DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY REVIVES ORGINAL VALUES OF MY SON WORLD CULTURAL HERITAGE SITE

Digital technology is showcasing the World Cultural Heritage site of My Son Sanctuary, enabling visitors to experience its historical and cultural significance while supporting long-term conservation. The site's authenticity is being preserved through scientific restoration and digital transformation, enhancing the visitor experience, and promoting sustainable tourism.

As competition among tourist destinations across the region intensifies, sustainable tourism has become a key priority. Destinations are improving service quality, diversifying tourism products, safeguarding the authenticity of heritage sites, and applying digital technologies in management and promotion. At the World Cultural Heritage site of My Son Sanctuary in Thu Bon commune, central Da Nang city, these efforts are helping preserve the sustainable use of tourism resources without adversely affecting the monument.

Preserving authentic values of heritage

Nguyen Cong Khiet, Director of the My Son Cultural Heritage Management Board, said the site is to welcome more than 490,000 visitors in 2026, up by 52,000 from the previous year. Ahead of this year's summer tourism season, My Son had already received over 210,000 visitors.

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The growth reflects continued efforts to renew tourism products, and the need to protect the site's original value. Visiting the sites, tourists can immerse themselves in My Son's distinctive cultural setting through a range of cultural and ecological experiences designed to avoid any negative impact on the monuments, particularly those in the heritage site's core zone.

Nguyen Cong Khiet, Director of the My Son Cultural Heritage Management Board

While touring the temples and towers of My Son Sanctuary, American visitor Gentry Kitty said the site's multilingual audio guide provided detailed information about the restoration of each tower group. She learned that the conservation of Tower Group L was carried out by Italy's C.M. Lerici Foundation in collaboration with Vietnamese experts, who conducted the careful archaeological excavation and scientific clearance of the group's ruins.

The primary objective was to establish a reliable scientific basis for reinforcing and preserving the original architectural foundations of the tower group while ensuring that the authenticity of the ancient heritage remained intact.

Kitty described My Son as one of Vietnam's most attractive cultural tourism destinations.

The My Son World Cultural Heritage Management Board, in coordination with the Institute for Conservation of Monuments, the Vietnam Institute of Archaeology, the C.M. Lerici Foundation of Italy, and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), is implementing a restoration project for tower groups L, E and F within the world cultural heritage site of My Son Sanctuary for the 2025–2029 period. (Photo: VNA)

My Son Sanctuary has received strong support from international experts from many countries in preserving the site's authenticity and advancing digitalisation. Conservation projects include UNESCO, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Italy's Lerici Foundation, the University of Milan, UNESCO Office in Hanoi, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), the Institute for Conservation of Monuments, the Institute of Archaeology, the Department of Cultural Heritage under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and the Da Nang Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

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Preliminary findings from the scientific excavation of the E and F tower groups indicate that the structures were built on foundations combining brick, timber and roof tiles. The towers were constructed with bricks stacked without visible mortar joints. We will apply these findings during restoration to best preserve the site's original values, ensuring the integrity of the heritage is maintained for future generations.

Danve D.S., head of the ASI expert team

Nguyen Thanh Son, Chairman of the People's Committee of Thu Bon commune, said new tourism products such as photography packages included with admission tickets, Cham costume rentals combined with photo printing on souvenirs, and cultural performances at the foot of the towers have brought new vitality to the heritage site.

"These initiatives are practical measures to protect the site's original values while digitalising tourism products to attract more visitors to My Son," he said.

Performances in the My Son – Night of the Legends art programme in 2022 (Photo: VNA)

Advancing digital transformation

My Son is a priceless heritage site, with many relics still buried underground. Given its history spanning many centuries, many visitors have yet to experience its historical, architectural, and artistic values.

The introduction of multilingual digital interpretation services is therefore regarded as an innovative approach to deepening public awareness of heritage conservation while encouraging broader engagement in protecting tourism resources.

“Multilingual commentary – Audio Guide”, a digital transformation product, provides information for visitors at the My Son Sanctuary. (Photo: VNA)

Nguyen Van Thuong, a visitor from Da Nang, said tourists receive digital information throughout their visit, including online ticket purchases, QR code admission, cashless payment by bank transfer and Visa card, as well as access to information via Google Maps, YouTube, and the management board's website.

"This is especially useful during this summer, when more students and teachers visit My Son," he said.

Visiting the My Son Sanctuary, tourists are supported with many services, including online ticketing, QR code ticket scanning, bank transfer payments, and Visa card payments. (Photo: VNA)

Since UNESCO recognised My Son Sanctuary as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1999, Vietnamese and international scientists have carried out extensive research, archaeological excavations and restoration work, achieving significant progress in conserving the towers. International cooperation has played an important role in improving the effectiveness of preserving the site's authenticity while supporting the digitalisation of its cultural, historical and architectural values in recent times.

Khiet said My Son has completed and handed over a 3D digitalisation project covering the entire temple complex, upgraded its automatic audio guide system and virtual reality applications at the My Son Museum, and enhanced visitors' access to information.

Artifacts displayed inside towers (Photo: VNA)

The site is also continuing to develop an AI-powered digital guide providing multilingual interpretation services, improving service quality and moving towards a smart tourism model. At the same time, it is digitalising all heritage records, artefacts and research materials to ensure centralised storage, efficient data sharing and more effective use of heritage resources, he said./.