International visitors to Vietnam by ship increased 7 times
Vietnam has a coastline of more than 3,260km, with more than 3,000 large and small islands, about 125 beaches, many white sand banks and pristine bays. Vietnam's attractive island destinations stretch from North to South, with many beaches, bays and islands honored by the world's leading travel magazines and platforms. These include Ha Long Bay (Quang Ninh), My Khe Beach (Da Nang), An Bang Beach (Quang Nam); Nha Trang Beach (Khanh Hoa), Con Dao (Ba Ria - Vung Tau), Phu Quoc Island (Kien Giang), Cat Ba, Lan Ha Bay (Hai Phong)...
In addition, the coastal territory, sea areas and island systems, where sea and island tourism takes place, concentrate 7/13 world heritages in Vietnam; 6/8 biosphere reserves; many national parks, nature reserves and sea and island cultures, with unique cultural heritages. This is a rich resource for sustainable development of sea and island tourism. Mr. Ha Van Sieu, Deputy Director of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) said that statistics show that in the structure of Vietnam's tourism industry, sea tourism accounts for 60 - 70% of tourism activities as well as tourism income.
Vietnam has a prime location with a long coastline and many ports, which is favorable for developing sea tourism and attracting international ships to visit. This is a type of tourism that brings visitors not only a sense of enjoyment but also different feelings when on a cruise. On a 5-star cruise, there is a peaceful space, professional service and diverse entertainment activities, the cruise will help visitors enjoy life to the fullest. Whether it is splendid shopping streets, parks with trees or the taste of dishes rich in the culture of each region..., visitors can see it all on the cruise. In addition, a cruise can also take visitors to many countries and new lands, helping visitors save time traveling between attractions and not worry about checking in/checking out too many times in one trip.
The number of tourists traveling by cruise ship and cruise ship to Vietnam has increased sharply recently. A report by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism shows that in the first two months of 2024, the tourism industry welcomed 90,700 international visitors to Vietnam by cruise ship, a seven-fold increase over the same period last year. This also shows Vietnam's great potential to become an attractive destination for international cruise ship visitors.
Billionaires come to Vietnam by super yacht
In Phu Quoc, the AIDA Stella cruise ship (Italian nationality) carrying about 2,000 international tourists (European market visitors accounted for about 60%, the rest were Chinese and Hong Kong tourists) docked at Duong Dong port (Duong Dong ward) to visit this beautiful island. International visitors visited famous entertainment spots in Phu Quoc city such as Safari Phu Quoc, Grand World Phu Quoc, Hon Thom cable car, Cau Hon (in An Thoi ward) and ate and shopped for special gifts on the island.
With its potential and advantages, tourism and marine services are identified as a marine economic sector that will develop successfully and make breakthroughs by 2030 in the order of top priority as set out in Resolution 36-NQ/TW of the Central Executive Committee dated December 22, 2018 on "Strategy for sustainable development of Vietnam's marine economy by 2030, vision 2045".
Saigontourist Travel Agency representative in 2023 - 2024, they continuously welcomed many international cruise ships and yachts to Vietnam. These cruise ships carried thousands of tourists, exploring many provinces and cities in Vietnam. For example, the international cruise ship Celebrity Solstice carried nearly 8,000 passengers from the US, Canada, UK... on a cross-Vietnam journey, docking at Phu My port (Ba Ria Vung Tau), Nha Trang, Hue and Ha Long. "We deploy a variety of attractive and rich tour itineraries at the destination, helping tourists experience the history, culture, people and unique cuisine in the three regions of the country", said the representative of Saigontourist Travel Agency.
The French cruise ship Le Jacques Cartier, departing from Sihanoukville (Cambodia), carrying 150 luxury tourists from France, the US, the UK, etc., has docked in Phu Quoc (Vietnam). The 7-day, 6-night journey to explore the beauty of Vietnam by this international group of tourists, in addition to the "pearl island", also includes Con Dao and Ho Chi Minh City. A tour on this cruise ship can vary from 8 days to 12 days, with prices ranging from more than 5,600 - more than 24,000 euros (about 152 - 650 million VND) per guest. Phu Quoc also welcomed the Costa Serena ship departing from Thailand to Duong Dong port, bringing about 1,100 tourists from Thailand, the US, China, etc. And nearly 2,000 German and Australian tourists also arrived in Phu Quoc on the super cruise ship AIDA Bella. Both of these ships are 5-star ships of Italian nationality.
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International tourists travel by cruise ship to visit Phu Quoc City. (Photo: Xuan Mi) |
In addition to Phu Quoc, Ha Long is also a notable destination. In 2024, there will be about 60 super yachts with 80,000 international tourists docking at Ha Long port. Localities with islands and beaches are investing in many cruise ships, many special tours, upgrading infrastructure on the islands, and cleaning the environment to welcome super-rich guests. In Quang Ninh, there are currently 506 cruise ships, of which about 200 ships stay in the bay with about 2,000 rooms. Ms. Nguyen Huyen Anh, Director of the Quang Ninh Department of Tourism, assessed that the development of cruise experience products in Ha Long is a turning point in creating specialized, high-class tourism products in Quang Ninh.
Meanwhile, Nha Trang city (Khanh Hoa) has welcomed 15 cruise ships since the beginning of the year, including international super cruise ships with a capacity of up to 4,000 passengers. Not far behind, Da Nang and Hue cities are expected to welcome 40-45 cruise ships in 2024. These numbers partly show the great potential of cruise tourism in Vietnam.
In particular, from June 2 to 8, 2025, the "Art for Climate - Ha Long Bay 2025" Festival is considered an international event in Ha Long City. Choosing Ha Long Bay is both to honor the values of art and at the same time to raise awareness of heritage conservation, join hands in responding to climate change and protecting the environment. According to the Organizing Committee, about 80,000 people are expected to participate in the event, including policy makers, local managers, artists, environmental activists, investors, students and many members of the community. There will be more than 200 European billionaires - those who have attended art events for the climate, Asian billionaires coming to Vietnam for the first time. What is special is that the billionaires are expected to come to Ha Long Bay by super yacht.
Yacht owners are usually middle-class and upper-class people. They want to enjoy Vietnam on their yachts. They are willing to spend a lot of money on tourism. This is a good opportunity for Vietnam's tourism industry to develop its economy and promote the image of the country, the yacht industry, and an ideal destination on international tours.
Currently, along with the development of domestic and international tourism, the cruise industry in Vietnam has begun to develop positively, reflecting the diversity and increasing attention from tourists and businesses, there have been more and more types of tourism and entertainment services on the sea by cruise.
Cruise tourists to Vietnam have high spending levels, so this type of tourism needs to be identified as one of the strategic products. However, according to tourism experts, most marinas in Vietnam are spontaneous in scale, and inland waterway ports do not meet international standards. At some ports, tourists have to walk quite a distance to get to the area where they can get on the bus to go sightseeing, which negatively affects the tourist experience. Therefore, it is necessary to develop infrastructure standards for marinas. In addition, authorities need to focus on accelerating investment and improving infrastructure at tourist ports; Revise the visa policy to be more open, improve entry and exit procedures towards minimizing administrative procedures, and gradually establish a cruise tourism ecosystem with a series of high-class products and services to meet the increasing demands of the luxury market, extend the length of stay and spending of tourists, increase the competitiveness of destinations, and create a clear corridor for the development of cruise tourism.
Source: https://baophapluat.vn/xu-huong-den-viet-nam-bang-du-thuyen-tang-manh-post536842.html
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