Airline CEOs and travel CEOs sit down to discuss ways to promote tourism development

There will be many initiatives proposed by leaders of travel and airline companies with the hope of soon helping these two important economic sectors overcome difficulties and become important driving forces for the country's economic growth.

Vietnam Airlines representatives welcome passengers on the inaugural flight on the Da Nang - Don Muong route at the end of November 2023.

This afternoon (June 12), in Hanoi, Nhan Dan newspaper organized a workshop with the theme “Aviation – Tourism join hands to link sustainable development”. The workshop was attended by leaders of the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, economic experts, scientists, representatives of foreign tourism promotion agencies, business associations and leaders of aviation, tourism and travel businesses…

There are two main contents that were focused on in the Workshop: overcoming the paradox of increasing airfares, airlines and travel companies still facing difficulties, and proposing practical and effective cooperation initiatives between localities, aviation and tourism businesses.

In fact, there is always fierce competition between businesses in the aviation and tourism industries. Many aviation-tourism development links have been broken by internal conflicts of interest within one party, or the appearance of a third party.

Economic experts say that before finding solutions to strengthen the connection and cooperation between these two sectors, it is necessary to find a control mechanism within the sector itself. This requires the role of specialized State management agencies, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, along with related social and professional organizations.

To move towards real action rather than just discussion, within the framework of the workshop, airlines and localities have developed solutions to strengthen connections, attract tourists and stimulate domestic tourism. Typically, Vietnam Airlines will provide nearly 1 million night flights, departing after 9pm and before 6am every day on many domestic routes, with very attractive promotional prices.

Vietnam Airlines has also built a cooperation mechanism with the local tourism industry to create products aimed at domestic tourists during this peak summer season.

Accordingly, the company has proposed to provinces and cities to call on and introduce travel agencies, accommodation establishments, entertainment areas, tourist attractions, etc. in their areas to participate in the campaign to stimulate demand for night flights. At the same time, the list of service providers will be announced on the media so that customers can recognize and proactively book services.

Currently, Da Nang City and Khanh Hoa Province are the first two localities to join this campaign of Vietnam Airlines. According to the agreement, from now until the end of the year, Vietnam Airlines and the localities will cooperate to launch a tourism stimulus program, the airline will deploy additional early morning and late evening flight products with a discount of up to 30% compared to the price of flights at regular times.

It is known that 2024 is a "sprint" year of special importance in successfully implementing the Resolution of the 13th National Party Congress and the Resolution of the National Assembly on the 5-year Socio-Economic Development Plan 2021-2025.

With that meaning and importance, the Vietnamese tourism industry aims to welcome 17-18 million international visitors, close to the record level of 2019 (the year before the Covid-19 pandemic) and serve 110 million domestic tourists; total revenue from tourists reaches about 840 trillion VND.

In the first 5 months of 2024, Vietnam tourism welcomed nearly 7.6 million international visitors and about 52.5 million domestic visitors, a bright spot and a positive and important contribution to the overall economic and social recovery and development of the country, thereby contributing to the indispensable role of airlines in tourism recovery because statistics show that currently, tourists coming to Vietnam by air account for a very high proportion compared to other methods, up to nearly 80%.

However, the global shortage of aircraft, along with strong fluctuations in exchange rates and fuel costs in recent months, has caused airlines to reduce their supply capacity and have to adjust airfares upward. This has had a negative impact on the development of Vietnam's tourism industry.

In the short term, achieving the 2024 target of the tourism industry becomes challenging in the context that our country continues to face unfavorable factors in the general difficult picture of global tourism, especially in the face of unpredictable developments from the world geopolitical situation, inflation, climate change, etc.

Source: https://baodautu.vn/ceo-hang-bay-ceo-lu-hanh-cung-ngo-lai-ban-cach-thuc-day-phat-trien-du-lich-d217482.html