The high price of domestic airfares one month before the long holiday of April 30-May 1 has affected the travel plans of many people, forcing many to choose options that are more suitable to their finances and schedules.
High demand, ticket prices hit ceiling
This year's April 30 - May 1 holiday is close to the Hung Kings' death anniversary, so workers will have 5 days off. The holiday is long, so many families, couples, and groups of friends have planned to travel far away during this time, causing a sharp increase in air travel frequency.
Sharing with VTV, a representative of BestPrice Travel Company said that round-trip airfares to some popular tourist destinations have increased from 1.5 to 3 times. The reason is that the demand for travel during the holidays increases 5 times compared to normal days.
Round-trip ticket price from Hanoi to Phu Quoc. Source: Skyscanner
Refer to flight ticket prices on the price comparison platform Skyscanner, with the Hanoi - Phu Quoc flight departing on April 29 and returning on May 2 being chosen by many people, ticket prices of 3 airlines Vietjet Air - Bamboo Airways - Vietnam Airlines range from 6.6 - 12 million VND/ round trip ticket.
Flight prices from Hanoi to Phu Quoc increased during the April 30-May 1 holiday. Source: Google Flight.
According to Google Flight statistics as of April 4, if you book a 3-day round-trip ticket from Hanoi to Phu Quoc from April 29 to May 2, you will have to pay about 6.1 million VND. However, just a week before, with the same location, departing on April 22 and returning on April 25, you only need to pay 1/3 of the price, about 2.3 million VND/round-trip ticket, not to mention this is the weekend. On weekdays, round-trip tickets only fluctuate around 2 million VND.
For the Hanoi - Da Nang flight departing on April 29 and returning on May 2, the ticket price of domestic airlines is around 3.7 - 4.7 million VND/round trip ticket. During the same period, if departing from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang, passengers will have to pay around 4 million VND/person for a round trip.
Round-trip airfare from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang from April 29 to ⅖. Photo: Skyscanner
If you travel from Ho Chi Minh City to Phu Quoc departing at 10:35 on April 29 and returning at 8:00 on May 2, you will have to pay about 3.4 million VND/person if you choose Vietjet Air. The travel time is similar, but if you choose Vietnam Airlines, you will have to pay a higher amount of about 107,000 VND.
Flight ticket prices from Ho Chi Minh City to Phu Quoc during the April 30 - May 2 holidays. Source: Google Flight.
According to Google Flight, if we compare ticket prices departing from Ho Chi Minh City on April 29 to Phu Quoc and returning on May 2, they are twice as high as a week ago, April 22-25.
According to statistics from Skyscanner, the cheapest round-trip ticket prices of airlines during the 30/4-1/5 holiday from Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City to famous tourist destinations, Da Nang, Phu Quoc range from 3.5-8.6 million VND. The Hanoi - Phu Quoc route currently has the highest price of all airlines. If you choose Vietnam Airlines as your means of transportation, you will have to pay a fee of up to 8.6 million VND.
Diverse choices, maximize holiday travel experience
The high price of domestic airfares during the holiday has led to higher prices for tours than last year, causing many tourists to switch to more cost-effective options. According to Ms. Nguyen Xuan, a tour agent for a travel company in Hanoi, the holiday is less than a month away but very few people are asking to buy domestic tours. Instead, tourists are preferring to travel abroad because they have a longer holiday and these tours are all reasonably priced.
“This year, people are tightening their spending, so when airfares increase, many tourists choose to travel abroad, especially road tours to China. The price of these tours ranges from nearly 5 - 10 million VND/5-day, 4-night trip, departing from Hanoi by car, while tours by plane cost around 13 - 15 million VND/trip,” said Ms. Nguyen Xuan.
Chinese tourism is expected to "explode" after the country reopens after the pandemic. Photo: ST
In addition to China, tours to Southeast Asian countries, Japan and South Korea are also popular, with many tours now sold out. “Tours to Thailand and Singapore cost around 7-10 million VND for a 4-day, 3-night trip, cheaper than some domestic tours, so many customers have booked quite early,” said Ms. Bui Thuy Linh, tour operator at Vietmountain Travel.
Thailand is a destination chosen by many Vietnamese tourists during the April 30 holiday. Photo: ST
Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Thuy (Hanoi) had planned to go to Phu Quoc during the holiday, but after considering and calculating the costs, she decided to buy a 4-day, 3-night tour to Phoenix Ancient Town - Zhangjiajie (China) for more than 10 million VND/person.
“Every year I still prioritize domestic travel, but this year the airfare to Phu Quoc alone is around 6-7 million VND/person. Not to mention that during the holidays, domestic destinations are often much more crowded than usual, so this time my family chose to go to China for a new experience. Road tours are cheaper, but my family wants to have more time to rest and move faster, so we still choose to go by plane,” Thuy shared.
For young people like Thu Huong (Hanoi), the high price of airfare also affects the travel plans of her group of friends. The cheapest round-trip ticket from Hanoi to Hue that Thu Huong found was 4 million VND/round-trip ticket, so her group of 4 friends decided to choose a sleeper bus with a price of 370,000 VND/person/way.
Thu Huong said she will change her mode of transportation to save costs. Photo: NVCC
According to Thu Huong, this option is suitable for students and young people who do not have much money but still want to travel during this time. The one-way trip will take 11 hours, so this group of friends chose a trip departing from Hanoi at 6:30 p.m. and arriving in Hue at 7 a.m. the next morning. This method helps Thu Huong's group save money and optimize travel time.
As for Mr. Thanh Trung's family (Hai Phong), instead of going to Nha Trang as originally planned, he and his wife are planning to go to places that also have beaches but are closer such as Cat Ba (Hai Phong), Co To (Quang Ninh). According to Mr. Thanh Trung, holidays like this are important to have time to rest and spend time with family, so changing the destination does not affect his experience much.
“The ticket price is high, but some of my friends and colleagues still accept to go because the whole family only gets to go away once a year. But my family has to reconsider the destination so as not to exceed the travel budget, to avoid spending too much after traveling and then not having the fun. As for Nha Trang, it’s summer so the kids can go on vacation with the family, so it’s okay,” said Mr. Trung.
Sports & Culture
![[OCOP REVIEW] Tu Duyen Syrup - The essence of herbs from the mountains and forests of Nhu Thanh](https://vphoto.vietnam.vn/thumb/402x226/vietnam/resource/IMAGE/2025/6/5/58ca32fce4ec44039e444fbfae7e75ec)
Comment (0)