At a recent tourism seminar between Vietnamese and Australian businesses, Mr. Darrell Wade - Chairman of Intrepid Travel Group affirmed that Australia is currently a promising source market for the Vietnamese tourism industry.
In recent times, direct flights connecting the two countries have contributed to bringing many Australian tourists to Vietnam.
The proof is that the number of visitors that Intrepid Travel brought to Vietnam in 2023 has exceeded the level before the Covid-19 pandemic. At present, Vietnam is emerging as a destination with a wide range of experiences. Intrepid Travel initially focused on adventure tourism in Vietnam, but later provided additional tours about culture, cuisine, etc.
"My friends come to Melbourne and say this city is great, but everything is expensive, for example enjoying food in restaurants. In Vietnam, tourists have access to international standard services but the prices are much more reasonable. That does not mean Vietnam is a cheap destination, but it is the value, the uniqueness that Vietnam can create for tourists" - Mr. Darrell Wade added.
Assessing the potential for extensive cooperation and bringing tourist exchange between Vietnam and Australia commensurate with the relationship between the two countries, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ho An Phong emphasized: In 2023, Vietnam's tourism industry will witness a recovery when welcoming 12.6 million international visitors. Of which, Australian tourists only account for 3% but this is an important and promising source of visitors, with a tendency to stay for a long time and spend a lot of money.
After only the first 2 months of 2024, the number of Australian visitors to Vietnam was equal to 25% of the whole year of 2023. In the coming time, cooperation between the parties needs to be greater to achieve new results and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will do its best to help tourism businesses of both countries develop together.
Mr. Andrew Goledzinowski, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Australia to Vietnam, said that tourism cooperation between Vietnam and Australia has many opportunities for development, especially after the two countries upgraded their relationship to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and many direct flights connecting cities of the two countries.
"The most recent addition is the Hanoi - Melbourne route and we need more direct flights. As more and more Vietnamese students study in Australia, their families and relatives will also come to Australia. People-to-people exchanges between the two countries are increasingly strengthened," said Mr. Andrew Goledzinowski.
In addition, representatives of Australian tourism businesses expect the Vietnamese tourism industry to continue to improve service quality and maintain affordable prices, as these are competitive advantages that help Vietnam attract international visitors. At the same time, they proposed that Vietnam consider visa exemption for Australian tourists to increase its attractiveness, as many destinations in the region such as Thailand, Singapore, Bali, etc. have exempted visas for Australian visitors.
According to data from the National Tourism Administration, the Australian market has now fully recovered and increased slightly (+2%) compared to 2019. In the first two months of the year, Vietnam welcomed 97,000 Australian visitors, ranking among the top 10 leading visitor markets. Recently, during the official visit of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to Australia, the two countries upgraded their relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. In addition to the current good cooperation, the two sides agreed to promote the signing of a cooperation agreement in the field of tourism, striving to bring the two countries into the group of each other's leading tourism markets. This event opens up bright prospects for increasing the number of tourist exchanges between our country and Australia in the coming time.
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