There are still more than ten days left until the Lunar New Year holiday, but at this time, flights from Da Nang to Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Thai Binh , Dak Lak... are sold out, making it difficult for people far from home to get tickets to go home for Tet. Bus companies have also increased prices by 50-70% compared to normal days.

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Many bus routes only have tickets left for off-peak days, before December 23. Photo: Ho Giap

Hai Hoang Gia bus company announced that the Da Nang - Nghe An route from the 24th to the 28th of Tet has sold out of sleeper bus and high-quality limousine tickets. Tu Tac and Hieu Hoa bus companies also informed that the sleeper bus from the 24th to the 29th of Tet (February 3rd to February 8th) is fully booked. According to the ticket seller, the company started accepting reservations more than a month ago, but due to the high demand for travel, only about a week after opening for sale, all tickets were booked.

Mr. Tran Trong Thanh (from Nghe An ) said he booked a ticket on the 27th of Tet for the Da Nang-Nghe An trip, but called 5-6 bus companies and received the answer that all the tickets were sold out.

“The bus companies announced that tickets are sold out from the 23rd to the 28th of the Lunar calendar. There are also no tickets left to Da Nang from the 4th to the 7th of Tet. Now I don’t know how to bring my family home because I can’t book bus or train tickets,” Mr. Thanh worried.

In the same situation, Ms. Mai Phuong (from Nam Dinh) said she still hasn't bought a ticket to go home for Tet.

“The bus company said that tickets sold out quickly this year because customers booked early. The peak days are currently full. There are still tickets available on the 23rd and 24th of the lunar calendar, but my husband and I have to work until the 27th to have a day off, so we can’t go home earlier,” Ms. Phuong said, adding that she will keep calling the bus companies to see if anyone will refund the tickets.

Similarly, many bus companies running the Da Nang - Dak Lak route are also sold out during peak days from the 24th to the 29th of Tet.

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Allowed to increase from 20-60%

Mr. Pham Loi, Director of Da Nang Transport and Vehicle Management Joint Stock Company, said that on average, the bus station has 400-500 trips/day, and during peak Tet days, it will increase to about 700-800 trips to serve the travel needs of passengers. Mr. Loi admitted that some routes during peak Tet days have sold out. However, according to him, transport units will have extra vehicles to meet the demand, so that no passengers have to stay at the bus station during Tet.

Regarding ticket prices, Mr. Loi said that the increase of 20-60% is within the permission of the department. All ticket prices have been posted by the bus company at the ticket counter. According to him, the high increase of 40-60% depends on the time and is to compensate for empty buses.

Regarding Tet train tickets, although the railway has added more trains to serve Tet, passengers still cannot book tickets to Nghe An, Quang Binh, Quang Tri… All trains are in a state of “sold seats” during peak days. As for Tet train tickets from Da Nang to Hanoi…. sleeper cars are almost sold out, with only a few soft seats and extra seats left.

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Train tickets for the Da Nang-Vinh route on the 26th of Tet (February 5) are listed as "sold", passengers cannot order them. (Screenshot).

Mr. Doan Kim Tuan, Captain of the Da Nang Railway Station Passenger Transport Team, said that the station has sold more than 5,000 Tet tickets. The number of tickets sold at the station is limited because people mainly buy tickets online.

According to Mr. Tuan, train tickets from Da Nang to the North on peak days from February 5 to February 7 (ie 26 to 28 of Tet) are fully booked. This year, Da Nang will not operate any new trains because the SE20 train can basically meet the ticket demand of passengers going to Thanh Hoa and the northern provinces.

“According to the railway industry’s ticket sales plan, long routes are prioritized, so routes from Da Nang to Vinh station (Nghe An), Dong Hoi (Quang Binh), Dong Ha (Quang Tri)… are quite tense during peak days. Passengers traveling on these routes must wait until close to Tet, when the railway opens ticket sales, to be able to book tickets,” said Mr. Tuan.

2024 Lunar New Year Holiday Schedule State sector workers will have a 7-day Lunar New Year holiday schedule for 2024. Meanwhile, many localities give students more days off for the Lunar New Year.