Flights departing at midnight are selling poorly.

Based on observations at travel companies, there are very few, if any, domestic tours departing in the evening, let alone at night. This is because, when designing tours, travel agencies always aim to give customers as much time as possible for sightseeing, experiencing, and relaxing within a packed day and night itinerary.

Speaking to VietNamNet reporters, Ms. Tran Thi Bao Thu, Director of Marketing and Communications at Vietluxtour, said that domestic tours with night flights exist but are very rare. Customers who accept inconvenient flight times can be divided into three categories, usually individual travelers: those on regular package tours, those on optional tours (based on customer requests), and those on flight and hotel packages.

According to Ms. Thu, for group tours, especially for MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) events involving team building, seminars, and training, where partners and clients are invited, businesses always choose convenient flight times and high-quality services. However, tours with late departure times have difficulty guaranteeing service quality, so Vietluxtour does not offer all-inclusive night flights, unless the delay is due to airline error, in which case they have no choice but to accept the situation.

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Passengers are still hesitant to fly at night because it significantly shortens their travel time. Photo: Nam Khanh

Buying night-time flight tickets for travel is mainly done by solo travelers, groups, and young people, to save costs or to have more time for their vacation.

Ms. Tran Thi Bao Thu said that the biggest worry for tourists is that if they fly at night, not only is there a risk of missing their flight, but they might also find that the hotel receptionist has already gone to sleep. Even in major tourist destinations like Da Nang and Nha Trang, there are almost no entertainment activities at night. Tourists arriving at that time only come to sleep; in short, it's very boring.

This is in stark contrast to traveling abroad, where many tours depart at night. Because flights departing at different times offer very good airfare and diverse flight schedules, even night flights, destinations like Taiwan (China), China, South Korea, and Thailand are vibrant and bustling day and night. Therefore, with their eagerness to explore, travelers can immediately jump into the nightlife, even arriving just in time for breakfast and sightseeing.

Therefore, at the Aviation - Tourism "Joining Hands" for Sustainable Development conference held earlier this week, Mr. Le Hong Ha, General Director of Vietnam Airlines , stated that in an effort to lower domestic airfare prices, the airline has added thousands of night and early morning flights during April and May, with what are considered attractive fares.

However, Mr. Ha admitted that in May, Vietnam Airlines had to cancel 10% of its night flights due to a lack of passengers. The reason is that although the tickets are cheaper, passengers will have to spend an extra night in a hotel or travel to destinations that lack adequate public transportation infrastructure for nighttime travel.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of Vietravel Holding, Mr. Nguyen Quoc Ky, also affirmed that "no tourists fly at night," because tourism is a market for wealthy people. "Forcing tourists to fly at night would be too much trouble, who would want to go?" Mr. Ky said.

Is it really saving?

Mr. Nguyen Tien Dat, CEO of AZA Travel, analyzed that while nighttime flight prices have indeed decreased, the benefits of this price reduction need to be compared with the cost of hotel rooms. "How much is saved, and is it worth traveling in the middle of the night and returning at dawn?" he wondered.

The CEO cited the example of hotel rooms in Da Nang, where the cheapest are around 500,000 VND/room/night, and the most expensive can reach over 3 million VND. Assuming a guest books a room at an average price of 1.5 million VND/night, but only arrives to sleep until the next day, the airfare should be at least half the room price, i.e., 750,000 VND per leg; a reduction of only 200,000-300,000 VND is negligible.

Meanwhile, a survey conducted by VietNamNet on the morning of June 14th showed that mid-week flights in July on the Hanoi - Da Nang route, if departing at night (23:30) and returning early (1:30-2:00), with Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air cost 2.4-2.5 million VND/round-trip ticket, which is still relatively common. On the same day, but choosing a more convenient time (departing at 14:00, returning at 12:00), the ticket price ranges from 3-3.3 million VND, only 600,000-700,000 VND higher than having to stay up late and wake up early to fly.

Furthermore, according to Mr. Dat, the travel time has been significantly shortened, while tourists prefer to leave early and return late, not late and return early.

Furthermore, for some routes, reasonable prices only apply to flights from September onwards, meaning airlines are only stimulating demand during the off-season. Airfares for flights at convenient times are still 20% higher than the same period last year, and there are no promotions whatsoever.

According to regulations, the new airfare price ceiling, effective from March 1, 2024, as stipulated by the Ministry of Transport, applies to basic economy class. However, Mr. Dat frankly pointed out that airlines are "circumventing the law" by dividing tickets into multiple classes, thereby allowing them to raise prices higher than the regulated ceiling.

Considering that tourists traveling for leisure still prefer convenient flight times, unlike those traveling back home or visiting relatives, Mr. Pham Vu Bao, Director of ViBooking - a company specializing in booking airline tickets - also pointed out the reasons why customers rarely book night flights.

This is because travelers always prioritize convenience and comfort. In reality, airfares for nighttime and early morning flights aren't actually that cheap. Furthermore, the connection between the city center and the airport isn't always convenient, so passengers arriving at the airport at night may face increased transportation costs to the city center.

For example, at Noi Bai Airport, if passengers book a car service or take a taxi home during the day, the price will definitely be cheaper than booking it in the evening or at night.

There is still room to increase flights.

However, Vietnam Airlines leaders believe there is still room to increase flights and attract tourists by building new travel habits, such as night flights. The airline has worked with corporations like Vingroup and Sungroup to offer tours that combine night flights, reducing the first night by 50% or even waiving the fee to lower costs for tourists.

Mr. Hoang Nhan Chinh, Head of the Secretariat of the Tourism Advisory Board (TAB), also suggested that hotel businesses should apply flexible check-in and check-out policies; thereby encouraging tourists to fly in and out during off-peak hours, taking advantage of the benefits from reduced airfare.

Airfares are less expensive, but traveling at midnight and returning at dawn is a common practice. Instead of choosing to travel in the morning and return in the afternoon to be on time for hotel check-in, many passengers opt to fly in the evening or at night and return early in the morning. The reason is that reasonable airfares are only available during these times.