Many tourism and hotel businesses... use chatbots and virtual assistants to increase customer experience personalization - Photo: Q. DINH
Opportunities for the industry and tourists but also challenges for many workers in this industry.
Reduce operating costs, increase sales
On August 2, Ms. Huynh Phan Phuong Hoang, deputy general director of Vietravel , said that the company has applied AI in three main areas: advertising, customer data analysis, and tour booking consulting.
"It is a chatbot and virtual assistant that supports itinerary consulting, tour booking, and quick answers 24/7 on many platforms. Using AI advertising applications to help optimize budgets and reach the right customers. And using AI to analyze customer data, thereby personalizing suitable tour suggestions.
The results are very clear, helping to increase conversion rates, reduce operating costs and significantly improve customer experience," said Ms. Hoang.
Meanwhile, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Ha, marketing director of Vias Vung Tau Hotel (HCMC), assessed that the accommodation that attracts and retains tourists depends on "first impressions".
Therefore, Vias Vung Tau digitizes hotel images with 360-degree images, helping customers visualize services and rooms clearly, making it easier to make decisions about booking services.
"We also apply AI and chatbots to support online answers. Now the hotel does not arrange staff to directly answer more than 50% of common questions, but thanks to AI.
In addition, having a chatbot helps reduce the pressure of online consulting, increase interaction with customers and increase the hotel's direct customer sales by 10%," Ms. Ha said about its effectiveness.
Ms. Ha added that the good thing is that virtual assistants can communicate in many languages, which is a difficult problem for employees when meeting international tourists.
As the owner of a hotel and restaurant specializing in Central Vietnamese cuisine in Da Nang City, Ms. NTMai shared that every year the city has big events such as fireworks, holidays, Tet... businesses invest in promoting the image of hotels and restaurants by hiring video recording services, editing short films to run on social platforms and websites.
Cost for filming, video editing, photo editing, communication... from 30 - 40 million VND.
"Now, AI does everything. With a command request, it can create eye-catching videos and images of the hotel, available in minutes. The cost of paying only for tech-savvy personnel is about 300,000 - 500,000 VND, but the video is of very high quality," Ms. Mai compared.
With AI as a "companion" in hotel operations, from managing reservations, adjusting hotel room prices in real time, automatic quotes, forecasting the number of guests... Ms. Mai said the hotel will reduce 30% of its staff from the end of 2024.
According to records, many agencies and businesses in Ho Chi Minh City, Quang Ninh, Hue, Da Nang... have deployed smart tourism applications, integrating AI to suggest schedules, restaurants, and hotels based on users' search habits.
Must have maximum presence on digital platforms
According to the Vietnam Tourism Association, the main trend of tourism in 2025 is the development of accommodation models that combine technology and new service standards. Therefore, for the tourism industry to develop, businesses must adapt and have their own solutions on the common platform of applying technology and AI.
According to Ms. Hoang, businesses need to focus on three pillars: comprehensive digital transformation, personalizing experiences, and linking technology and innovation.
Vietravel's Deputy General Director analyzed: "It is necessary to apply AI and data to design flexible tours, suitable for each group of customers, instead of selling mass products. And do not forget to link technology, cooperate with digital platforms, travel startups, apply technology such as AR/VR, digital maps, virtual guides... to differentiate destinations and services".
To stand out in the "race" to attract customers, according to Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Ha, the solution is that tourism and hotel businesses need to have a maximum presence on the Internet, on multiple channels; increase the combination between brands to create prestige, and avoid the impersonation fraud that is currently prominent on the Internet.
Ms. Nguyen Thuy Duong, a member of the professional advisory board for the tourism and hospitality sector at British University Vietnam, emphasized the need to use collected AI data to learn about customer behavior in order to design suitable products before launching them on the market.
If the tourism industry wants to do marketing, it must create content from images, videos; to writing and speaking... In the past, a business needed 10 people, but now it only needs one person who can use AI and is professionally trained, the quality can still be much higher.
However, according to Ms. Duong, each business needs to have its own creative solutions.
"Gold mine" of global tourism industry
According to a McKinsey study, generative AI will unlock $2 trillion to $4 trillion in annual value for industries.
Of which, the global AI market in the tourism industry is expected to expand from US$92.46 billion in 2023 to over US$397 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate of 33.9%.
This can be considered a potential "gold mine" of the global tourism industry.
For Vietnam, according to a new survey by Booking.com, 50% of Vietnamese tourists surveyed said they trust AI in recommending destinations and 67% would use AI to plan their trip...
Smart tourism is no longer an option
From a state management perspective, Mr. Le Truong Hien Hoa, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, said that the department clearly recognizes that smart tourism is no longer an option, but a prerequisite for the industry to adapt and develop in the digital age.
"From the application of AI, we have witnessed a clear change in the tourism industry value chain. Ho Chi Minh City is the largest economic, cultural and technological center of the country. The city is oriented to build a smart tourism ecosystem, integrating high technology," said Mr. Hoa.
The leader of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism cited that in recent times, Ho Chi Minh City has deployed many solutions such as the Smart Tourism Operation Center; 3D interactive map application and virtual reality technology; Ho Chi Minh City Tourism App platform integrating multi-dimensional information and personalization features; digitizing tourism publications via QR codes...
However, according to Mr. Hoa, AI cannot fully develop without a multi-industry collaborative ecosystem.
"Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism promotes the connection of an interdisciplinary smart tourism ecosystem, including accommodation, transportation, culture, healthcare, and finance.
The Department will accompany businesses, communities and technology startups to create a tourism industry that not only thrives in revenue, but also harmonizes economic, cultural and social values," Mr. Hoa emphasized.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ai-chatbot-tro-ly-ao-tran-vao-nganh-du-lich-giup-gi-cho-cac-ong-chu-20250803230822889.htm
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