Creating momentum for a breakthrough in Quang Ninh's tourism industry.

As 2025 draws to a close, tourism development figures have far exceeded expectations, further solidifying Quang Ninh's position as one of the leading tourism hubs in Vietnam. Notably, this growth reflects a restructuring of tourism that is increasingly focused on depth and sustainability, thus opening a new phase of development and bringing Quang Ninh closer to its goal of becoming a world-class tourism center in the region and globally.

International cruise ship passengers are eagerly preparing to explore popular tourist destinations.

Innovate thinking and action.

According to Mr. Nguyen Viet Dung, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Ninh , "innovating thinking" is identified as one of the tasks and a decisive factor in transforming and breaking through the tourism industry. From state management agencies to businesses, there has been a concerted and decisive shift in the growth model, moving from extensive development to prioritizing intensive development, using quality, efficiency, added value, and tourist experience as benchmarks.

This "new mindset" is not just a slogan, but has been proven by highly convincing figures. By 2025, the total number of tourists visiting Quang Ninh is estimated to reach 21.28 million, an increase of 12% compared to the same period in 2024, with total tourism revenue exceeding 57,000 billion VND, an increase of 22.46% compared to the same period, and the service sector contributing over 50% to GRDP growth. These figures not only record achievements but also reflect a strong shift towards high-quality tourists who stay longer and spend more, in line with the spirit of repositioning a modern and sustainable destination. This is especially important in the context of the nationwide tourism industry entering a phase of selective recovery and increasingly fierce competition among destinations.

 

International MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) groups visit Ha Long Bay.

Furthermore, the tourism industry has proactively positioned its brand through a well-planned and consistent promotional strategy, which is diverse yet focused. Throughout the year, Quang Ninh continuously organized and coordinated numerous regional and international events; welcomed famtrips, presstrips, KOLs, and international travel businesses to survey its products.

In particular, Quang Ninh has participated in many major forums and events, such as EXPO 2025 in Japan; organized promotional programs in South Korea, India, China, and the Philippines; and expanded cooperation with localities such as Guangxi and Fangcheng Port (China). As a result, in the first 11 months of 2025, Quang Ninh also welcomed over 4 million international visitors from MICE groups, millionaires, billionaires, and high-spending tourists.

Along with market promotion, Quang Ninh is strongly implementing a tourism stimulus campaign in 2025, linked to the goal of attracting major events and conferences to the locality. Instead of focusing solely on the peak season, the province is proactively extending the tourist season, diversifying tourist segments and experiential spaces, from coastal areas to mountainous and border regions. This strategy helps Quang Ninh gradually solve the problem of "local overcrowding" at some familiar destinations, while creating development opportunities for areas with significant potential such as Binh Lieu, Tien Yen, Mong Cai, and Van Don.

This "renewal of thinking" has guided the "breakthrough actions" of the tourism industry in creating a "heritage-to-heritage" journey and developing a "heritage economy ." This journey is built upon the outstanding strengths of its culture and history. Besides Ha Long Bay, Quang Ninh's pride is further amplified with the recent recognition by UNESCO of the Yen Tu - Vinh Nghiem - Con Son - Kiet Bac complex as a World Cultural Heritage site. Along with over 600 other relics and heritage sites, this forms the foundation for the province to strongly develop its "heritage economy."

At the same time, the province has also proposed hosting national and international events such as the International Puppet Festival, the International Circus Festival, and the 2026 International Film Festival, along with a series of national and international sports competitions. All of these are contributing to positioning Quang Ninh as a destination for international events, enhancing the promotion of "One Journey, Two Heritages" to friends at home and around the world.

Alongside preservation, the province is also proactively creating new cultural values. Events such as the Ha Long Concert 2025 and the Quang Ninh - Heroic Mining Land Concert, which were recently successfully organized, have become tourism products attracting over 60,000 direct participants and hundreds of thousands of online viewers, creating a strong media impact.

"Ha Long Concert 2025" is one of the most spectacular and large-scale music events ever organized by Quang Ninh province. Photo: Do ​​Phuong

Many new products also offer significant appeal, such as: hot air balloon experiences in Ha Long; Superfest and Skywave 2025 music festivals; Bai Tu Long Bay tours; cruise night markets; and pedestrian streets in Tien Yen and Mong Cai. These products not only extend the length of stay but also contribute to increasing the average spending of tourists.

Another important highlight of Quang Ninh tourism in 2025 is the renewal of its product ecosystem towards a modern, experience-rich approach. The night-time economy development project has initially proven effective, with a more well-organized range of art, entertainment, shopping, culinary, and health care activities.

Furthermore, the entry of international hotel brands such as Hyatt, InterContinental, and Radisson Blu, along with the emergence of new golf courses and resort and wellness projects in Van Don, is clearly defining the province's high-end tourism segment.

Transportation infrastructure continues to play a crucial role in driving tourism growth. The restoration and expansion of sea and air routes are helping Quang Ninh welcome a "golden season for cruise tourism". From October 2025 to April 2026, Quang Ninh is expected to welcome approximately 60 cruise ships, carrying 70,000 passengers, mainly high-spending international tourists. Since the beginning of the year, nearly 50 cruise ships, equivalent to 60,000 passengers, have arrived, with many cruise lines returning 4 to 6 times a year, each trip bringing around 1,000 passengers.

Expectations for a surge in growth in 2026

With its synchronized infrastructure, diverse products, and in-depth development mindset, Quang Ninh's tourism sector is entering a new growth phase, not only aiming for impressive figures but also focusing on quality and sustainability. This forms the basis for the locality to maintain strong recovery momentum in 2026 and beyond, further affirming its position as a leading destination on the tourism map of Vietnam and the region.

For the period 2026-2030, the province has set goals and solutions for socio-economic development with an average annual growth rate of Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) of 12%. To contribute to the province's growth targets, the tourism sector aims to achieve high and sustainable tourism growth by 2030, based on the strong development of world-class tourism products and services. This will transform Quang Ninh into a tourism hub connecting the region and the world, a key destination for high-end tourism, entertainment, and resorts nationwide, with a truly synchronized, modern, and superior infrastructure. Simultaneously, it will possess a diverse, unique, high-quality tourism product system with strong brands and global appeal and competitiveness.

Visitors scan the QR code to purchase tickets at the Quang Ninh Museum.

To realize this goal, at the 34th session - the last regular session of the 14th Provincial People's Council in 2025, Comrade Quan Minh Cuong, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Head of the Provincial National Assembly Delegation, emphasized: 2026 is of special importance. The entire political system of the province will continue to uphold the tradition of unity, "Discipline and Solidarity," working together to overcome all difficulties and challenges, determined to comprehensively fulfill all set goals and tasks. In particular, Quang Ninh identifies tourism as a key economic sector; promoting investment in high-quality tourism and service projects, green tourism, sustainable tourism, and developing golf courses according to the plan; striving to attract 22 million tourists in 2026, including 5.2 million international tourists.

Tourists check in at Van Don International Airport.

The province is determined to improve existing tourism products, focusing on developing new, reputable, and branded product lines in Quang Ninh's strengths and unique areas such as: island and beach tourism; high-end entertainment; resorts; spiritual and cultural tourism; and tourism linked to "One journey - Two heritages: Ha Long and Yen Tu".

Furthermore, the goal is to develop Quang Ninh into a center for tourism and nightlife entertainment; a destination for major international festivals and events. Simultaneously, the plan aims to develop the cultural industry in conjunction with tourism, transforming Quang Ninh into a MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) tourism hub for Vietnam, the region, and the international community.

At the November workshop summarizing the implementation of the project "Some Models for Developing Night Tourism Products," Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, Director of the Institute of Tourism Economics and a participant in the development of tourism projects, stated: "In the project to develop Quang Ninh into a regional and international connecting center, I emphasized the need for large-scale night performances and live shows, because nowhere compares to Ha Long Bay. Therefore, we must plan the infrastructure system and connect products and services into a synchronized night tourism product. To build a chain of night tourism products with Quang Ninh's unique identity, we need a 'conductor' to connect the value chain, creating a strong brand for the locality with the participation of businesses, human resource training institutions, and the local community. These are also solutions that Quang Ninh needs to proactively implement in 2026 to create momentum for the tourism industry in the following years."

The province is also building and positioning its brand and enhancing its tourism development capacity through professional and comprehensive tourism promotion and advertising programs to attract tourists; developing a long-term plan - a tourism marketing strategy for Quang Ninh. At the same time, it is establishing mechanisms to encourage investment in high-class, high-quality tourism development, especially on some islands and archipelagos belonging to Quang Ninh province.

Furthermore, the province prioritizes the development of high-quality tourism human resources, strengthens international cooperation in mid-level and high-level tourism training in tourism management and business; and promotes the participation of global tourism management corporations in vocational training and tourism management. Simultaneously, it promotes administrative procedure reform, creating a favorable and transparent investment environment; strongly applies digital transformation to tourism development, builds a "contactless" tourism ecosystem, applies e-tickets, digital tourism maps, and digitizes destination information. This forms the foundation for businesses to connect, cooperate, and operate tours and routes professionally and modernly.

Source: https://bvhttdl.gov.vn/tao-da-but-pha-cho-nganh-du-lich-quang-ninh-20251219144154717.htm