Tourism cooperation between Vietnam and Laos is on a very good growth trajectory, with great potential for cooperation and many prospects in the near future.
In 2023, the number of Vietnamese tourists to Laos will reach more than 837,000, an increase of 133% compared to 2022, and in the opposite direction, the number of Lao tourists to Vietnam will reach more than 120,000, an increase of 155%.
According to data from the Lao Tourism Development Department, in the first 3 months of 2024, Lao tourists to Vietnam reached more than 33,000 arrivals and Laos welcomed more than 263,000 Vietnamese visitors. Vietnam continues to rank 2nd among the markets sending visitors to Laos and Laos is among the top 15 markets for Vietnamese tourism.
This result shows that tourism cooperation between Vietnam and Laos is developing well. Tourists from both countries travel to each other by air and road, including self-driving tourism. Ms. Souansavanh Viyaket, Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism of Laos, said that the potential for tourism cooperation between Laos and Vietnam is still very large and has many prospects in the near future.
Tourism cooperation between Laos and Vietnam has developed very well. Tourists from both Laos and Vietnam are interested in, traveling back and forth, learning about each other's history and scenic spots, which has made the people of the two countries increasingly understand and become closer.
According to Ms. Souansavanh, the popular destinations that Vietnamese tourists choose when coming to Laos are mainly the capital Vientiane, Vangvieng town (Viengchan province) and the ancient capital Luang Prabang. On the contrary, Lao tourists also want to visit Vietnam because of its traditional destinations, rich in culture and history, and especially because Vietnam has many beautiful beaches.
Through tourism, people of the two countries not only satisfy their need to travel and learn about the culture and history of Vietnam and Laos, but also fulfill their role as a bridge of friendship, deepening and strengthening the very special cooperative relationship.
Currently, Vietnam and Laos have many favorable conditions to promote tourism, increase the exchange of visitors when citizens of the two countries holding ordinary passports are exempted from visas within 30 days; Air connectivity with many direct flights is exploited with increasing frequency; Road tourism is also focused on development, in addition to passenger cars, self-driving cars are allowed to circulate under control in Vietnam and Laos.
In addition, Vietnam and Laos share a land border of more than 2,300km, passing through the administrative boundaries of 10 provinces of each side, which is an area with development potential and a strategic location on the East-West Economic Corridor. Therefore, tourism cooperation in the Vietnam-Laos border area has gradually developed in recent years. Many cooperation activities, product development linkages, and tourism promotion within the bilateral and multilateral frameworks have been implemented and achieved certain results, attracting the participation of localities, agencies, associations, and tourism businesses of the two countries.
In recent times, Vietnam and Laos have regularly organized tourism and cultural promotion programs such as the Northwest and Ho Chi Minh City Culture and Tourism Week 2023 in Luang Prabang Province (Northern Laos) and recently the Hanoi - Vientiane 2024 tourism and trade promotion program. However, to promote tourism between Vietnam and Laos to become more in-depth, practical and commensurate with the special relationship, Ms. Souansavanh Viyaket, Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism of Laos, said.
In the coming time, I think we need to pay more attention to cooperation in tourism development, through activities of exchanging delegations at all levels; creating favorable conditions for entry and exit activities; encouraging businesses to develop tourism and jointly build common development programs and strategies; organizing seminars, exchanging lessons and experiences in public-private tourism development; and coordinating and promoting the images of tourist attractions and destinations imbued with Lao and Vietnamese culture.
Vietnam and Laos have great tourism potential. In the spirit of friendly cooperation in the context of deep integration as present, together with the high political determination of the governments of both sides, the tourism potential and strengths of the two countries will certainly be exploited as expected to serve the socio-economic development of the two countries in the current integration period, contributing to the completion of the goal set by Laos for 2024 of attracting 4 million foreign visitors and the goal of Vietnam welcoming 17-18 million international visitors this year.
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