Launching a campaign to attract international tourists.

Data from the online travel platform Agoda shows that Vietnam is among the top 5 favorite destinations for international tourists during the 2024 Lunar New Year holiday. The top international markets for this period are South Korea, Singapore, China, Hong Kong (China), and Japan. According to data from major South Korean travel companies such as HanaTour, Very Good Travel, and Kyowon Tour Travel Easy, the number of South Korean tourists booking tours for the Lunar New Year holiday increased by approximately 50% compared to the same period last year. Phu Quoc is one of the most attractive destinations for South Korean tourists during the upcoming holiday.

From the end of 2023 to the present, Phu Quoc has gradually regained its image as a paradise resort, attracting a large number of international tourists with a complex of world-class tourism masterpieces worth thousands of billions of VND such as: the Vui Phet night market, the Kissing Bridge; the multimedia technology show "Kiss of the Sea"... Every day, Phu Quoc airport receives 12-17 flights from countries such as Thailand, Malaysia, Russia, China, Kazakhstan, the Czech Republic, Poland, the United States, Mongolia... On average, more than 2,000 international tourists visit and stay each day, with Korean tourists accounting for more than 50%.

Vietnam is becoming a popular destination for many international tourists celebrating Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year).

Meanwhile, Xinhua News Agency reported that the number of Chinese tourists traveling abroad is likely to increase compared to last year, as Chinese airlines have added more than 2,500 international flights during the Lunar New Year holiday. Trip.com said that the number of overseas travel bookings from China during this holiday is more than 10 times higher than in 2023. However, the most popular destinations include only Thailand, Japan, and South Korea, with Vietnam conspicuously absent.

The director of a travel agency in Ho Chi Minh City assessed that while the travel trends of Chinese tourists in 2023 were still unpredictable and forecasts were inaccurate, the situation in 2024 is much clearer. The market of over a billion people has begun to shift, and countries like Thailand and Singapore have quickly launched strong policies to welcome this huge influx of tourists.

Recently, China and Singapore approved a bilateral visa waiver program effective from January 25th, with the policy taking effect from February 9th, just before the Lunar New Year. According to the online travel platform Qunar, hotel searches in Singapore increased fourfold following this decision. Meanwhile, Tong Cheng Travel confirmed that searches for Singapore on their platform increased by 340% in just one hour after the visa waiver was announced. Thailand is also relying on tourists from China and is not hesitating to waive visas for this market to achieve its goal of attracting at least 30 million Chinese tourists by 2024, accelerating the recovery of tourism beyond pre-Covid-19 levels.

"Other countries have started acting, we cannot stand still and continue to miss opportunities. China remains Vietnam's largest and most irreplaceable tourist market. Vietnam should also pilot a visa exemption policy for Chinese tourists. This could be divided into two phases: From February 2024, it could apply to charter flights from Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Yunnan to Tan Son Nhat, Noi Bai, Van Don, Cat Bi, Da Nang , Cam Ranh, and Phu Quoc airports to attract tourists during the Lunar New Year. Then, from April, it could be expanded to all Chinese tourists entering Vietnam. These decisions must be implemented quickly. If successful, this will be a stepping stone for Vietnam to take another important step in opening up visa services and achieving the goal of welcoming 12-20 million international tourists in 2024," this person suggested.

25 localities and organizations in Vietnam were honored at the ASEAN Tourism Awards 2024.

The ASEAN Tourism Awards is an annual event that honors localities and organizations with high-quality tourism products and services, contributing to the sustainable development of tourism destinations in the ASEAN region. At this year's awards ceremony, Vietnam was honored to have 25 localities and organizations recognized in various award categories, including: ASEAN Green Hotels (5 organizations); ASEAN Clean Tourism Cities (3 cities); ASEAN MICE Venues - Meeting Room Category (5 organizations); ASEAN MICE Venues - Exhibition Venue Category (5 organizations); ASEAN MICE Venues - Event Organization Category (5 organizations).

International visitors to Vietnam in January reached a record high, equivalent to pre-pandemic levels.

According to the latest figures from the General Statistics Office, the number of international visitors to Vietnam in January 2024 reached over 1.5 million, an increase of 10.3% compared to the previous month and a 73.6% increase compared to the same period in 2023. This is the highest figure since Vietnam reopened for tourism in March 2022, equivalent to the number of international visitors to Vietnam in January 2019 before the pandemic. The main drivers of growth in January came from several major markets such as: South Korea (up 12.2% compared to the previous month); China (up 3.4%); the US (up 28.9%); and Australia (up 67.7%).

In particular, the first month of the year saw very good growth from European markets benefiting from unilateral visa exemption policies such as: the UK (up 37.4%), France (18.6%), Germany (25%), Italy (62.9%), Russia (41.2%), Denmark (74.1%), Sweden (55.9%), and Norway (47.4%). The National Tourism Administration assessed that this growth shows the clear impact of the policy extending the length of stay from 15 days to 45 days for 13 countries with unilateral visa exemption, effective from August 15, 2023.

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