Boats lying on the shore, vehicles lying on the beach, hotels, shops closed, … are the inevitable consequences when Ly Son island (Quang Ngai) no longer has a tourist.
Difficult to sustain through the epidemic season
Summer is considered the “business season” of Ly Son tourism (Quang Ngai). This year, however, everything turned upside down. These days, the pace of life on Ly Son island seems to slow down. There is no longer a busy scene of tourists as usual, instead it is a lonely, cold scene. That is because to prevent the Covid-19 epidemic from entering the area, Quang Ngai province banned all foreign tourists and international visitors to the island district. Therefore, industries related to tourism such as boats, canoes, trams, motels, hotels, homestays, restaurants, eateries, … all fall into a state of “hibernation”. 
The center of the island district at night is deserted 
Almost all accommodation establishments in the area are closed due to lack of guests 
Anchor ships wait for their turn to run alternately, operating frequency is only 20% of normal There are a total of 92 rooms of 4-star standard accommodation, nearly a month ago, Muong Thanh Ly Son hotel was still open for operation. Said to be active, but almost no guests came to rent the room. Mr. Bui Xuan Nghia – Director of Muong Thanh Ly Son Hotel, said that the unit has a total of 66 employees, currently only 5% are arranged to rotate activities. However, people who come only do cleaning and maintenance of equipment, but there are no guests to receive. Although there is no revenue, the unit still pays 40% of the monthly salary for employees to cover their lives and overcome difficulties. “Just got up after several consecutive epidemics, then storm No. 9, if this situation persists, I am afraid that people who live by tourism in Ly Son will find it difficult to sustain themselves” – Mr. Nghia worried. Opposite Muong Thanh Ly Son is Ngoc Island Resort – one of the large accommodation units on the island – which has been closed for more than three weeks now because there are no guests. Nearly all hotels, motels and homestays in Ly Son district are in a similar situation, “doors closed and bolted”. Many hotel and motel owners admit that they are facing a lot of difficulties because they have no revenue, while maintenance costs and bank loan interest are putting great pressure on. There were no tourists, so for nearly a month, the parking lot of the Ly Son District Labor Union was always in a state of no space. All cars are gathered here to “wait” for tourists, most tram drivers have found other jobs to make a living. 
The fleet of trams transporting tourists is gathered to the parking lot… lying down and waiting 
All shops and souvenir stalls serving tourists at scenic spots on the island are “covered”. If about a month ago, they were busy from early morning to late evening to take guests in and out of the port, visit, eat, … now, Vung – a 7-seat driver transports tourists on island – free again. Sighing, the young man sadly shared: “In the past, I ran a lot, now it takes a long time to get people on the island to get here and there. I don’t know when the situation will improve again.” Sharing the same fate at the wharf with the car is a fleet of ships and canoes. Normally, at the lowest point, every day the Sa Ky – Ly Son route also has at least three trains to connect the island to the mainland. But now there is only one turn left to serve the travel needs of people and officials working on the island, absolutely no tourists. Being able to run seems to be better if you look at the scene of dozens of canoes on the big island – the small island that have to be lined up close to each other, sunbathing in the rain for more than a month now in the boat anchorage because the route is completely paralyzed. . Fuck it, go find a job “fire fighting” Experiencing three consecutive epidemics, plus the impact of natural disasters, most of the restaurants in the area have been “hit”. Along the mobile route around the island, there are dozens of shops specializing in serving tourists, which have almost closed over the past month. The shop lingered open, but only a few local guests. Anh An – Manager of Ly Son Basket Seafood Restaurant, said that since the day there was a ban on visitors to the island, his restaurant had temporarily stopped operating, all staff were laid off. This time, he focuses on repairing the restaurant and upgrading the facilities so that when the epidemic is under control, the ban is lifted and it reopens. 
All major restaurants on the island are closed “There are many difficulties, but united and fighting the epidemic is the prerequisite task of each person. I believe that we will come back to life when the epidemic is under control,” said An. Without tourists, the source of income is therefore completely cut off, so tourism workers in Ly Son are facing the challenge of “survival” when their work will never return to normal. . Taking advantage of the availability, many guides have chosen to post the seafood sale on their personal facebook page; most drivers of ships, canoes and cars get off the boat to go to the sea; hotel owners selling onions, garlic, soft drinks, etc. Everyone tries to find a job “fire fighting” to make ends meet. Nhung – the receptionist of a large hotel – has been out of work for more than a month due to the closure of the hotel, and has managed to find a temporary job at a cafe near her house. “Like I was lucky, because many people now just stay at home, now have a job, have an income to cover expenses is what many people want, but the specificity of the island district is not easy.” , Nhung shared. Mr. Le Van Ninh – Vice Chairman of Ly Son District People’s Committee, said that due to the influence of the epidemic, the island district is not currently welcoming tourists. This is a move to protect people against complicated developments of the disease in some localities. “We do not know when the tourism activities in the locality will be restored, currently the impact of the epidemic is very large, seriously affecting the income and life of people,” said Ninh. to speak.
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