Developing tourism spaces: Linking the supply chain, enhancing experiences.

In the context of expanding urban space and rapidly changing tourist needs and behaviors, Ho Chi Minh City's tourism industry is facing the need for significant transformation. Therefore, solutions are necessary for tourism to truly develop.

Destinations offer many attractive programs that enhance the visitor experience. Photo: SX

Tourism is an experiential ecosystem.

In 2026, the city, along with the Vietnamese tourism industry, aims to welcome 25 million international visitors, with Ho Chi Minh City alone accounting for 11 million; simultaneously, it aims to serve approximately 150 million domestic tourists, with the city accounting for about 50 million. To realize these figures, the city's tourism industry cannot continue to develop in the same old way; it needs groundbreaking steps in thinking, methods, and market approaches.

In this context, digital transformation is identified as a crucial pillar. Industry experts affirm that, in the near future, tourists will have the opportunity to explore the city in a more intuitive and vivid way through digital solutions. The "Digital Tourism Map" microsite, integrating multi-source data, will allow tourists to easily search and filter destination information according to their personal needs, while seamlessly connecting with services such as transportation and car booking with just one click. Simultaneously, exclusive promotional programs for tourists, with each package valued at approximately 2.5 million VND and an expected scale of up to 10,000 packages per month, will also be implemented to stimulate demand and enhance the overall experience.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, tourism is no longer viewed as a standalone economic sector but rather as a comprehensive experiential ecosystem encompassing accommodation, cuisine, transportation, shopping, culture, technology, and people, all closely interconnected. By 2030, Ho Chi Minh City aims to become a smart tourism city, capable of disseminating cultural identity through modern technological platforms while creating personalized experiences for each group of tourists.

Ms. Le Thi Thuong, Deputy General Director of SOI.Pro, believes that tourism is essentially a continuous experience throughout the entire journey, not a collection of disconnected services. However, in reality, many "gaps" still exist. These include a lack of a holistic perspective, resulting in fragmented touchpoints in the tourist's journey; multi-channel implementation lacking seamlessness; tourists being satisfied with services but not sufficiently engaged to become loyal customers; and the service ecosystem failing to keep pace with increasingly high expectations for digitalization.

From a service platform perspective, Grab representatives noted that in the trend of small group and personalized travel, tourists increasingly value destinations that are friendly, safe, and transparent. Travel businesses need to be present at the right time and place in the customer's experience journey, instead of just promoting indiscriminately. The digitization of destinations also needs to be expanded in a cross-regional direction, leveraging existing map platforms to provide visual, easy-to-understand, and user-friendly information.

Connecting disparate experiences into a seamless journey.

Dr. Khoa Tang, a senior lecturer at RMIT University, believes that Ho Chi Minh City does not lack demand, with a large number of international and domestic tourists; it does not lack diversity in culture, cuisine, and lifestyles; nor does it lack the energy of a constantly evolving city that continuously creates new experiences. “The problem for Ho Chi Minh City does not lie in its resources. The strategic opportunity lies in connecting disparate experiences into a seamless journey across its 168 wards and communes, instead of letting each destination operate as an independent island,” Dr. Tang emphasized, adding that the digital transformation of tourism in Ho Chi Minh City needs to stem from the city's unique characteristics, spatial structure, and tourist behavior.

Mr. Khoa pointed out three key strategic messages. First, the tourism space is expanded through system connectivity, not by continuously adding new assets or destinations. Second, digital platforms are only truly effective when they help reduce uncertainty for tourists, rather than overwhelming them with too much information. Third, digital storytelling needs to be linked to the local context, so that each journey becomes part of the experience.

Expressing his desire for the city's tourism to truly develop, Mr. Pham Huy Binh, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, emphasized that modern tourism is essentially a race for understanding. In this, data and customer experience are becoming resources as valuable as natural resources or cultural heritage. The tourism industry should not only promote what is already available, but must proactively provide exactly what tourists need, at the right time. According to Mr. Binh, the city's tourism industry is focusing on two core issues. Firstly, in-depth research into customer experience, aiming to shift from a fragmented service model to personalized travel itineraries, through the application of digital maps to disseminate urban cultural values. Secondly, strongly promoting digital transformation, with the business community and startups playing a central role, especially in digitizing heritage, connecting smart service chains, and creating new tourism products.

Source: https://bvhttdl.gov.vn/phat-develop-khong-gian-du-lich-lien-ket-chuoi-tang-trai-nghiem-2026020615562822.htm