Promoting digital payments to develop tourism.

With a growth rate of approximately 21%, Vietnam's tourism sector is ranked among the fastest-growing in the world by the United Nations Tourism Organization (UN Tourism). One of the key drivers, according to the e-Conomy SEA 2025 report, is the trend towards digital tourism, with convenient digital payment infrastructure for tourists creating a competitive advantage for Vietnam's tourism industry. This year, Vietnam aims to welcome 25 million international tourists and 150 million domestic tourists, making a positive contribution to the overall economic growth.

For many young people, all the necessary information for a trip can be found online, from researching destinations and booking train, bus, or sightseeing tickets. However, to have all the information they need, many users still have to open multiple different platforms.

Mr. Dinh Cong Hoang Linh from Hanoi said: "Before going to a new place, I will research information through Facebook or Google, then go to another application to book tickets and make payments."

To facilitate user convenience, the Vietnam National Tourism Administration has launched the Vietnam Tourism app, a digital map of tourism with comprehensive information and suggestions for destinations. Recently, the agency also collaborated with banks to integrate financial solutions into the app, allowing users to access information and make payments on a single platform, without incurring additional fees.

Mr. Hoang Quoc Hoa, Director of the Tourism Information Center, Vietnam National Tourism Administration, shared: "Consistent with the principle of 'Data must be accurate, complete, clean, active, unified, and shared,' the tourism industry has coordinated with relevant units to open up features for users. Instead of each feature requiring a separate application, everything is implemented on the tourism industry's platform. This allows for pre-allocating an overdraft limit for customer spending, and even in areas without signal, offline payments can still be made through the application."

Through digital platforms, the National Tourism Administration is also building a smart tourism ecosystem for both tourists and tourism service providers. Official data is updated regularly; direct connections between users and providers help reduce reliance on intermediaries, optimize costs, and enhance transparency in tourism operations.

Source: https://vtv.vn/thuc-day-thanh-toan-so-phat-trien-du-lich-100260121224705032.htm