The uncertainty surrounding train and bus tickets for Tet (Lunar New Year)

Airfares unexpectedly dropped in the days leading up to Tet (Lunar New Year).

From the first week of September, airlines have been aggressively selling Tet holiday tickets. This year, Vietjet announced it will provide 2.5 million tickets for its entire network during the 2024 Tet holiday; Vietravel Airlines and Bamboo Airways both plan to operate more than 100,000 seats across their domestic and international routes from January 25th to February 24th, 2024 (corresponding to the 15th day of the 12th lunar month of the Year of the Rabbit to the 15th day of the 1st lunar month of the Year of the Dragon); Vietnam Airlines Group (comprising Vietnam Airlines, Pacific Airlines, and VASCO) will provide 3 million seats, corresponding to 15,000 flights across its domestic and international network.

Airlines have not yet seen a surge in airfare in the days leading up to the Lunar New Year.

However, despite the frenzied sale of Tet holiday tickets starting six months in advance, airlines have not yet seen a significant surge in sales. Speaking to Thanh Nien newspaper, a representative from Vietnam Airlines stated that there are still seats available on pre-Tet flights from the South and post-Tet flights from the North and Central regions. Although sales aren't yet extremely high, many passengers are taking advantage of buying tickets early to secure preferred flight times. Passengers are primarily buying tickets on routes from Ho Chi Minh City to provinces and cities in the North and Central regions such as Hanoi , Hai Phong, Thanh Hoa, Vinh, Da Nang, Hue, Buon Ma Thuot, and Pleiku. The national airline forecasts that the number of passengers traveling during the 2024 Lunar New Year will be similar to 2023. Therefore, the number of flights on these routes will also remain the same as last year, even on routes with high occupancy rates such as Ho Chi Minh City - Thanh Hoa, Ho Chi Minh City - Hue, and Ho Chi Minh City - Da Nang.

Bamboo Airways' Tet holiday ticket sales haven't been particularly "hot" yet. Routes with the highest number of flights, such as Ho Chi Minh City - Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City - Da Nang, still have many empty seats during the peak Tet period. Meanwhile, a representative from Vietravel Airlines reported that as of November 2nd, the routes with the highest bookings during the Tet period were Ho Chi Minh City - Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City - Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City - Quy Nhon. The Ho Chi Minh City - Hanoi route, in particular, has reached over 75% occupancy for the period leading up to and during Tet, from February 11th to 13th, 2024 (the 2nd to 4th day of Tet).

Flights to Da Nang operated by the airline also have high booking rates. However, Vietravel Airlines' leadership acknowledges that the Vietnamese economy over the past 10 months has had to overcome challenges related to currency, inflation, and ongoing global conflicts, which have partly weighed on domestic production and business activities. Some businesses have experienced a decline in orders and a shrinking consumer market, leading to workforce reductions and directly impacting income and travel demand during the year-end period.

In fact, compared to the initial launch period, airfares are currently slightly cheaper. For example, a survey at the end of September showed that the lowest fare offered by Vietjet Airlines on the 27th day of the Lunar New Year (February 6, 2024) on the Ho Chi Minh City - Hanoi route was nearly 3.3 million VND/one-way, but now many seats are available for 3 million VND. At that time, Vietravel Airlines' tickets on all three flights that day were over 3.5 million VND/one-way, but now they have dropped to just over 3.2 million VND/one-way.

Slightly higher, most Bamboo Airways flights are priced at over 3.6 million VND/one-way, with two midday and night flights nearing the ceiling at over 3.64 million VND, a negligible decrease compared to the 3.67 million VND if booked in September. Nearly 20 Vietnam Airlines flights that previously had a uniform price of over 3.62 million VND/one-way have now dropped to 3.575 million VND/one-way. However, five flights spread across 8-12 hours have already sold out of economy class tickets, with only business class tickets remaining at over 9.8 million VND/one-way.

Tickets for the Ho Chi Minh City - Da Lat route haven't increased much compared to normal days, ranging from over 1.3 million VND to over 1.4 million VND in the days leading up to Tet with Vietjet; Vietnam Airlines tickets cost over 1.7 million to over 1.8 million VND/one way. Pacific Airlines only has one flight on the 26th and 27th of the lunar month, which is also the most expensive - nearly 2 million VND/one way.

Notably, this year, because the 27th day of the lunar month falls on a Tuesday, families can take an extra day off to utilize the two preceding weekend days, returning to their hometowns from the 23rd to 24th of the lunar month (February 3-4, 2024). Therefore, many Vietjet flights on these two days, initially priced at just over 1.4 million VND/one-way, have now increased to 2.9 million VND/one-way. Nine Vietnam Airlines flights from morning to early afternoon on the day of the Kitchen God Festival are also sold out in economy class, with only business class tickets remaining at over 9.8 million VND/one-way.

Will demand shift to rail and road transport?

In addition, the railway industry is actively implementing various programs and policies to attract passengers amidst the criticism of excessively high airfares. To meet the travel needs of passengers during the Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday in 2024, the railway industry began selling tickets at 8:00 AM on October 20th. Just three days after sales opened, Vietnam Railways Corporation sold approximately 41,000 Tet train tickets. Following this, news of huge profits from Hanoi and Saigon railway companies, and the upgrading and improvement of many train routes with luxurious and comfortable carriages, further fueled hopes that the railway industry would continue its success.

However, the General Director of Saigon Railway Transport Joint Stock Company, Thai Van Truyen, stated that the sale of Tet holiday train tickets is showing signs of slowing down. After more than 10 days of ticket sales, the total number of tickets paid for is approximately 57,000. Currently, there are still many train tickets available for the 2024 Tet holiday on all routes and dates.

The railway industry is making efforts to attract passengers.

Regarding ticket prices, due to a 6-7% increase in fuel prices compared to the same period last year and other increases in input costs, peak Tet holiday ticket prices have also been adjusted upwards by 1-4% depending on the day, route, and type of train. Conversely, return fares have decreased by 1-8% compared to the same period last year. However, the railway industry is implementing many preferential policies to support train passengers, such as discounts for social policy beneficiaries, trade union members, and passengers with customer cards; a 3% discount on tickets for trains departing from Saigon station on February 8, 2024 (the 29th day of the 12th lunar month) and traveling 1,000 km or more; a 5% discount on return tickets for passengers purchasing round-trip tickets; and especially, students will receive a 10-20% discount depending on the travel date. "Partly due to the difficult economic situation, and partly because Tet (Lunar New Year) is still far away, people haven't made arrangements yet. However, Saigon Railway Transport is determined to sell all Tet tickets because the number of train tickets is limited," Mr. Thai Van Truyen added.

While intercity bus transport in the southern region usually plans to serve passengers later during the Lunar New Year than rail and air transport, this year it has had to prepare earlier due to some disruptions. Local authorities have had to mobilize hundreds of additional buses on the Ho Chi Minh City to Da Lat and Can Tho routes after Thanh Buoi Company Limited stopped transporting passengers.

Statistics from the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport show that in the week from September 27th to October 3rd, this bus company completed 896 contracts transporting passengers from Ho Chi Minh City to Lam Dong and vice versa. This means that on this route alone, the company averaged over 100 trips per day, significantly higher than other companies operating fixed routes at interprovincial bus stations. Therefore, although the leaders of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport affirmed that they would increase the number of buses to meet the needs of people on these routes, especially during peak periods such as holidays, Tet (Lunar New Year), and weekends, many people remain very worried.

This year's Tet holiday ticket competition is not only between airlines but also between the aviation market and the road and rail markets, as 2023 was a volatile year for the economy, causing workers to tighten their spending during the year-end period. Therefore, Vietravel Airlines and other airlines have considered offering appropriate prices for each product on routes during the Lunar New Year. At the same time, Vietravel Airlines will continue to cooperate closely with aviation authorities to request increased flight frequencies on routes with high travel demand.

A leader at Vietravel Airlines

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/phap-phong-ve-tau-xe-tet-185231103202948577.htm