Ho Chi Minh City-based Ben Thanh Tourist plans to nearly triple their hotel rooms in the next five years given the growth of the tourism sector, said the company's General Director Than Hai Thanh.

Ben Thanh Tourist currently has about 350 rooms and will construct 1,000 more rooms by 2012, Thanh told the Daily last Friday during the grand opening of the company's latest development, the four-star Park View Hotels in Hue Vietnam.

"We believe that the country will need more than the current number of hotels and tourist facilities in order to keep up with growing demand," he said.

Vietnam expects to receive 4-4.4mil foreign visitors this year, and six million visitors in the next three years.

Ben Thanh Tourist will build new hotels in Mui Ne in Phan Thiet City, Long Hai Beach in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, Hue, and Danang Vietnam.

The total investment is VND800bil (US$50mil). "We will either build standalone hotels or join in with our mother company, Ben Thanh Corporation, to develop other projects," Thanh said.

The Park View at 9 Ngo Quyen in Hue was developed by Ben Thanh-Phu Xuan Co., Ltd., which is 52% owned by Ben Thanh Tourist, 25% by Co Do Tourist Co., Ltd and 23% by Phan Thanh Co., Ltd contributed 23%.

The Park View measures 4,640 square meters and has 120 rooms, a 300-seat meeting space, four restaurants, and a number of other tourist-oriented facilities.

The total cost of building additional rooms and upgrading facilities totaled VND80bil (US$5mil).

Other hotels owned by Ben Thanh Tourist include the four-star Sandy Beach Resort in Danang and the Vien Dong Hotel and Ngan Ha Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City.

The company also holds stake in a few building projects in Ho Chi Minh City, including a 35-story building at 5 Me Linh Square and a 19-story building at 172-174 Ky Con in District 1.

Thanh said that developing accommodations for both tourists and corporate guests will be the company's main focus for the next few years.

Since January, Ben Thanh Tourist has spent over VND45bil restoring the Tu Do Restaurant and the Vien Dong Hotel in downtown of Ho Chi Minh City. Other investments include constructing an office building in the city.