The Legacy of Green Spirit - Environmental Photo Contest 2014

In 2014, V’Spirit Cruises, part of the Incredible Asia Journeys team, hosted the ‘Green Spirit Environmental Photo Contest’ at the Crowne Plaza in Hanoi. The contest was an effort by our Green Spirit program to promote the beauty of Vietnam’s natural scenes through exquisite photography.

The competition ran for two weeks in June, with contestants entering their work from all over the country. Public voting on Facebook concluded the winners of the contest, with each one invited to the Crowne Plaza to collect their prize. The Green Spirit team were very impressed with all of the entries, which spanned beautiful mountain ranges, ethnic villages, fascinating birdlife and idyllic scenes of iconic Vietnamese moments.

Our first prize went to Nguyen Minh Quang, who presented us with his winning entry – ‘Co To’. Co To is one of the more remote of Vietnam’s islands, located on the far eastern side of Bai Tu Long Bay. The tiny population of about 5,000 people means that the island is covered in untainted natural beauty, something Nguyen Minh Quang encapsulated wonderfully during sunset. He won two vouchers for a 3-day, 2-night Halong Bay tour on the V’Spirit Cruise, valued at 11 million VND.

Our second prize went to Huy Dinny for his photo, entitled ‘A Life Beside the Đáy River’. The Đáy River runs from the Red River in Hanoi Province to its run-off into the sea in Ninh Binh Province, running 240km along its winding length. The river supports millions of people such as the fisherman here, captured majestically as he casts his traditional net into the water in search of fish. Huy Dinny won two vouchers for a 2-day, 1-night Halong Bay tour aboard the V’Spirit Cruise, valued at 7 million VND.

Third prize went to Nguyen Hanh for ‘Immense green’, featuring winding roads as they cut through the misty forest outside of Da Lat, a hilly town in the southern inland province of Lam Dong. Da Lat has become a popular tourist destination for foreign and domestic visitors in recent years, leading to a need for better transport links through its mountainous surrounding areas. For this evocative photo, Nguyen Hanh won third prize: 2 million VND and a gift basket from the Green Spirit team.

The winner of our Impressive Photographer Prize was specially selected by a vote from the Green Spirit team. Hoang Hai Thinh had the winning entry with his stunning picture ‘Loneliness aligned”, captured in the Ba Diem Commune of Ha Nam Province. Fishing here is a simple but breathtaking activity, especially in the morning, when the pink sunrise reflects magically off the water. Hoang Hai Thinh won two vouchers for a 2-day, 1-night tour on the V’Spirit Cruise, valued at 7 million VND.