Vietnamese tourists going to Thailand are almost twice as high as Thai tourists going to Vietnam.

In the first 10 months of the year, Vietnam welcomed nearly 500,000 Thai visitors, and in the opposite direction the number was 900,000.

The above figures were announced by Director of the National Tourism Administration Nguyen Trung Khanh at a press conference on the afternoon of October 25 on the occasion of the 47th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Thailand and Thai Airways reopening flights to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. In the first 10 months of the year, nearly 900,000 Vietnamese tourists visited Thailand, nearly double the number of Thai tourists to Vietnam, which was nearly 500,000.

The Director said that thanks to the visa exemption policy within the ASEAN framework, convenient air routes, and many special promotion programs, Thailand and Vietnam are among the top 10 markets sending visitors to each other.

Vietnamese tourists pose at Wat Arun temple, Bangkok, Thailand in June. Photo: Nguyen Huong — Vietnamese tourists pose at Wat Arun temple, Bangkok, Thailand in June. Photo: *Nguyen Huong*

In 2019, Vietnam was the 9th largest market sending visitors to Thailand with more than 1 million arrivals, while Thailand ranked 8th among international visitor markets in Vietnam with 510,000 arrivals. This year, Thailand ranked 7th in the list of 10 most crowded markets in Vietnam, while there are no specific statistics on the opposite side.

HG Aviation Chairman Ngo Minh Duc said that in the next two years, the number of Vietnamese tourists to Thailand is expected to reach 1.2-1.3 million. "Bangkok in particular and Thailand in general are always the top favorite destinations for Vietnamese tourists," said Mr. Duc. The advantage of Thailand as a destination is the many routes, short flight times and cheap prices. If flying from Hanoi, it takes about two hours and from Ho Chi Minh City it is 70-80 minutes.

From October 29, Thai Airways, the national airline, will resume flights from Bangkok to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with a frequency of 28 flights per week, increasing passenger choices. Thai Deputy Prime Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara believes that the resumption of Thai Airways flights will help bring the Thai and Vietnamese people closer together.

"This will bring great potential to the economies of Vietnam and Thailand, especially the tourism industry," said the Thai Deputy Prime Minister.

According to Huynh Phan Phuong Hoang, Deputy General Director of Vietravel Tourism Company, there are many reasons why Vietnamese tourists like to go to Thailand. One of them is that traveling and entering Thailand is convenient, so Vietnamese tourists often choose to come here for short-term or weekend trips. Travel and travel costs are not too high.

Thailand has many natural tourist attractions, entertainment areas, night walking streets, many cultural and historical tourist destinations suitable for all types of visitors, from young to old, and independent or group visitors.

Rich and appetizing Thai cuisine is also a reason, along with diverse shopping destinations and many products that meet the needs of Vietnamese customers. In addition, Thailand has many activities, promotional campaigns, and communications. Tourism stimulus campaigns such as Visit Thailand Year 2023: Amazing New Chapters are an example.

To attract as many Thai tourists as Vietnamese tourists to Thailand, the Vietnamese tourism industry needs to increase tourism promotion activities such as attending tourism fairs, organizing roadshows, welcoming many delegations of Thai businesses and investors to conduct surveys, and supporting airlines to open more flight routes.

According to Ms. Hoang, Thailand's tourism is strong thanks to the close connection between service providers such as transportation, accommodation, sightseeing, shopping and creating competitive tour prices. Meanwhile, in Vietnam, there is almost no such connection to lower tour prices to attract tourists.

"Even in tourism stimulus fair programs, the consistency among service providers is very weak," said Ms. Hoang.

Phuong Anh

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