Cruise tourism brings many interesting experiences to tourists - Photo: TG
Recently, for the first time at Phu My port ( Ba Ria - Vung Tau province), the Star Voyager ship brought 1,000 international passengers on the first round-trip cruise from Singapore to Vietnam, further demonstrating the attraction of Vietnam's sea tourism on the international cruise tourism map.
According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), cruise tourism generates about 40% more revenue than air or road tourism. To attract and retain international visitors, according to tourism experts, Vietnamese cruise ships need to do a lot of work.
Bustling cruise tours
Choosing a luxury cruise tour, relaxing in a hotel room on the ocean, enjoying rich cuisine, experiencing attractive entertainment technologies such as music, dancing, duty-free shopping... is the choice of Mr. Nguyen Thanh Tu (Hanoi) and a group of Malaysian friends for their upcoming trip.
Mr. Tu said that instead of traveling to Vietnam with his group of friends, he chose to buy a cruise tour from a 5-star cruise group from the US for 5 days and 4 nights for nearly 27 million VND/person; the group had 4 participants.
"We will depart on June 21. This is my first time experiencing a cruise tour, but I found the tour price to be very reasonable and many travel companies selling tours at competitive prices, so I feel secure and expect to have an interesting sea trip," said Mr. Tu.
According to records, from the beginning of 2025 until now, a series of super yachts have continuously docked at Vietnamese ports, bringing thousands of international tourists to explore the beauty of the country.
Many coastal localities such as Da Nang, Ha Long (Quang Ninh), Nha Trang (Khanh Hoa), Ho Chi Minh City... have continuously welcomed many luxury yachts to dock.
For example, the Celebrity Solstice ship brought more than 3,000 European and American tourists to visit Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta provinces;
Or the Adora Cruise ship docked at Tien Sa port (Da Nang), carrying 2,400 international tourists on its journey from Guangzhou (China); or the international cruise ship Norwegian Spirit docked at Cam Ranh international port (Khanh Hoa), carrying 1,900 tourists from many countries.
According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, in the first 5 months of 2025, in Quang Ninh, cruise ships brought nearly 30,000 international tourists from many markets in Europe, America, Oceania, and Northeast Asia to this locality. It is expected that in 2025, this locality will welcome about 70 cruise ships, with nearly 90,000 international tourists.
Equally attractive is Khanh Hoa, with more than 10 international cruises expected to bring nearly 20,000 tourists ashore for sightseeing and experience.
On June 17, speaking with Tuoi Tre Online , Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh, a member of the Nha Trang Tourism Association (Khanh Hoa), acknowledged that the cruise tourism market is very busy, especially during the peak season from January to April.
"Foreign cruise lines docking and choosing Vietnam as a destination in their itineraries helps diversify tourism products, opening up opportunities for our country to attract high-end tourists with large spending levels. This will raise the status of national tourism on the international cruise tourism map," said Ms. Hanh.
High revenue but tourists never return?
According to travel businesses, the potential for sea tourism is huge, but attracting and retaining cruise tourists in particular is not easy.
Also speaking with Tuoi Tre Online , Mr. Nguyen Anh Phong (cruise tour sales employee, Ho Chi Minh City) said that international visitors to Vietnam often complain about having to walk quite far to get to the area where there is a car to pick them up for sightseeing;
When arriving at the port, tourists want to be entertained and buy local products, but lack accompanying services on shore...; or in many cases, passenger ships cannot dock because they have to give way to cargo ships.
In addition to rich cuisine, entertainment experiences such as music, dancing, duty-free shopping... on luxury cruise ships also attract tourists - Photo: TG
"This greatly affects the ability to attract and experience tourists, so it is difficult to keep tourists staying long and spending a lot if Vietnamese tourism, especially cruise tourism, does not have a solution," said Mr. Phong.
According to Mr. Phong, it is necessary to invest in developing a separate seaport system to welcome cruise ship passengers, specifically infrastructure, entertainment centers, modern shopping centers, etc. to make tourists enjoy it.
Meanwhile, sharing at the event where Phu My port welcomed 1,000 international visitors from Singapore to Vietnam on the Star Voyager cruise ship for the first time through Phu My port, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Luu, general director of Saigontourist, assessed that international cruise and river cruise tourism in Vietnam is recovering strongly.
According to Mr. Luu, in the first 6 months of 2025, Saigontourist welcomed more than 48,000 international cruise ship passengers from Anthem of the Sea, Spectrum of The Seas, Serenade of the Seas, ... with a variety of long-term cross-Vietnam cruises, calling at many ports in Ha Long, Hue, Da Nang, Nha Trang, Ba Ria - Vung Tau, Ho Chi Minh City ...
Mr. Luu assessed that cruise ships coming to Vietnam enrich the resort options for domestic tourists, increasing the potential for developing cruise tourism.
"Cruise tourists to Vietnam have high spending levels, so this type of tourism needs to be identified as one of the strategic products; build standards for marina infrastructure for cruise ships, amend visa policies to be more open, improve entry and exit procedures towards minimizing administrative procedures, establish a chain of high-class products and services, extend the length of stay and spending levels of tourists," said Mr. Luu.
Meanwhile, tourism experts agree that localities should expand the concept of sea tourism products to be more comprehensive towards sustainable development; businesses need to build exclusive tourism products; develop high-end shopping centers; upgrade 5-6 star accommodation facilities...
Cruise tourism to thrive in Asia by 2030
According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, in the first quarter of 2025, the total number of international visitors to Vietnam reached 9.2 million, an increase of more than 21% over the same period last year; visitors arriving by waterway alone reached more than 600,000.
The fastest growing markets via waterways include Russia, the Philippines, and India. Vietnam is also attracting additional attention from emerging markets such as Hungary, Türkiye, and Poland.
According to the forecast of the World Tourism Organization, cruise tourism by 2030 will tend to shift and develop strongly in the Asian region.
In the Strategy for sustainable development of Vietnam's marine economy to 2030, with a vision to 2045, tourism and marine services have been identified as the top priority sector for successful and breakthrough development.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/thoi-vang-cua-du-lich-tau-bien-20250617154106845.htm
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