Modern railways benefit a country's economy in many different ways. To name a few, they make it easier for bulky goods to be transported over long distances, reduce travel time between villages and cities and provide varying degrees of comfort for travelers.

For Benny Kong, 33, a hotel owner and co-founder of a tour company in Laos, a new rail line is poised to bring more domestic and international tourists to the country.

Kong, a Singaporean who lives in Laos, set up the MyLaoHome boutique hotel 14 years ago after a backpacking trip to Laos, during which he discovered there was demand for hotels in Luang Prabang, a former Laotian capital and a World Heritage Site listed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

"I visited the country when I was 18. I saw many tourists sleeping in temples and on the streets, so I just sensed the opportunity and then got started," he said.

Kong's business has grown in tandem with the tourism industry in Laos.

MyLaoHome, launched in 2007 as a 12-bedroom guesthouse, now has more than 60 rooms and has benefited as more overseas visitors have traveled to Laos over the past decade.

Before the pandemic hit the world hard, tourist arrivals in Laos grew by 11.5 percent year-on-year in 2019, taking the country to 16th place on a list of the top 20 fastest-growing tourism destinations, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

Nearly 757,000 Chinese visitors arrived in Laos in 2019, a rise of about 26 percent over the same period of the previous year.

Kong attributes growth in the tourism sector to improved infrastructure such as airports and roads.

In December, the first modern highway in Laos-constructed as part of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative-opened to traffic, linking the capital Vientiane and the tourist-oriented town of Vang Vieng.

However, for Kong, the highway is not enough. He is looking to the China-Laos railway, which is under construction and is expected to open at the end of this year.

As part of the BRI, China and Laos began work on the rail project in December 2016. The line will link Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, and Vientiane.

With an operating speed of 160 km/h, the multi-billion dollar project will be built to Chinese rail standards.

A large part of Laotian territory comprises mountain ranges, highland areas and plateaus, with rivers winding their way through this terrain.

More than 60 percent of the new line consists of bridges and tunnels, which have posed technical difficulties during the construction work. The Laos-China Railway Co, a joint venture based in Vientiane, is responsible for building and operating the line, which is due to open in December.

Xiao Qianwen, general manager of the company, said the project is proceeding smoothly.

As of New Year's Eve, the main work had been completed, including 75 tunnels, 164 bridges and 180 road bed sections. More than 60 percent of the tracks had also been laid, Xiao told Xinhuanet.

The 1,022-km rail journey between Kunming and Vientiane is expected to take less than 10 hours, compared to a 30-hour bus journey, with the tourism industry in Laos standing to benefit greatly from the expected rise in rail passenger traffic.

Kong has prepared well for the new line, with his company converting an ancient building in Luang Prabang into a 58-room hotel.

He said he hoped the project would be completed by the end of this year, adding, "I would not have thought about expanding were it not for the BRI."

In 2019, Kong and his business partners launched discoverlaos.today, an online tour platform providing videos and pictures of the country's tourist destinations.

Going digital not only served him well when the tourist industry was badly hit by the pandemic, but it also could help attract more foreign visitors once border restrictions are lifted. 

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