Vietnam welcomes an unprecedented number of international tourists.

International tourists are excited to experience the Lunar New Year in Vietnam. Photo: Thanh Chan

In the first month of 2026, Vietnam's tourism industry continued to set records as the number of international visitors reached its highest level ever.

According to the latest figures from the General Statistics Office, in January, Vietnam welcomed nearly 2.5 million international visitors, an increase of 21.4% compared to the previous month and an increase of 18.5% compared to the same period last year. This is the first time the tourism industry has recorded such a high number of international visitors in January.

Regarding entry methods, air travel remained dominant with over 1.9 million visitors, an increase of 8.8%. Visitors arriving by sea reached approximately 58,500, an increase of 30%.

Notably, the number of international visitors arriving in Vietnam by land increased most sharply, reaching 440,700, equivalent to a 92.9% increase compared to the previous month.

In terms of market structure, Asia continues to be the largest source region for Vietnamese tourism with over 1.8 million visitors, an increase of 12.3%. Europe recorded the strongest increase, up 59%, reaching 424,000 visitors. The markets in the Americas, Australia, and Africa also maintained their growth momentum, increasing by 14.2%, 13%, and 45.4% respectively.

Along with the significant increase in size, the ranking of the largest source markets for tourists to Vietnam has also undergone notable changes.

South Korea took the lead with nearly 490,000 visitors, followed by China with nearly 460,000.

Cambodia became the biggest highlight, recording over 223,000 visitors, rising to the third largest source market for Vietnam's tourism for the first time this month, surpassing Taiwan (China). Previously, Cambodia was usually only in the top 6 to top 10 markets for Vietnamese tourism.

Other leading source markets include Taiwan (China), Japan, the US, Australia, Russia, India, and Malaysia. Among these, visitor numbers from Malaysia and China recorded slight decreases of 2-6% compared to the previous month.

In terms of growth drivers, Cambodia is the fastest-growing market, tripling compared to December 2025. Many other markets also achieved impressive growth rates of 30-70%, including South Korea, Russia, Australia, Italy, Japan, and Denmark.

According to the General Statistics Office, this positive result stems from groundbreaking visa policies, strong innovation in tourism promotion and marketing, along with product diversification and improved service quality, thereby increasing the attractiveness of Vietnamese tourism to international visitors.

Entering 2026, the tourism industry aims to welcome 25 million international tourists, serve 150 million domestic tourists, and achieve total tourism revenue of approximately 1,125 trillion VND.

Source: https://laodong.vn/du-lich/tin-tuc/viet-nam-don-luong-khach-quoc-te-cao-chua-tung-co-1652455.html