It cost three times as much because I booked my flight and hotel room close to the April 30th holiday.

High travel and accommodation costs are a major concern for many people when deciding to travel later in the year. (Illustrative photo: Phuong Lam)

With the April 30th - May 1st holiday approaching, Hoang Anh's company (26 years old, District 8, Ho Chi Minh City) only officially announced its 5-day holiday schedule about half a month ago. Before that, Hoang Anh's friends had to wait for her information to finalize their travel destination.

"If I only have two days off, the whole group plans to choose a domestic destination like Da Nang or Hue. If the holiday is five days long, we're thinking of going to Thailand," said the 26-year-old female office worker.

However, the group's travel plans didn't go smoothly due to the high cost of booking flights and hotel rooms at the last minute. Near the holiday, round-trip airfare from Ho Chi Minh City to Bangkok reached 10 million VND, not including taxes and fees, three times higher than usual.

Furthermore, because they booked their hotel rooms close to their departure date, Hoang Anh and her friends couldn't find any available rooms in central Bangkok. If they decided to go ahead with the trip, they would have to accept staying far from entertainment venues, at prices no different from those in the city center.

Employees are scrambling to arrange schedules and are forced to plan trips at the last minute because the company announced the holiday schedule late.

On April 12th, the Prime Minister officially approved the 5-day holiday schedule for April 30th - May 1st. Following this announcement, many businesses have now officially announced their holiday dates to their employees.

Hoang Anh is one of many people who faced the same financial burden due to booking flights, hotel rooms, and tours late. When travel costs skyrocketed, some reluctantly opened their wallets, while many others sadly had to cancel their trips.

Expensive

Despite employees constantly asking to arrange personal schedules, the leader of My Linh Company (24 years old, Go Vap District, Ho Chi Minh City) only officially announced the holiday schedule after the government made the decision.

Before My Linh received the notification from the company, her family had already planned a trip to Nha Trang (Khanh Hoa) during the April 30th - May 1st holiday.

If she has two days off, Linh will enjoy this time in Ho Chi Minh City, taking the opportunity to meet up with friends. If the holiday lasts up to five days, she plans to go on a vacation with her family.

To ensure her family members didn't have to wait, My Linh advised her parents and sister to book plane tickets and hotel rooms in advance. Only after receiving her 5-day leave schedule from her company did she access the airlines' websites to book her flights.

Having booked her tickets two weeks later than her family, My Linh was shocked to find that her fare was double that of the others. Her parents and older sister only spent 3 million VND per person for a round-trip ticket from Ho Chi Minh City to Nha Trang.

My Linh booked tickets at double the price of other family members.

According to the office worker, this was the cheapest ticket price, applied to flights with inconvenient departure times. Unable to board a flight at a convenient time with her family, My Linh also had to pay separately for transportation from the airport to the hotel, without the opportunity to share the cost with other family members.

"I incurred a lot of expenses because I booked my tickets half a month late. However, I was still lucky not to have to search for accommodation at the last minute; I just had to pay an extra fee to share a room with my sister," Linh said.

Despite receiving a 5-day holiday schedule from the beginning of April, event organizer Hoang Tran (27 years old, Hoang Mai district, Hanoi) still hasn't been able to finalize a trip to Mang Den (Kon Tum) with two close friends.

The company's holiday schedule applies to all employees. However, the urgent event that Hoang is in charge of still doesn't have an official date, but it's likely to take place around April 30th - May 1st.

While Hoang's friends had already finalized their flight and accommodation bookings since the beginning of April, he was still anxiously watching the prices increase as he checked travel apps every day.

"I'm especially excited about this trip and hope clients decide on the dates soon. Airline tickets are not only increasing in price but are also likely to sell out," Hoang Tran shared.

To stay or to leave?

Despite having to pay twice as much for travel as her parents and older sister, My Linh was determined to book a ticket to Nha Trang, witnessing over 6 million VND being deducted from her bank account.

"My sister lives and works in Australia and rarely comes back to visit home. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for my family to reunite and travel together," My Linh explained.

To save on transportation costs, Linh asked a friend to drive her to Tan Son Nhat Airport to avoid paying for a taxi; every penny saved counts.

She also minimized the amount of personal belongings she brought on the plane to avoid paying extra baggage fees. My Linh planned to ask her sister to bring some items ahead to ensure her suitcase was as light as possible.

Some people decide to grit their teeth and pay the high price for plane tickets because they book at the last minute. (Illustrative photo: Phuong Lam)

Unlike My Linh, Hoang Anh and her friends decided to cancel their trip to Thailand because the travel and accommodation costs had become too high. She had originally planned to spend just over 10 million VND on the trip. However, that amount is now only enough to buy a round-trip plane ticket.

"I feel guilty that the whole group had to cancel their trip because I received my leave request late, but there was no other way," Hoang Anh explained.

Still wanting to create beautiful memories with friends during the holidays, Hoang Anh suggested that the group change their destination to Da Lat (Lam Dong).

Once the group agreed, she proactively contacted an acquaintance who ran a homestay business in the city to book rooms, ensuring her friends had ideal accommodation. To make amends, Hoang Anh also booked sleeper bus tickets from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Lat for her friends.

“The reason we chose this location is its proximity; we don’t need to travel by plane. Right now, both domestic and international airfares have skyrocketed, making planning a budget-friendly getaway an impossible task,” Hoang Anh shared.

HA (according to Zing)

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/ton-gap-3-vi-dat-ve-may-bay-phong-khach-san-sat-dip-30-4-379355.html