Passengers traveling by Vietravel Airlines at Tan Son Nhat airport - Photo: C.TRUNG
With only one week left until the April 30 and May 1 holidays, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has reported that the number of passengers booking flights is rapidly drying up, with some routes lacking tickets.
Tickets for the April 30 holiday are both expensive and sold out quickly, domestic flights are more expensive than international flights.
For example, at the beginning of the holiday, on the first official day of April 27, the booking rate on flights from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to the localities mostly reached over 75%; in which some flights reached over 90% to 100% booking rate such as: Hanoi - Hue, Hanoi - Quy Nhon, Hanoi - Quang Binh, Hanoi - Nha Trang, Hanoi - Tuy Hoa, Hanoi - Dien Bien, Ho Chi Minh City - Da Lat, Ho Chi Minh City - Tuy Hoa, Dien Bien...
This number increased quite rapidly compared to a week ago when this rate reached 40 - 70%.
In the middle of the holiday on April 29, the booking rate has not shown any significant increase or fluctuation on domestic flights, currently fluctuating mostly at 30 - 50%. Passengers still have many options for suitable flights on this day.
At the end of the holiday, especially on the last day of the holiday (1-5), the booking rate showed a high increase from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, averaging over 75%; in which, some routes had booking rates reaching and approaching 100% such as Hue - Hanoi, Phu Quoc - Hanoi.
Although airlines have announced that they will increase night flights to "cool down" ticket prices, in reality ticket prices are still high. The number of cheap tickets sold is running out quickly.
Vietnam Airlines ticket prices from Hanoi to Phu Quoc on the occasion of April 30. Many flights cost from 4.3 - 7.9 million VND/ticket, if you buy a round-trip ticket, it can cost up to 8.9 - 12 million VND - Screenshot on April 21
According to a survey by Tuoi Tre Online on April 21, tickets from Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City to Phu Quoc of Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet are still increasing, many flights have run out of economy class and standard economy class for the departure period from April 26 to 28. In economy class, there are only flexible economy class tickets at over 3.5 - 4.3 million VND/trip, while business class tickets are up to over 7 - 13 million VND/trip.
Thus, a pair of round-trip tickets of Vietnam Airlines from Hanoi to Phu Quoc during this year's holiday ranges from over 8.9 - 12 million VND; Vietjet 7 - 8 million VND. Meanwhile, on normal days, round-trip airfare from Hanoi to Phu Quoc ranges from 2.8 - 4 million VND, from Ho Chi Minh City around 2.5 million VND.
Meanwhile, many travel agencies are selling package tours to Thailand for 5 days and 4 nights at 8.9 million VND/person (including airfare, meals, hotel...).
Ticket prices from Ho Chi Minh City - Nha Trang, Da Lat, airlines are still high at 5 - 7.4 million VND for round trip.
The paradox is that domestic flights have sky-high ticket prices, while international flights are priced at the same level, or even cheaper than some domestic flights. For example, buying a round-trip ticket from Hanoi to Bangkok is currently priced at 6 million VND, while the Ho Chi Minh City - Phnom Penh (Cambodia) route is priced from over 4 million VND.
Many tours to Thailand on the occasion of April 30, 5-day 4-night itinerary costs 8.9 million VND, cheaper than round-trip flight from Hanoi - Phu Quoc - Screenshot of Vietravel tour on April 21
Airlines complain it is difficult to reduce ticket prices.
Calculating the cost of airfare to be too high, Ms. Quynh Vy (Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City) said she is discussing with her husband to buy tickets to foreign countries such as Malaysia and Thailand.
According to her, the cheapest round-trip airfare from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang is over 5 million VND/person. This is just the airfare, not including food and hotel expenses in Da Nang. Meanwhile, airfare to Thailand is also at the same price, so Ms. Quynh Vy will change her travel plan to Thailand. "Domestic flights are too expensive, and with the same price as international flights, I prefer to go abroad," Ms. Quynh Vy said.
Many tourism businesses believe that international airfares being the same price, or even cheaper than some domestic flights, will cause difficulties for the tourism industry. The trend of tourists shifting to foreign travel. Vietnamese tourists spend 8-10 million VND on tours to Thailand, but when they get there, they spend the same amount, or even more than the amount they spent.
Regarding the issue of airfares, speaking with Tuoi Tre Online , a representative of an airline said that the airfares are within the ceiling price range, meaning that tickets are sold at the correct price. The aviation industry is facing a shortage of aircraft.
There are dozens of planes grounded for engine removal and maintenance, not to mention some airlines restructuring and reducing their fleet to 3-8 planes, some even have no planes left.
Ticket prices will be difficult to reduce when airline input costs such as fuel, USD prices... are continuously increasing, pushing up airline costs.
Tourism industry worried about impact, lack of visitors
Affected by high ticket prices, many localities have recorded a decrease in the number of visitors before the holiday. According to Mr. Tran Minh Duc - Chairman of Khanh Hoa Tourism Association, the source of visitors from the North this year to the locality is quite limited due to high airfares.
According to Cam Ranh International Airport, during the 5-day holiday, from April 27 to May 1, the total number of take-offs and landings is expected to reach 711 to and from Khanh Hoa, an increase of 36.7% over the same period in 2023. There is a clear difference in the number of international and domestic flights. International airlines flew 422 take-offs and landings to Cam Ranh, an increase of 139% over the same period. However, domestic flights recorded 289 flights, a decrease of 20% over the same period in 2023.
Many travel agencies and high airfares affect the decision to travel domestically during the holidays. Tourists choose to travel abroad with Southeast Asia and China land tours. In addition, the trend of traveling nearby by private car to save costs is still increasing strongly.
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