Many flights are sold out during Tet holiday.

Ms. Oanh, an employee at a media company in Ho Chi Minh City, said that in previous years, it was usually easy to buy tickets to Chu Lai airport a month before the Lunar New Year, but now it's very difficult. "I've been asking travel agents to keep an eye out for tickets since the beginning of the month, but no one has reported any availability. I'm having to book a night flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang," Ms. Oanh said.

Similarly, Ms. Quynh Chi tried to book a round-trip ticket from Ho Chi Minh City to Dong Hoi, but only managed to buy the outbound ticket. Return tickets for the dates from February 13th to 19th (corresponding to January 4th to 10th in the lunar calendar) were all sold out. She is now trying to find a way to buy a bus ticket, but the companies are also reporting that all sleeper tickets are sold out, with only aisle seats available.

"This year, Tet holiday airfares are higher than usual, but the number of flights is limited, so buying tickets for my family is quite stressful. I've asked 4-5 agencies to help me find tickets for over a week now, but I still haven't found any spare tickets," she worried.

Passengers check in at Noi Bai Airport.

Ms. Pham Thi Thu, an airline ticket agent in Hanoi , said that routes such as Ho Chi Minh City - Chu Lai/Dong Hoi/Thanh Hoa/Vinh and vice versa sold out quickly this year, even though airlines had increased sales by two rounds.

Accordingly, at the end of 2023, all six airlines increased the number of flights significantly; however, Bamboo Airways and Vietravel Airlines reduced the number of tickets sold this year due to a smaller fleet. "Supply is insufficient to meet demand, pushing ticket prices up. Quite a few routes sold out early for Tet, and only business class tickets remain," she said.

Hong Anh, an airline ticket agent in Ho Chi Minh City, confirmed that this year many people from Hanoi and neighboring provinces working in Ho Chi Minh City booked tickets early to return to the North for Tet (Lunar New Year), so tickets on many routes sold out quickly. In addition, this year the number of night flights to Chu Lai/Dong Hoi/Thanh Hoa/Vinh has decreased compared to previous years, so many routes only have a few tickets left or were sold out by the beginning of January.

A recent report from the Civil Aviation Authority also shows that, despite airlines adding 472 flights with more than 92,000 seats during the 2024 Lunar New Year holiday, Tet holiday air tickets on many routes have been almost completely sold out.

As of January 12th, Vietnamese airlines had sold between 80% and over 100% of seats on flights between Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and other provinces and cities during the peak Tet holiday period, from January 24th to February 25th (i.e., from the 14th day of the 12th lunar month to the 16th day of the 1st lunar month).

According to the Civil Aviation Authority, the number of bookings continues to increase, resulting in high booking rates on some days leading up to Tet and vice versa. Therefore, authorities will monitor the situation and request airlines to adjust and increase flights on routes with high demand during the 2024 Lunar New Year holiday.

Currently, Vietnamese airlines (Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, Bamboo Airways, Pacific Airlines) are beginning to increase night flights through airports such as Dong Hoi, Phu Cat, Chu Lai, Tuy Hoa, Tho Xuan, Vinh, and Pleiku...

The projected demand for night flights during the Lunar New Year period of 2024 (January 21st to February 25th), between 9 PM and 6 AM, is approximately 1,800 flights, accounting for about 8% of the total number of domestic flights operated across the entire network.

To support airlines and curb sudden price increases, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has requested the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) to direct local airports to develop service plans, allocate human resources, equipment, and facilities, and be ready to serve night flights.

The agency also requested ACV not to increase ground handling fees at local airports when serving airlines operating nighttime flights.

TB (according to VnExpress)

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/nhieu-chang-bay-chay-ve-tet-370708.html