On July 5, dw.com (Germany) published an article stating that Vietnam is quickly becoming one of the most popular destinations in Southeast Asia as tourists enjoy diverse landscapes, beaches, mountain terraces and bustling cities.
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| An article on dw.com highly appreciated Vietnam as a destination in Southeast Asia. (Screenshot) |
According to Google Destination Insights, Vietnam is the 7th most searched destination in the period from March to June 2023 and is the only country in Southeast Asia to make it into the top 20.
Bobby Nguyen, chairman of travel agency Rustic Hospitality Group, told DW that the growth mainly came from Chinese, Indian and South Korean tourists: “China has reopened its foreign tourism market to Vietnam and the Indian market has grown since 2022.”
According to Mr. Bobby Nguyen, the use of social networks and the influence of large tourism corporations also help promote Vietnam's image in the international arena: "Using many online communication channels such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, advertising channels on Google or other networks is also the fastest way to promote Vietnam's image to the world."
Visa policy adjustment helps promote tourism
The government recently approved a new visa policy for international visitors to Vietnam, tripling the visa exemption period from 15 to 45 days for certain countries.
The changes will come into effect on August 15. Gary Bowerman, a tourism analyst in Kuala Lumpur, said the visa changes will help boost the tourism industry: “The tourism industry is growing and in the next six months, the number of tourists coming to Vietnam will increase. I think there will be strong growth, especially when the Chinese market comes back.”
Mr. Bowerman commented that one of the attractions of Vietnam is that it is a little-known destination and offers both tourism and business opportunities: “A lot of young people now want to learn a little more about Vietnam. I think there are many unknowns about Vietnam. I think Thailand is probably more known. Vietnam has a sense of discovery and mystery. It is a country that people want to invest in, want to do business in and want to travel to.”
Vietnam Tourism - Thailand's Emerging Rival
For travel companies in Vietnam, the new visa policy and the prospect of attracting more international visitors are very encouraging.
“I’m really looking forward to what’s to come. We’ve seen a significant increase in international stays over the past three months,” said Max Lambert, owner of Fuse Hostels & Travel, adding that bookings are back to 2019 levels.
However, the number of international visitors to Vietnam has not yet reached pre-Covid-19 levels, which means Vietnam still has some way to go if it wants to compete with Thailand.
Mr. Bobby Nguyen said that Vietnam must improve a number of areas to maximize its tourism potential: “Tourism is an integrated economic activity, ministries and sectors need to coordinate closely. Infrastructure, including highways, railways and roads, has not kept up with the development of the tourism industry. It is necessary to retrain and retrain personnel working in the tourism industry to meet service quality requirements.”
According to Mr. Bowerman, “Before the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam was not really considered a competitor to Thailand, but it was certainly an emerging competitor. Vietnam was considered the next attractive destination in the tourism industry in Southeast Asia. Vietnam will still maintain this attraction.”
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