International tourists enjoy going to 'cashless fairs'

Tourists excitedly participate in activities of the Cashless Festival on the evening of June 14 - Photo: PHUONG QUYEN

From the afternoon of June 14, the cashless sales area located in the old Tax Trade Center was crowded with people, including many domestic and international tourists. Many people expressed their excitement at the interesting shopping space, promoting the cashless payment experience.

Strolling through the food court at the Cashless Festival, 38-year-old Aaron from Malaysia was delighted with the fragrant and eye-catching regional specialties at the festival.

He said this was his second day traveling in Vietnam, after visiting a nearby shopping mall, he chose Nguyen Hue walking street and coincidentally learned about the Cashless Festival.

"Cashless payments are extremely beneficial not only in everyday life. When traveling, I'm most afraid of pickpockets and don't want to carry too much cash," Aron shared.

In the evening, the main stage of the festival was stirred up by the special performances of beloved artists. Mr. Kaito Shiokawa, from Tokyo, Japan, listened attentively to the vibrant music performed by singer Thao Trang.

"I find this event very special. Cashless payments have become more popular in Japan since the COVID-19 pandemic. We all know that cash has certain limitations," said Kaito.

Mr. Hishiro (Japanese tourist) is choosing traditional Vietnamese cakes to enjoy - Photo: THANH HIEP

Ms. Tuyet, a vendor, said that as soon as she heard about the festival, she was excited and immediately registered to open two stalls selling banh khot, banh beo, goi, snails, etc. "This festival is special, specializing in cashless payments, very impressive," Ms. Tuyet happily said.

To prepare for this occasion, she ordered seafood from Phan Thiet, Vung Tau… to be shipped directly here. Besides domestic customers, her booth also has many foreign customers.

For the past 6 years, her restaurant on Van Kiep Street (Binh Thanh District) has been using cashless payments. In the past 2 years, this practice has become more popular. Most of the customers who come to eat transfer money, even for small amounts like 10,000 VND.

"It's great. No need for cumbersome counting. Customers transfer to me, then I transfer to seafood orders in Phan Thiet, Vung Tau... very convenient," she said.

Many foreigners are curious about Vietnamese dishes - Photo: THANH HIEP

With the aim of simulating a miniature cashless society, within the framework of the Cashless Festival taking place from June 14 to 16 at Nguyen Hue walking street, Ho Chi Minh City, the organizers have reserved a separate space for small traders - units, retail partners, and food stalls. Here, people can experience payment technologies, services, and cashless payments when making purchases - Photo: THANH HIEP

Locals and tourists can enjoy traditional Western cakes such as palm-leaf cakes, dream-leaf cakes, sponge cakes, etc. Savory dishes include spring rolls, shrimp and pork pancakes, grilled skewers, rice rolls, various snails, etc. Those who love desserts will have fresh cream, palm juice, cool sweet soups, etc. At the same time, customers can also buy clothes, jewelry, etc. at the miniature "fair", with cashless payments - Photo: THANH HIEP

However, many tourists are also a bit hesitant because many booths only prioritize QR scanning for payment, other card swiping methods are only available at some large booths. "With a market with many young consumers like Vietnam, you accept new payment technologies very quickly. During my days traveling in Ho Chi Minh City, I was surprised by the coverage of cashless payments," Peter, a tourist from the UK, told Tuoi Tre Online - Photo: THANH HIEP

Mairi from Scotland also said that in her daily life, she uses card payments more than cash. When she learned that the festival at the walking street only accepts cashless payments, Mairi was surprised and excited. Mairi said that she often encounters some problems with Vietnamese money such as large denominations, too many zeros, slow addition and subtraction, and not understanding how much money the seller asks for. "It's very convenient for such a festival," Mairi said - Photo: THANH HIEP

Many experiential activities at the Cashless Festival

During the three days of June 14, 15 and 16, a group of leading banks in Vietnam today, along with payment intermediaries, credit organizations, and businesses including: Vietcombank, Viettel Money, HDBank, Techcombank, SaigonCo.op, ACB, VISA, Mastercard, BIDV, TPBank, MoMo, JCB, Nam A Bank, SHB, Agribank, Eximbank, VPBank, Cake by VPBank... brought many technological solutions, organized many programs and exciting activities for people to approach and get acquainted with new payment methods to understand the benefits of non-cash payments and gradually change payment habits from cash to other modern, safe, and convenient payment methods.

KOC will demonstrate livestream sales skills on June 16 along with a series of interactive activities from accompanying units with a shower of gifts for participating customers, focusing on improving customers' financial skills in payment.

Especially at 8pm on June 14, 7:15pm on June 15 and 7pm on June 16, the art program will take place on the main stage of the festival with the participation of famous artists: Phuong Vy, Luu Huong Giang, Ricky Star, STrong Trong Hieu, Hoang Yen Chibi...

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/du-khach-quoc-te-thich-thu-di-cho-phien-khong-tien-mat-20240614192007701.htm