(VOVWORLD) - In the middle of March, Vietnam piloted the reopening of international tourism and, from the beginning of this month, has fully reopened its borders to foreign visitors. Vietnam has removed many of the previous restrictions for foreign tourists when visiting Vietnam.
 (Photo: baochinhphu.vn) |
Learning experience of other countries in reopening their borders to international tourists, Vietnam has expanded the options for inbound and outbound tourists who now travel to Vietnam by air, land, and sea.
To ensure a safe reopening, General Director of the Vietnam Administration of Tourism Nguyen Trung Khanh said, "We’ve communicated immigration procedures to ensure health safety at international border gates and that the procedure is uniform nationwide. The visa exemption policy for foreign visitors that took effect before 2020 has been resumed while the number of regular international commercial flights has been increased.”
 General Director of the Vietnam Administration of Tourism Nguyen Trung Khanh (Photo: vnexpress) |
Localities continue to diversify tourism products by integrating cultural elements into available products, offering more varied experiences for visitors.
Bui Van Manh, Director of Ninh Binh province’s Tourism Department, said, “We are stepping up promotional programs in potential international markets, improving the service quality, renewing the available products and services, and adding new ones. Businesses are trying to design new tourism packages, and improving the camping area on Trang An golf course and check-in points in Thung Nham ecotourism site and Hang Mua cave, in order to meet the increasing demands of tourists.”
Analytical data from Google Destination Insights shows that from the beginning of this year the number of international searches for Vietnam tourism has been among the highest in the world.
According to Tran Doan The Duy, Director General of Vietravel Travel Company, “It often takes some time to attract tourists after the reopening period. Tourism businesses, especially those involved in international tourism should increase promotion and advertisements. It’s necessary to promote both domestic and international tourism to ensure sustainable growth of the tourism industry.”
In the first quarter, Vietnam welcomed nearly 91,000 international visitors, up 90% against last year. The most searched destinations include Hanoi, Ha Long, Hue, Da Nang, Hoi An, Da Lat, and Phu Quoc, which are famous tourist destinations in Vietnam. International tourists have given positive feedback when traveling to Vietnam.
Damien Devillian, a visitor from Singapore, said, he has been in Vietnam for a few times and always thinks that Vietnam is such a wonderful country.
“Even though in one country, it’s always different. So every time you go, you can experience something new. That’s why I choose Vietnam because I haven’t finished exploring all of Vietnam. As soon as I know Vietnam is going to release soon, I already have all flight backpack. In one hour or one hour and a half, I came to the airport,” said Damien.
In 2022, Vietnam’s tourism industry targets to receive 65 million visitors, including 5 million foreign visitors, earning a revenue of 17.5 billion USD.
The reopening to international visitors will contribute to realizing the Government's dual goal of fighting the pandemic efficiently and recovering the economy.