourism (Brajcich, 2024). One of the places could be traditional fishing villages in Nha Trang, for example, as they are located in a coastal area, where local authorities can help visitors discover authentic culture responsibly and enjoy natural experiences while also supporting smaller communities economically and sustainable tourism products.

However, minor communities in remote locations often encounter challenges in having sufficient training and resources to manage tourism responsibly. The construction of accommodation and waste management systems, for instance, could not be designed to ensure the safety of visitors due to a minimal investment from the locals, thereby potentially da aging their cultural heritage and environment. The government should provide financial incentives and conduct regular inspections at rural tourist sites to promote sustainable tourism growth.

Conclusion

The case study of Nha Trang beach in Vietnam reveals that there should be concrete policies surrounding waste management, encouraging rural tourism, and government interference to address all the effects of tourism. From Kantian and utilitarian perspectives, the government is also morally obligated that vulnerable communities are not exploited for profit. The development of tourism infrastructure should be undertaken with ethical accountability, without posing any threats to the natural ecosystem, and also benefiting the tourists and the hosts. By raising the level of ethical awareness among tourism players, Nha Trang can become more competitive in sustainable tourism.

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