Eliminate the concept of “low season”
According to the National Tourism Administration, in June, the number of international visitors to Vietnam reached more than 1.2 million, bringing the total number of international visitors to our country in the past 6 months to over 8.8 million, an increase of 58.4% over the same period last year and 4.1% higher than the same period in 2019.
Foreign tourists visit Ho Chi Minh City
According to the assessment of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, the whole country is entering the peak season for domestic tourism and the low season for international tourism. However, the number of international visitors in June was still 5.3% higher than the same period in 2019 (before the pandemic). This is a positive signal and exceeded the expectations of the whole industry. With 8.8 million visitors, Vietnam tourism achieved 50% of the annual target of 17 - 18 million visitors.
South Korea continues to be the market with the largest number of visitors to Vietnam in the first half of 2024 with 2.2 million arrivals (accounting for 25.8%). China ranked second, reaching 1.8 million arrivals (accounting for 21.4%). These two markets alone contributed 47.2% of the total number of international visitors to Vietnam in the past 6 months. In terms of structure, large markets in the Northeast Asia region are the main driving force for the recovery of international visitors. In particular, the Chinese market recorded a breakthrough increase of 229.4% over the same period in 2023, South Korea (up 42.4%), Japan (up 39.2%)...
Notably, despite economic difficulties, the European tourist market continues to grow strongly. In particular, major markets such as the UK increased by 29.2%, France increased by 37.1%, Germany increased by 32.0%. Italian visitors to Vietnam also increased quite strongly by 67.2%, Russia increased by 75.2%, Denmark increased by 32.6%... These are all markets that enjoy a unilateral visa exemption policy to enter Vietnam with a temporary stay of up to 45 days, effective from August 15, 2023.
Regarding the level of recovery compared to 2019, considering the market from regions, in the first 6 months of this year, the number of international visitors from most regions exceeded the same period in 2019, of which the number of visitors from Australia reached 119% compared to the same period in 2019; Asia reached 106%; America reached 103%. Europe almost fully recovered, reaching 92%.
In South Asia, the potential market of India has grown dramatically, reaching 312% compared to before the pandemic; similarly, Cambodia has reached 396%. Markets that have recovered over 100% include Indonesia at 177%, Laos at 140%, the Philippines at 121%, Singapore at 118%... In Northeast Asia, the large market of Korea has recovered well, reaching 110%. However, China has only recovered at 76%, Japan at 74%.
The leaders of the National Tourism Administration said that the above results were achieved thanks to the open visa policy and effective international tourism promotion activities. The tourism industry expects that in the second half of 2024, the number of international visitors to Vietnam will continue to grow dramatically, contributing to the goal of welcoming 17-18 million international visitors this year.
Will tourism fully recover this year?
Mr. Than Huynh Vinh Thuy, Sales Director of Yen Tu Tung Lam Company, said that since its reopening, Yen Tu has become one of the favorite destinations for Indian tourists. Not only billionaires come to hold weddings, but also more and more groups of tourists from the emerging billion-people market come to experience the nature and unique services at the sacred peak in the northeast.
Recently, Yen Tu Tung Lam has recorded many markets with quite good growth in the number of visitors, with regular booking series with the company such as the US, UK, Spain, Germany. In addition, the relationship with the Korean and Taiwanese markets is still maintained with a very good number of visitors. In general, although this is the peak period of the domestic tourist market, the number of foreign visitors to Yen Tu is still increasing. Mr. Than Huynh Vinh Thuy assessed that this shows a clear change in customer trends.
Specifically, in the past, foreign visitors, especially from distant markets such as the US, UK, etc., wanted to come to Vietnam mostly out of curiosity. Many people even asked if Vietnam was still at war or not, and whether war relics were more prominent than landscapes and landscapes. Recently, information and images of a country with a developing economy, high-class tourism, beautiful nature with many new and attractive tourism products, etc. of Vietnam have been increasingly spread around the world. Along with that, the visa policy is more flexible and open, so inbound visitors can come to Vietnam more easily and stay longer. In addition, instead of traveling in large groups on large buses to visit and explore, foreign visitors now travel in smaller groups, from 20 to 25 people/group. They can be families or groups of friends with similar interests such as meditation, yoga, checking, exploring local culture and history, etc., joining the group.
“In terms of the majestic mountains and nature, Yen Tu may not be as majestic as many of their countries, but we have unique experiences that they love very much. It can be seen that one of the factors that determines the diversification of customer sources is that we must have a rich product range, with many experiences that meet the actual needs of customers. Some travel companies have recorded a complete recovery rate like 2019 in the European, Australian, and American markets. However, the largest Chinese tourist market is still quite limited, unintentionally pulling down the overall rate,” Mr. Thuy commented.
China is also a market that Mr. Nguyen Minh Man, Director of Communications and Marketing of TST Tourist, still has many concerns about in the "recovery" of Vietnam's tourism. Before the epidemic, airlines operated about 200 flights per week to many provinces and cities in China. Of the 18 million international visitors to Vietnam in 2019, there were about 6 million Chinese visitors, most of whom took charter flights to Da Nang, Nha Trang, and Ha Long. Every day, the central provinces can welcome about 50-70 charter flights bringing Chinese visitors. But currently, from January to June, Chinese visitors have not yet reached 1 million. Compared to countries like Thailand and Singapore, our recovery rate is quite slow.
“China is still Vietnam's largest tourist market and is very difficult to replace. The goal of welcoming 18 million international visitors, even quickly reaching 20 million visitors in 2024, depends largely on this tourist flow. If in 2023, the tourism trend of Chinese visitors is still unpredictable and the forecast is not accurate, the situation in 2024 will be much clearer. The billion-people market has begun to shift and countries such as Thailand and Singapore have also quickly launched strong policies to welcome this huge tourist flow. In order not to continue missing opportunities in the battle for this tourist flow, Vietnam should also pilot the implementation of a visa exemption policy for Chinese visitors and some potential tourist markets that tourism businesses and associations have repeatedly proposed. If successful, Vietnam will take an important step forward in opening visas, realizing the goal of welcoming 18-20 million international visitors in 2024,” a representative of TST Tourist suggested.
Currently, Chinese tourists come to Vietnam mostly for work purposes rather than sightseeing or vacation. If this market grows equally, tourism can certainly recover completely this year.
Mr. Than Huynh Vinh Thuy
Thanhnien.vn
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/khach-quoc-te-but-pha-185240702223900558.htm
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